81-531: The Marsh Academy , formerly Southlands Community Comprehensive School, is a non-selective secondary school in New Romney , Kent , England. The school is supported by the Skinners’ Company . Students attend from all over Romney Marsh . The school was established in 1588 in the parish of St Nicholas by John Southland, a resident of New Romney. It was established as a school for the poor and endowed as
162-700: A miniature golf facility. The value of Operation Pluto was controversial. Samuel Eliot Morison , the United States naval historian, noted that the pipelines "proved very useful for supplying the Allied armies as they advanced in Germany." According to the civil official historian, Michael Postan , Operation Pluto was "strategically important, tactically adventurous, and, from the industrial point of view, strenuous". On 24 May 1945, Winston Churchill described Operation Pluto as "a wholly British achievement and
243-531: A branch of supermarket chain Sainsbury's , but the town retains much of its character. The former almshouses in West Street are noted historic buildings of Kent; they were founded in 1610 by John Southland, an important local magnate, and rebuilt in 1734. Adjacent to these is Plantagenet House and No 3 Old Stone Cottage, which originated as a single house constructed c. 1300–1350. Researchers think it
324-442: A continuous length of pipeline similar to a submarine communications cable without the core and insulation, but with armour to withstand the internal pressure, which could be deployed by a cable-layer ship . Additional capacity could be obtained by laying multiple lines. By using high pressure, the line could carry different kinds of fuel. At low pressure different fuels would mix, but at high pressure they would stay separate. Thus,
405-512: A cost of £30,000 apiece, and named HMS Conundrum 1 through 6. A Conundrum was towed to a special dock where it was held by two steel arms. A sprocket chain driven by an electric motor rotated the Conundrum while pipe was wound around it. At the end of each 4,000-foot (1,200 m) segment, the next was welded, the swarf was cleaned out, and the process continued until the Conundrum held 90 miles (140 km) of pipe, at which point it had
486-448: A day, and coastal tankers were delivering 2,500 to 3,000 long tons (2,500 to 3,000 t) per day to Ostend , and a similar amount to Rouen. On the other hand, only Antwerp and Cherbourg were capable of handling the large tankers, but Antwerp was under attack from V-1 flying bombs and V-2 rockets , and it was considered inadvisable for it handle more than one tanker at a time. As for the coastal tankers, they were in demand for service in
567-466: A displacement of 1,600 long tons (1,600 t). An Admiralty hopper barge named W.24 was converted to carry a Conundrum, and named HMS Persephone . It was a twin-screw vessel 200-foot (61 m) and 35-foot (11 m) wide. On 4 June 1943 a trial lay of one mile of Hamel pipe was successfully carried out. Though not having the capacity to cross the Channel, Persephone laid 16 Hamel pipes across
648-523: A displacement of 12,220 long tons (12,420 t), could each handle 100 mi (160 km) of 3-inch pipe weighing approximately 6,400 long tons (6,500 t). Two storage tanks 50 feet (15 m) in diameter, one forward and one aft, provided the stowage space for the pipe. Thames barges were converted to handle connecting the cable at the shore ends, where the waters were too shallow for these ships to operate. These were HM cable barges Britannic , Oceanic , Runic , Gold Dust and Gold Drift . Each
729-456: A permanent institution by his will of 1610. The John Southland Trust scheme was renewed from 22 December 1916 and confirmed by parliament in 1923 "to go to poor children". In 1956, the grounds were initially used as a prison grounds using the interconnect tunnel underneath the road as an entrance, at a later date the tunnel was filled in due to safety concerns, splitting the grounds into two, one being transformed as commercial property, meanwhile
810-429: A public phone booth for instructions. Each pumping station was equipped with thirty diesel-powered reciprocating pumps with a capacity of 180 long tons (180 t) per day, and four large Byron Jackson Company electric centrifugal pumps capable of 3,500 long tons (3,600 t) per day, which worked out to 400,000 imperial gallons (1,800,000 L) at 1,500 psi (10,000 kPa). Both stations were fed from
