THE TANKIES’ COMBAT ‘ONESIE’
It was a much-loved garment not too dissimilar to the recreational ‘onesie’ of today. John A Smith explores the wartime origins of the officially named Oversuit, Tank Crews and its many nicknames
“A h! Zoot suit!” exclaimed George Snashall, aged 91, upon seeing an oversuit for the first time since World War Two. “Step in, zip it up, marvellous!”
George was a Churchill tank driver in ‘B’ Squadron, 141st Regiment, Royal Armoured Corps. The immediacy of his reaction and the glee on his face spoke volumes as to how he regarded the old ‘zoot suit.’ But what was this ever-popular garment that, decades after the war, he keenly remembered with immediate and utmost fondness?
In late 1942, the Director Royal Armoured Corps kickstarted a stalled project to provide British tank crews with a protective oversuit. Within a year, the design had been approved and a trial production run was fieldtested during Exercise Dracula in late 1943. This radical one-piece jumpsuit, designed to keep the wearer warm and dry, began to be issued in autumn 1944. Production problems meant supply was always behind demand, despite 16 manufacturers being appointed to produce them in 1944. The first suits we…
