Demountable Rack Offload and Pickup System

The demountable rack offload and pickup system (DROPS) is a family of logistics vehicles operated by the British Army, which consists of two vehicle types:

Both are able to transport 15-tonne flatracks or containers configured to ISO 20 feet standard and to load and offload them autonomously. Both may be supported with side rail transfer equipment (SRTE) for loading and unloading railway wagons.

The DROP system was designed to meet the very high intensity battles in Central Europe in the last decade of the Cold War. However it entered service after the collapse of the Warsaw Pact but nevertheless proved a versatile vehicle system on operations completely different from those originally envisaged.

The DROP system developed from the revaluation of readiness and firepower requirements of British Army of the Rhine (BAOR) in the mid-1970s. This was driven by three principal developments in the Warsaw Pact and, in particular, Group Soviet Forces Germany (GSFG). These were:

This was linked to a doctrine of much more rapid and decisive attack designed to dislocate NATO defences by highly concentrated and massive penetration.

To counter these developments a decision was made to make all divisional artillery 155mm and phase out the 105mm Abbot. The Corps Barrier Plan, a major structure of obstacles, including a huge minefield made up of anti-tank bar mines and Ranger anti-personnel mines was also strengthened to blunt such tactics. Finally two parallel studies: the Battle Attrition Study (BAS) and Review of Ammunition Rates and Scales (RARS) worked through the implications to the British Army of the predicted new style of Soviet aggression.

The BAS confirmed that 1 (BR) Corps could resist and contain a Soviet attack of the type predicted but that over eight days of high-intensity warfare would suffer massive casualties. However it was imperative for a follow-on capability to exist and there should be sufficient manpower, materiel and ammunition for 1 (BR) Corps to fight on at 40% of mobilisation strength for a further two days. This became known as the 8+2 model.

The RARS identified that the previous ammunition scales for the NATO 30-day battle would be completely used up in the 8+2 scenario. Furthermore the change from 105mm (with a shell weighing 18 lbs) to 155mm (with a shell weighing 96 lbs) plus the huge quantities of bar mines created additional storage requirements with an emphasis on locating stocks forward to meet shorter warning scenarios.

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Wikipedia