891-403: A reminder of these aids. Another possible explanation for these place-names is a result of the effects of longshore drift , which disperses shingle and sand deposits, from west to east, with heavier stones accumulating in the area known as Greatstone, while far smaller shingle is to be found in great quantities at Littlestone. Very fine sand is found further east at neighbouring St Mary's Bay. In
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#1732794402183972-587: A school was built on the unused land. From 7 September 1977 until 24 July 2015, the Romney, Hythe and Dymchurch Railway provided school trains to transport children to and from the Academy. The service was finally withdrawn due to falling usage. On 1 September 2007 the school's name was changed to the current name, The Marsh Academy. A school serving a 1000 children in an isolated rural coastal location. This Kent school or sixth form college related article
1053-466: A single line extension was built with an unprotected level crossing to an exchange siding with the adjacent Romney Hythe and Dymchurch Railway station on the opposite side of the Station Road; it was used to deliver coal to that railway. The signal box was taken out of use in the 1950s and goods service was withdrawn in 1964. The station was closed in 1967 and replaced with a bus service. New Romney
1134-409: A special broaching tool to remove the metal swarf . Ellis teamed with H. A. Hammick, the chief engineer of Iraq Petroleum Company , and the pipe became known as 'Hamel' after their surnames, although after the war Ellis successfully asserted his claim to be recognised as the sole inventor. Unlike Hais, Hamel pipe was too stiff to be coiled in a ship's hold, as it could not withstand the twist along
1215-450: Is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . New Romney New Romney is a market town in Kent , England, on the edge of Romney Marsh , an area of flat, rich agricultural land reclaimed from the sea after the harbour began to silt up. New Romney, one of the original Cinque Ports , was once a sea port, with the harbour adjacent to the church, but is now more than a mile from
1296-720: Is easily accessible by road, sitting astride the A259 (which runs from Folkestone to Havant ). Several bus services run to and through New Romney from Hastings , Folkestone and Ashford . New Romney has one dedicated weekly newspaper, the Kentish Express (published by the KM Group ) is the only weekly newspaper for the Romney Marsh covering the town. There is also the Folkestone Herald (which incorporated
1377-728: The Avonmouth-Thames pipeline , which had a capacity of 135,000 long tons (137,000 t) per month. A 70-mile (110 km) branch line was constructed connecting Dungeness with its eastern terminal at Walton-on-Thames . Sandown was connected to the system through a 22-mile (35 km) link between the Isle of Wight and Fawley Refinery . The pipeline connections to Pluto were completed by March 1944. The corresponding sites in France were selected in June 1943. Sandown would be connected to
1458-536: The Avonmouth-Thames pipeline . The first was the not-very-successful "Bambi" project, which connected Sandown on the Isle of Wight to Cherbourg in Normandy . Deployment of Bambi began on 12 August 1944, and it delivered just 3,300 long tons (3,400 t) between 22 September, when the first pipeline became operational, and 4 October, when it was terminated. More successful was "Dumbo", which ran from Dungeness on
1539-723: The Kent coast to Boulogne in Pas-de-Calais . The Dumbo system began pumping on 26 October, expanded to 17 pipelines by December, and remained in action until 7 August 1945. Ultimately, the pipelines carried about 8 per cent of all petroleum products sent from the United Kingdom to the Allied Expeditionary Force in North West Europe, including some 180 million imperial gallons (820 million litres) of petrol. In early April 1942,
1620-545: The Romney Marsh Herald in 2014, published by Kent Regional News and Media). The local radio station for New Romney is KMFM Ashford which contains Marsh-based adverts amongst a county-wide station, and New Romney is also served by the county-wide stations Heart , Gold and BBC Radio Kent . Cinque Ports Radio 100.2FM is the community radio station for Romney Marsh and has been broadcasting since 7 March 2022 replacing Shoreline FM which now broadcasts online to
