Generally, criticism of the Valiant tanks was limited to cosmetic matters, such as the need for more and better external stowage boxes. What had become apparent however, was the need for an efficient way to clear mines and to bridge gaps, like the anti-tank ditches at Bardia and Tobruk. The need for Royal Engineers to go in ahead of the tanks to remove mines by hand and dig out ramps for the tanks to cross the ditches had slowed the assault.
The Coulter Plough and the Fowler Rollers had already been tested as possible mine-clearance devices. The plough had shown the most promise, but it wasn’t clear how effective it would be on the kind of ground experienced in the desert. The roller system had proven too fragile to stand up to a number of mines being detonated under it. Once parts of the roller were blown off, it was meant to be jettisoned, but that wasn’t easy in the middle of a minefield in the middle of a battle. A joint Vickers/Royal Engineers team were tasked with coming up with ideas. These could either be something attached to a normal gun tank, or be designed as a dedicated armoured vehicle.
Bridging equipment carried on tanks was a well-known and tested capability. During the Great War a 21 feet canal lock bridge, that could carry a load of 35 tonnes had been developed, though not in time to be used during the war. The tank launched Inglis Mark II Assault Bridge, the Batemans Assault Bridge, the Scissor Assault Bridge and the Wild Assault Bridge had all been tested, but lack of funds had left them unproduced. Of all of these, the No 1 30-foot scissors bridge was considered the best option, so another team were given responsibility to work with the Experimental Bridging Establishment to get a working example for full testing, then, if successful, ready for production.
Two other ideas that had come back from the fighting in Libya were firstly, the need for more bulldozers, especially in dealing with the anti-tank ditches. Attaching a bulldozer blade to the front of a tank that could be lifted and lowered into position didn’t look too difficult a challenge, so yet another joint Vickers/Royal Engineers team were given the task of making it happen. Secondly, it was also important for tanks damaged by mines or other reasons, to be able to be recovered as quickly as possible. The RAOC’s tractors were too precious and vulnerable to do this while the battle was continuing. Having an armoured recovery vehicle to tow out damaged tanks would be useful. In the short term, having each tank equipped with a length of steel cable to enable towing was also recommended.
Lastly some Italian Light tanks had been captured which had a flame-thrower capability. For dealing with bunkers and entrenched positions this would be a terrifying weapon. To design such a weapon was task that would take some thought and work. More information about the Italian tanks was requested to see if they had come up with simple solutions to complex problems, rather than the Vickers team having to begin with a blank piece of paper.
One of the questions that all of these types of specialist tanks raised was whether these should be issued to the Royal Engineer’s Field Squadrons attached to each Armoured Division, or whether the Royal Engineers would be better off having their own specific Armoured Brigade, perhaps called an ‘Assault Brigade’. At some point the British Army would need to consider how to invade Europe. All these different types of armoured vehicles, and more, would be required. Putting together a team to discuss all of this was recommended to the War Office, which agreed. General Percy Hobart had been pestering friends and acquaintances in the War Officer for a job since he had come back from Egypt and retired. Someone in the War Office saw this as a perfect opportunity to kill two birds with one stone.