Fire Engines Photos

I have become aware that Polish airports bought British crash tenders over decades even back to the 1950s in the middle of the cold war. Nubian, Thornycroft and Pyrene products were bought in the 50s for Warsaw Airport. How did this happen - does anybody know?

Added by Peter Williams on 17 April 2016.

I got this comment by email from Konrad Nowak the Polish expert - People's Republic of Poland (PRL) was probably the largest single customer for Western firefighting equipment in the entire Eastern Block. Not only did the Polish government import Rosenbauer vehicles (Austria was sort of 'neutral' during that era and a major supplier of large industrial appliances; these were also purchased by the GDR, Czechoslovakia and Bulgaria) - it also continued to buy appliances from West German manufacturers (starting as early as the 1950s, including a batch of Magirus turntable ladders in 1952, during the darkest, Stalinist period!) - Metz, Magirus, Total, Bachert; French - Sides and Biro Fils. Poland was, especially in the 1970s, engaged in large deals with capitalist corporations and countries. Sometimes the choice of a manufacturer of firefighting equipment was determined by the country a contractor for a large industrial project came from! This is why Sides appliances were delivered to the Police nitrogen works (French companies were involved in its expansion) and Sivlani (Italy) foam tankers ended up at the Gdansk refinery. No such information surfaced concerning British appliances though. There were however (apart from the Nubian you mentioned) a couple of appliances made by Pyrene (1960s/1970s), Chubb (1970s) and Reynolds Boughton (late 1980s).

Added by Peter Williams on 02 May 2016.

Just to let you no that about 24 trucks where built for Poland, I work on them all built between 1994 to 1999

Added by John Eastman on 23 August 2016.

Poland also bought Coles Cranes and Hymac excavators in large numbers in the 70's and 80's.
I just think they were more independent minded than other Soviet Satelites.

Added by Craigw on 23 August 2016.

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