1701-590: The Solent to the Isle of Wight . It was not known precisely how long the Hamel pipe would last, but it was assumed to be about six weeks. Fluorescein dye was added to the fuel to allow patrol aircraft to detect leaks. In view of this success, it was decided to utilise both Hais and Hamel. In the spring of 1943, the Petroleum Warfare Department selected sites for the pumping stations. One
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#17327944021831782-545: The Bristol Channel and the Solent under the supervision of the designers, but it was another matter for the naval laying parties to achieve the same degree of proficiency under wartime conditions and across the much wider English Channel. Sir Donald Banks wrote: "The technique of cable laying had been mastered but we were not yet sufficiently versed in the practice of connecting the shore ends, nor in effecting repairs to
1863-631: The British and five at Sainte-Honorine-des-Pertes for the Americans. The Tombola lines had a tendency to break, and the Chants fared poorly in the rough weather of the English Channel. By 28 July sixteen of them were laid up for repairs at a special tanker repair facility that had been established at Hamble-le-Rice . Consideration was given to cancelling Pluto, but under the circumstances it
1944-706: The Chief of Combined Operations , Vice-Admiral Lord Louis Mountbatten , approached the Secretary for Petroleum , Geoffrey Lloyd , and asked if an oil pipeline could be laid across the English Channel . Mountbatten was tasked with planning the Allied invasion of German-occupied Europe , and had concerns about the supply of petroleum products, since it was considered unlikely that a port with oil reception facilities could be quickly secured. The British War Office estimated that 60 per cent or more by weight of
2025-609: The Dumbo lines were delivering 4,500 long tons (4,600 t) a day to the Rhine . New lines continued to be laid, the last one being laid on 24 May. The system was finally closed down to save manpower on 7 August, by which time the pipelines had carried 180 million imperial gallons (820 million litres) of petrol. Operation Pluto was officially disbanded on 31 August, and the Petroleum Warfare Department
2106-468: The Far East. It was therefore decided to continue with Operation Pluto. As the fighting moved on to Germany, Dumbo was connected to an inland pipeline system that was extended from Boulogne to Antwerp, Eindhoven and ultimately Emmerich . Dumbo surpassed its target of 1 million imperial gallons (4.5 million litres) (about 3,000 long tons (3,000 t)) per day on 15 March 1945, and by 3 April
2187-788: The Magnatex firm under the supervision of the Ministry of Supply . By 1944, a stockpile of 250,000 long tons (250,000 t) of packaged petrol and diesel fuel had been accumulated in the UK. After the first few days of the invasion, it was hoped that petroleum could be supplied in bulk. Pipelines were not the sole or even the principal means by which Combined Operations was contemplating supplying bulk petroleum; it intended to rely primarily on small shallow-draught coastal tankers , of which thirty were under construction. American 600- deadweight-ton (610- deadweight-tonne ) "Y" tankers began arriving in
2268-631: The Ocean or Pipeline Underwater Transportation of Oil , also written Operation PLUTO ) was an operation by British engineers, oil companies and the British Armed Forces to build oil pipelines under the English Channel to support Operation Overlord , the Allied invasion of Normandy during the Second World War . The British War Office estimated that petrol , oil , and lubricants would account for more than 60 per cent of
2349-413: The UK in the spring of 1944. In 1943, the British also initiated a programme to construct 400-deadweight-ton (410-deadweight-tonne) Channel tankers (Chants), but only 37 were completed by May 1944. It was hoped that petroleum products might also be supplied by ocean-going T2 tankers lying offshore through ship-to-shore pipelines. The project to develop these pipelines was codenamed Operation Tombola, and
2430-443: The United Kingdom, of which Operation Pluto contributed 370 thousand long tons (380 thousand tonnes) or 8 per cent. The total cost of Operation Pluto was reckoned at £4,428,000. After the war, more than 85 per cent of the pipeline was salvaged and subsequently scrapped. This was accomplished during the period September 1946 to October 1949, using Latimer and Holdfast (by then operated by Ministry of War Transport under
