I can't believe what I saw today.
Texaco Tanker arrives at a small village petrol station. The site has had a no DERV sign out since Friday and limiting fule saels to £25.
Seeing the tanker pull across the road to reverse in to the forecourt I stopped the car (yes no bke today!) and I was impressed at seeing a couple of people in hi-vis to watch the artic do its reverse. Then I realised that the guy stood outsdie the tractor unit was a tanker driver..... double manning to work longer days and catch up on deliverie? I wondered?
Then seeing the absolute mess that the driver was making at getting the trailer onto the site I wondered if it was new driver undertaking sme inial training.
Then Pam pointed out that there were 4 people helping the driver do his reverse and othet than one, these were all in army kit and a closer look showed that the driver was also in army kit. After a couple of failed aeeforts to get the tanker in to the site the "proper" driver took over and soon the job was done. There was a huge traffic queue in both directions and a small crowd of puzzled local residents.
So if there is a strike the army may drive some tankers but i wonder will the tankers make it to the forecourts!
P
reminds me of when the army had to man the ambulances and fire engines during the strikes, makes you realise how skilled our professional drivers are.
i worked for bp for 5 years and what ever you think of them i can tell you that the tanker drivers are an elite force of drivers, thats why they get paid so much. Driving the tanker is just a 3rd of their responsibility. Did you know that they load all their own fuel, mix in the addatives and when at site they are completely responsible for the delivery process, which is actaully quite technical and involved. I had to take several exams to get my petroleum licence and the drivers were more qualified than me.
he had most likley just passed his test or passed it years ago in the army, as a second career and not had much experience in the real world of reversing articulated vehicles. also was he trying to back in "blind side" this takes a lot of practice, especially if the cab a sleeper with no rear or side windows. I passed my class one h.g.v in 1984 and spent 22 years driving artics all over the country and through out europe, reversing artics is a "art" which takes alot of practice, if the driver had only just passed his test or not had the experience to reverse a high flammable load like "petrol" he should I've not been driving the tanker in the first place :nono:
Having driven artics my self in a previous life I know that reversing is not easy and having driven milk tanks a few times I also know that carrying liquids is not something for the inexperinced.
Seems to me that petrol + army drivers has the potential for dissaster. Army drivers cna not learn overnight the skils that tanker drivers have.
P
I was told only this week by a fuel tanker delivery driver delivering derv to our work that the Army are training 85 personel to drive the fuel tankers in the event of industrial action. That as we can all imagine is a drop in the ocean!!
Driving an artic, has its issues..
Transporting fluid/liquid adds other issues
If the fluid/liquid happens to be hazardous or in this case flammable then you have basically got a mobile bomb on your hands.
Hence the reason for lots and lots of training for drivers of such vehicles