Family’s vintage military vehicles heading for D Day anniversary events in France

A Shropshire family with a passion for restoring vintage military vehicles is preparing to take part in events in Normandy next month to mark the 70th anniversary of the D Day landings.

Ben Kaye, 37, of Mytton, near Shrewsbury has enlisted help from his dad, Tom and friend Peter Meakin from Clive in a 15-month restoration of a 1940 Scammell Pioneer R100 artillery tractor, which will be driven on the Normandy beaches at Arromanches.

The family will also be taking a 1941 Scammell Pioneer SV25 recovery vehicle to the event, where Ben will be joined by his wife Emma, sons Sam, five and Will, three, parents, Tom and Julie and Mr Meakin.

They will be taking with them a wreath to be laid in the sea on behalf of Emma’s grandfather, Charles Owen, parade marshal for Ford and District Royal British Legion branch and a British flag belonging to Ben’s former primary school teacher, which was displayed on a gunboat driven by her late father on D Day, June 6, 1944.

To ensure that the vintage military vehicles run smoothly during their French adventure, Shrewsbury-based Morris Lubricants has donated 150 litres of its specialist Golden Film Classic Motor Oils and multi-purpose grease.

The trip to Arromanches has been organised by The Military Vehicle Trust. “We are going to be on the beach at Asnelles by 6.30am on June 6, the 70^th anniversary of D Day and we will then drive around the headland to Arromanches,” said Ben, who runs a Land Rover repair and diagnostics business.

“There are going a lot of veterans there for the events and we think it’s important for them to be spotlighted for what they did for us 70 years ago. Had we not got a foothold in Europe through the D Day landings, we would probably have been invaded by the Nazis.”

He bought his first Scammell Pioneer SV25 recovery vehicle for £2,000 with a student loan when he was 19 and has been collecting military vehicles ever since. Between them, he and his dad also own a 1973 Scorpion tank, a 1964 Alvis Stalwart amphibious vehicle, a 1967 FV434 Reme fitters vehicle and two AC Matador gun tractors dating to the 1940s and ‘50s.

He purchased the R100, which had lain rotting in a timber yard for 30 years, in 2004 and kept it in storage until starting restoration work on December 29, 2012.

“We had it running within 12 months and I have just had it road tested,” said Ben. “I estimate that we have put around 3,000 hours into restoring it, but it has been well worth the effort. Pete has been here every Monday and Friday night for 14 months and has given his time freely to help us out, dad has done all the woodwork and I have done engine and running gear.

“They are brilliant vehicles, the archetypal British lorries and a proper bit of British engineering by Scammell in Watford, which need to be preserved for posterity.”

His passion for Scammells seems to hold no bounds, as he went out on his first date with Emma in the recovery vehicle, which was also used when they got married.

Ben is delighted that Morris Lubricants has offered is donating oil and grease for the vehicles for the French trip. “The company’s Gold Film range of classic motor oils is superb and their technical helpdesk is brilliant when you have a question about which oils to use in a particular vehicle,” he said. “We are so lucky to have this well-established company in Shrewsbury.”

Andrew Goddard, Morris Lubricants’ managing director, said the company was pleased to be able to supply oil for British vintage military vehicles that Ben and his family will be displaying at the important events to mark the 70^th anniversary of the D Day landings.

“Our Golden Film Classic Motor Oils are perfect for Ben’s Scammells,” he added. “They are recommended for use in veteran, classic and vintage vehicles, where engine design and tolerances prohibit the use of modern multigrade, high additive level oils.”

Closer to home, the Scammells will also be on display at Shrewsbury Steam Engine and Vintage Vehicle Rally at Onslow Park, Shrewsbury on August 24 and 25, where Ben runs the military vehicle section and at Malpas Yesteryear Rally on September 6 and 7.