2511-483: The amount of fuel pumped, both pipelines failed: the Hais due to a faulty coupling , and the Hamel when it encountered a sharp edge on the ocean floor. Operation Bambi was terminated the following day. Only about 3,300 long tons (3,400 t) (935,000 imperial gallons (4,250,000 L)) of fuel had been transferred. Meanwhile, the port of Rouen had been captured on 30 August, and Le Havre on 12 September. Le Havre
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2592-591: The chairman of Anglo-Iranian, Sir William Fraser , who was also the petroleum advisor to the War Office, and from Henry Wright, the managing director of Siemens Brothers . Fraser agreed to pick up the costs of trials, albeit in the hope that the government would subsequently reimburse the company. Siemens Brothers developed the cable in conjunction with the National Physical Laboratory based on their existing undersea telegraph cable . It
2673-647: The chief engineer of the Burmah Oil Company , was convinced that a flexible pipeline could be built from mild steel , which was more readily available than lead. His pipe was 3 + 1 ⁄ 2 in (8.9 cm) in diameter, with 0.212-inch (5.4 mm) walls. The prototype was fabricated in 30-foot (9.1 m) segments by J & E Hall , a firm better known as a manufacturer of refrigeration equipment. The segments were made to be flash welded together. Normally welded pipe gave trouble due to rings of residue that formed around each weld. Ellis designed
2754-573: The coast during the Pipe Line Under The Ocean , or PLUTO, oil was pumped to France under the English Channel for use by allied troops. New Romney is the main centre of population on the Romney Marsh. Founded in 1610 by John Southland and formerly known locally as just "Southland's", John Southland's Community Comprehensive School, the only secondary school in the area, was renamed The Marsh Academy in August 2007. Like many towns on
2835-400: The currents and tidal conditions found in the English Channel. Moreover, to minimise interference by the enemy and the effect of the tides, the entire pipeline would have to be laid in a single night. They regarded the proposal as infeasible using any known method of construction of pipelines 6 inches (15 cm) or more in diameter. The Chief Engineer of Anglo-Iranian, Clifford Hartley ,
2916-468: The designer of the Conundrum; and £250 to A. E. Price, who designed the wedge gripping device used to fix the pipeline near the shore. It is estimated that nearly 5.4 million long tons (5.5 million tonnes) of petroleum products were delivered to the Allied Expeditionary Force. Of this, 826 thousand long tons (839 thousand tonnes) came directly from the United States and 4.3 million long tons (4.4 million tonnes) (84 per cent) from
2997-605: The director-general of the Petroleum Warfare Department ; Sir Arthur Charles Hearn [ de ] , a former director of the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company and the oil advisor to the Fourth Sea Lord ; and George Martin Lees , an eminent geologist . At the time, submarine pipelines were in use in ports and over short distances, but no pipeline had ever been laid across such a great distance or under
3078-571: The latter part of the thirteenth century a series of severe storms weakened the coastal defences of Romney Marsh, and the South England flood of February 1287 almost destroyed the town, as it did destroy the nearby ancient parish of Broomhill. The harbour and town were filled with sand, silt, mud and debris, and the River Rother changed course to run out into the sea near Rye , Sussex. The mud, silt and sand were never entirely removed from
3159-867: The longitudinal axis that came with each turn of the coil. The Petroleum Warfare Department proposed that it be wound around a buoyant steel drum that could be towed by tugs or fitted on a Hopper barge . The resulting steel drum was 60 ft (18 m) long and 40 ft (12 m) in diameter, and was known as a "Conun" or "Conundrum". Tests were carried out in the Froude tank at the National Physical Laboratory to verify that Conundrums could be towed at speed without yawing . Stewarts & Lloyds undertook to design, construct and operate two factories at Tilbury where 40-foot (12 m) lengths of pipe were welded together into 4,000-foot (1,200 m) segments. Six Conundrums were constructed at
3240-457: The marsh it has an impressive Norman church, the Church of St Nicholas , in the centre of town. This church originally stood at the harbourside, and its entrances are several feet below ground level. The church is also notable for the boat hooks still evident on the side walls. New Romney's historic high street has several small and interesting shops. A few businesses closed after the opening of
