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Howard Prothero, left, and Gerry Nell try out the model of an army tank they helped build to draw crowds to a fundraiser for ex-servicemen in frail care. Picture: Jacques Naud�
Far from the North African battlefields of World War II, a Bren Gun Carrier army tank sits parked in a driveway in the Durban suburb of Queensburgh.
But passersby need not be startled by the .50 calibre Browning machine gun pointing towards the road, because it is only a life-size model and the “gun” is made from wood. The tank was built to raise funds for retired military men in need of frail care.
Howard Prothero, 59, a member of the Memorable Order of Tin Hats (Moths), and eight others worked on the tank for 18 months.
All that remains is the test drive and final tweaks, so that come October it will be a major drawcard at the Flame Lily Park féte, in aid of a local home for former servicemen.
Prothero is hoping that children will scramble for a free ride in the tank, which is powered by a Datsun 1 800 engine.
“If you keep the children happy, their parents will stay (at the féte) longer,” the former Rhodesian and British soldier said. “We won’t exceed 8km/h, although in theory it should reach 30km/h or 40km/h.”
Prothero said he had decided on the British-developed Bren Gun Carrier, which was used mainly in the deserts of North Africa against the Germans during World War II for the project, because it had space for passengers.
He estimates the tank weighs 750kg. Although he paid some of the bill, fortunately most of the material needed for its construction was donated.
“We had to beg, borrow and steal,” fellow Moth and boilermaker Gerry Nell, 58, added.
Asked if he had any engineering qualifications, Prothero said his experience in making wheelchairs had come in handy.
The idea behind the Moths, who have 2 500 members in KwaZulu-Natal alone and are celebrating their 85th anniversary next month, had always been for ex-servicemen to support each other, he said.
“At the Flame Lily Park retirement home, where many Moths live, there are about 100 ex-servicemen in frail care which costs about R5 000 a month each,” Prothero said.
After the féte, Flame Lily Park, and not his driveway, would become home to the tank.
“It doesn’t belong to me. We’re just a bunch of crazy guys who decided to build a tank and use it for a good cause,” Prothero said. – Daily News
