Fordingbridge Auxiliary Unit Patrol

This page was last updated on 12/11/16

Thank you for selecting information on the Fordingbridge Auxiliary Unit Patrol located in Hampshire. The info below has been compiled by Dr Will Ward CART CIO for Dorset.

The patrol was part of Group 1 in Hampshire, Commanded by Captain A J Champion, who was also area commander for all the West Hampshire groups. The assistant commander of Group 1 was Lt L D C Ayles.

Not known by CART.

The patrol names for the west of Hampshire and the New Forest have been identified from National Archives file WO199/3391, but are not divided by patrol. The nominal roll gives the surname, initials, ID card number and address, together with date of birth. The patrols have been arranged according to the addresses and ID card numbers around known patrol leaders. This means the allocations may not be completely accurate. Additional personal information such as first names and dates of death have been added using the 1911 census, Ancestry.com and FreeBMD.com. Some men, particularly those from the Ringwood area where there are several patrols, could not be allocated with any confidence to one patrol or another, so are listed here.

The Fordingbridge patrol contained men who lived to the north and west of the Avon. There was another patrol, in another group, on the other side of the river around Hale.

Reginald Fry came from Weymouth, where he had married the daughter of a Church of Scotland minister before the war. He was there when issued with his ID card, which carried a Weymouth code, showing he was resident there in 1939. He returned there after the war as his death is recorded in Weymouth.

Ted Rogers was recruited by his elder brother Andrew, who was also a member. Their parents were oblivious to their participation.

Ted Rogers died in 2006 and he confessed to his wartime exploits when his 50 years of the official secrets act expired.

Their Operational Base was in the woods and was blown up by the regular army after the war.

Unknown at this time.

The patrol would conduct the training practices outlined here

The unit used to break in to the airbase at Ibsley for practice and leave their calling cards to show how non-secure the base was.

The patrol would generally have the weapons shown here

Nothing currently

http://histfam.familysearch.org/getperson.php?personID=I72808&tree=Fasti

Thanks go to Ann Stevens, Grandaughter of Ted Rogers for some great info above.