3321-418: The mean time between repairs of the Hamel pipelines varied between 52 and 112 days, with 68 days being the average. They could not be run at the intended pressure, so they carried only petrol, and plans for the pipelines to deliver aviation spirit as well were discarded. In December there was reconsideration of whether to continue with Operation Pluto. By this time Antwerp was unloading an ocean-going tanker
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3402-422: The medieval origins and development of the town. New Romney Town Hall was built in 1702. During World War II a fleet of floating concrete harbour sections (called Mulberry Harbours ) were towed across the English Channel to France to aid the Allied landings. One of these harbour pieces remains, embedded in a sandbank just off the coast by Littlestone-on-Sea, and is clearly visible at low tide. Further up
3483-497: The names Empire Ridley and Empire Taw ), Empire Tigness (a former German tanker), Wrangler (an ex-Admiralty Mark III tank landing craft ), and Redeemer (an ex-Admiralty motor fishing vessel). In all, 22,000 long tons (22,000 t) of the original 23,000 long tons (23,000 t) of lead and 3,300 long tons (3,400 t) of the original 5,500 long tons (5,600 t) of steel were recovered, along with 75,000 imperial gallons (340,000 L) of petrol that were still in
3564-596: The operation, 570 nmi (1,060 km) were made by firms in the United Kingdom, while 140 nmi (260 km) was manufactured in the United States by four American firms, including The Okonite Calendar Company, General Cable, Phelps Dodge and the General Electric Company . Full-scale production of the two-inch pipe was started on 14 August 1942, using steel from the Corby Steelworks , and on 30 October, 30 mi (50 km) of it
3645-513: The original Operation Overlord plan, Cherbourg was supposed to be captured within eight days of D-Day (D+8) and, despite the expectation that the Germans would carry out systematic demolitions, be opened within three days. Pipe laying was to commence four days later, with the Bambi system fully operational by D+75 (seventy-five days after D-Day). The discovery of an additional German division in
3726-485: The pipe became wrapped around the propeller of the support ship, HMS Algerian . An attempt to lay Hamel pipe instead failed on 27 August when it was discovered that tons of barnacles had attached themselves to the bottom of HMS Conundrum 1 , thereby preventing it from rotating. The barnacles were scraped off, and another attempt was made a few days later, but the pipeline broke about 29 nmi (54 km) out. The expert technicians had been able to lay pipelines across
3807-531: The pipeline could be used for aviation spirit , and then switched to diesel fuel. The project was given the codename Pluto, which stood for "pipeline underwater transportation of oil" or "pipeline under the ocean". The operation was placed under the chief of staff to the Supreme Allied Commander , Designate (COSSAC). The G-4 section of the COSSAC staff, which assumed responsibility for Pluto,
3888-433: The pipelines themselves became known as Tombolas. The submarine pipeline had sufficient advantages to make it worthwhile to explore as a backup means of supply. Submarine pipelines were less susceptible to enemy air attack and the frequently stormy English Channel weather, and their use would reduce the forces' dependency on vulnerable storage tanks ashore. Lloyd consulted his expert advisors: Brigadier Sir Donald Banks ,
3969-405: The pipelines. The value of the scrap lead and steel was well in excess of the costs of recovery. The total value of the salvaged steel and lead was estimated at £400,000. Although the pipeline itself is no longer in use, many of the buildings that were constructed or utilised to disguise it remain, especially on the Isle of Wight, where the former pumping station at Sandown is currently in use as
4050-526: The port of Cherbourg , a distance of over 65 nmi (120 km). Dungeness would be connected to the port of Ambleteuse . In keeping with the Disney theme suggested by Pluto , the former was codenamed " Bambi " and the latter " Dumbo ". As part of the Operation Overlord deception operation known as Operation Fortitude , a fake oil dock was created at Dover . The architect Basil Spence
4131-484: The qualifying rounds of The Open Championship . The Romney, Hythe and Dymchurch Railway has a station at the extreme east of New Romney, which as well as being a major tourist attraction was also used by students travelling to school until 2015. The station is about three-quarters of a mile east of the historic town centre. New Romney was once serviced by the New Romney and Littlestone-On-Sea railway station which
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#17327944021834212-582: The same area as Shoreline Easy and previously broadcast on 100.2FM since January 2020 In 1951 the Richard Burton , Roger Livesey , and Honor Blackman film Green Grow the Rushes was made on location in and around New Romney and in nearby St Mary in the Marsh . In 1762 Thomas Fairfax, 6th Lord Fairfax of Cameron named the town of Romney in present-day West Virginia in the United States after
4293-529: The sea. It is the headquarters of the Romney, Hythe and Dymchurch Railway . New Romney is not significantly different in age from the nearby village of Old Romney . However New Romney, now about a mile and a half from the seafront, was originally a harbour town at the mouth of the River Rother . The Rother estuary was always difficult to navigate, with many shallow channels and sandbanks. The names of two local settlements, Greatstone and Littlestone, are
4374-457: The supplies of the expeditionary forces would consist of petrol , oil and lubricants (POL). In the initial stages of the assault, packaged fuel would be supplied in 20-litre (4.4-imperial-gallon) jerricans and 44-imperial-gallon (200-litre) drums . To supply the twenty million jerricans required, an entire American manufacturing plant was shipped to the London area , where it was operated by
4455-442: The town of New Romney. [REDACTED] Media related to New Romney at Wikimedia Commons Operation Pluto Airborne assault British Sector American Sector Normandy landings American Sector Anglo-Canadian Sector Logistics Ground campaign American Sector Anglo-Canadian Sector Breakout Air and Sea operations Supporting operations Aftermath Operation Pluto ( Pipeline Under
4536-423: The town, which is why many old buildings, especially the church, have steps leading down into them from the present pavement level. New Romney is one of the original Cinque Ports of England, although its importance declined rapidly during the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries after the loss of the harbour. Archaeological investigations in 2007 during replacement of the town's main drainage have cast new light on
4617-439: The undersea leaks which were caused fairly close inshore through these faulty concluding operations." Finally, on 22 September a Hais cable was laid that worked, delivering 56,000 imperial gallons (250,000 L) per day. This was followed on 29 September by the successful installation of a Hamel cable by HMS Conundrum 2 . However, on 3 October when the pressure was increased from 50 to 70 bars (730 to 1,020 psi) to augment
4698-484: The vicinity in May led to the expected capture being pushed back ten days from D+8 to D+18. In the event, the port of Cherbourg was captured on 27 June (D+21), and due to the extensive damage the first POL tanker did not discharge there until 25 July (D+49). In the meantime, fuel was supplied through the small port of Port-en-Bessin by coastal tankers, and from ocean-going tankers using two Tombola lines at Port-en-Bessin for
4779-472: The weight of supplies required by the expeditionary forces. Pipelines would reduce the need for coastal tankers , which could be hindered by bad weather, were subject to air attack, and needed to be offloaded into vulnerable storage tanks ashore. A new kind of pipeline was required that could be rapidly deployed. Two types were developed, named "Hais" and "Hamel" after their inventors. Two pipeline systems were laid, each connected by camouflaged pumping stations to
4860-544: Was 90 feet (27 m) long with a 20-foot (6.1 m) beam and a loaded displacement of 450 long tons (460 t) carrying 2.5 miles (4.0 km) of three-inch Hais pipe. Anglo-Iranian Oil personnel supervised the erection of pumping equipment by the Royal Army Service Corps (RASC), Pioneer Corps and Royal Engineers personnel, and a RASC bulk petroleum company was specially trained to operate them. A Port of London Authority factory at Tilbury
4941-566: Was badly damaged in the fighting and by demolitions. Rouen, an inland port 75 miles (121 km) up the Seine River , was in better shape, with its quays largely intact, although demolitions had been carried out and the river channel to it was blocked by mines and sunken vessels. Even when it was cleared the channel from Le Havre was shallow, but coastal tankers carrying POL from the UK were able to navigate it and discharge in Rouen. Boulogne
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#17327944021835022-399: Was called upon to design it. Constructed from camouflaged scaffolding , fibreboard and old sewage pipe, the fake facility spanned 3 acres (1.2 ha) and included fake versions of pipelines, storage tanks, jetties, vehicle parks and antiaircraft emplacements. Wind machines were used to create clouds of dust to simulate activity, and the site was guarded by the military police . At night it
5103-456: Was captured on 22 September, and the port was opened on 22 October. A Hais pipeline was laid by HMS Sancroft , which commenced pumping on 26 October, and remained in action until the end of the war. Lines were run to a beach in the outer harbour of Boulogne, 23 nmi (43 km) distant across the Strait of Dover , instead of Ambleteuse as originally planned because the beach at the latter
5184-444: Was covered by a protective layer of fifty galvanised steel wires, and camouflaged canvas cover. The pipe could deliver 3,500 imp gal (16,000 L) per day at a pressure of 500 psi (3,400 kPa), and withstand an underwater pressure of 1,950 psi (13,400 kPa). The 2-inch size was chosen to keep the weight down; a larger cable would have required a larger ship to deploy it. A 120-yard (110 m) prototype
5265-426: Was decided to proceed. Time was wasted in deciding whether to terminate the line inside or outside the harbour; eventually the latter was chosen. The first Hais pipeline was laid by HMS Latimer in just ten hours on 12 August 1944, but the pipeline failed when an escorting destroyer caught it with its anchor and damaged it beyond repair. A second effort was made by HMS Sancroft two days later. This too failed when
5346-575: Was established at Sandown on the Isle of Wight, and another at Dungeness on the Kent coast. Construction was carried out at night and in secret, and equipment was carried in under tarpaulins. The pumping stations and storage tanks were camouflaged to look like villas, seaside cottages, old forts, amusement parks and other innocuous features. Strict instructions were issued that neither "Petroleum Warfare Department" nor its initials should appear on any letter or package. The locations were erased from maps. Lorry drivers conducting deliveries had to phone from
5427-468: Was extended to Calais where better railway connections were available to transport the fuel. This extension was completed in November. By December, nine 3-inch and two 2-inch Hamel pipelines and four 3-inch and two 2-inch Hais cable pipelines had been laid, a total of 17 pipelines, and Dumbo was providing 1,300 long tons (1,300 t) of petrol per day. Not one of the Hais cable pipelines broke, and
5508-530: Was further tested when two German 500 lb (230 kg) bombs were dropped on Swansea 100 feet (30 m) from the cable. Later a ship's anchor dragged the cable pipe, but Holdfast was able to locate and repair the damage. To prove the reliability of the cable pipe, pumping operations were carried out continuously, first at the original design pressure of 750 psi (5,200 kPa), and then at 1,500 psi (10,000 kPa), with 56,000 imp gal (250,000 L) of fuel delivered per day. The trial
5589-641: Was headed by British Major General Nevil Brownjohn , with American Colonel F. L. Rash, Colonel Frank M. Albrecht, and Major General Robert W. Crawford successively as his deputy. Royal Navy Captain John Fenwick Hutchings from the Admiralty 's Department of Miscellaneous Weapons Development was placed in command of Operation Pluto. By VE-Day his command would consist of several ships, over 100 merchant navy officers and more than 1,000 men. Hartley received support for his proposal from
5670-411: Was heavily mined. This involved a longer distance and a more difficult approach, but cable-laying techniques had been refined. The ends of the cable were dropped just offshore and picked up by the barges for connection to the shore. The Hamel pipe gave more trouble, but after some trial and error, it was laid with sections of Hais pipe at each end. Boulogne also had poor railway facilities, so the pipeline
5751-552: Was increased from two to four layers. At Siemens' suggestion, a second supplier, Henleys, was brought in to increase manufacturing capacity. A second test was carried out in June across the Firth of Clyde , with lengths of pipe manufactured by both Siemens and Henleys. The pipe was laid by the Post Office cable ship Iris . Both functioned successfully. Of the 710 nautical miles [nmi] (1,310 km ) of Hais cable produced for
5832-407: Was known as Hais, from Hartley-Anglo-Iranian-Siemens. The 2-inch (5 cm) diameter inner pipe, which would carry the petroleum, was made from extruded lead . This was surrounded by a layer of asphalt and paper impregnated with vinylite resin . Steel tape was wound around this to give it strength and flexibility. Around this was a layer of jute tape and asphalt-impregnated paper. Finally, it
5913-553: Was laid across the River Medway by the Post Office cable ship CS Alert on 10 May 1942. A pumping test was then carried out using pumps borrowed from the Manchester Ship Canal Company. After two days of pumping, a failure occurred. The cable was pulled up, and the problem was found to have been caused by extrusion of the lead through gaps in the steel tape. Accordingly, the amount of steel tape
5994-476: Was loaded on board HMS Holdfast under the command of Commander Henry Treby-Heale, which was to be used as a full-scale rehearsal of Operation Pluto. This trial occurred on 29 December 1942. A 30-mile length was laid across the Bristol Channel in rough weather at a rate of 5 knots (9.3 km/h) with the shore ends being connected at Swansea and Ilfracombe . The sturdiness of the cable pipe
6075-484: Was obscured by a smoke screen . German aircraft were allowed to overfly the facility, but only above 33,000 feet (10,000 m), where high-resolution imagery was not possible. The fake facility was inspected by King George VI , and the Supreme Allied Commander, General Dwight D. Eisenhower and his ground forces commander, General Sir Bernard Montgomery spoke to the "workers". According to
6156-561: Was originally the home of the Master of The Hospital of St John the Baptist, a large secular establishment. The hospital was operating by c. 1260 and flourished until the close of the fifteenth century. Three-quarters of a mile north of the town is the links golf course at Littlestone-on-Sea. The golf course was a favourite of Denis Thatcher , late husband of former British prime minister Margaret Thatcher , and has been used several times for
6237-590: Was part of the Lydd Line. The station was sited halfway between New Romney and Littlestone-on-Sea. As built the station had two platforms and a small goods yard with four sidings, a goods shed, cattle dock, coal wharves, end loading dock, water tower and other small buildings. The up platform was rarely used in latter years other than as a livestock loading dock. The station was originally called New Romney & Littlestone with on-Sea being added in October 1888. In 1927
6318-430: Was requisitioned and converted into a cable pipe factory where 3 to 4 nmi (5.6 to 7.4 km) of cable pipe per day was tested, welded into 4,000-foot (1,200 m) lengths and stored. Lead was in short supply, so the Petroleum Warfare Department decided to seek an alternative that made use of cheaper and more readily available materials as a backup system to Hais, which was itself a backup system. Bernard J. Ellis,
6399-519: Was sufficiently successful that it was decided to develop 3-inch (7.6 cm)-diameter pipe. This reduced the number of pipelines required to pump the same volume of petrol, as each 3-inch pipe had more than twice the capacity of the 2-inch pipe. A merchant ship, HMS Algerian was acquired, and converted to carry 30 miles (48 km) of 3-inch cable pipe. Two more, the converted Liberty ships HMS Sancroft and HMS Latimer (later renamed Empire Baffin and Empire Ridley respectively) with
6480-417: Was visiting the Petroleum Warfare Department at this time, and he heard about the proposal, and was convinced that it was possible. In the hilly terrain of Iran, Anglo-Iranian had employed a 3-inch (7.6 cm) pipeline. Running at 1,500 psi (10,000 kPa ), it delivered 100,000 imperial gallons (450,000 L) per day, the equivalent of over 20,000 jerricans. On 15 April he pitched his proposal for
6561-627: Was wound up on 31 March 1946. The Tilbury plant was transferred to the Admiralty, and all remaining stores to the Ministry of Supply. No post-war use of the technology was contemplated, so Operation Pluto's records were sent to the Public Record Office , where they remained sealed for the next thirty years. The Royal Commission on Awards to Inventors awarded tax-free payments of £9,000 to Hartley; £5,000 to Ellis; £85 to M. K. Purvis,
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