1975 Carmichael Redwing FT/5 Fire Appliance

Chassis number: 917 08759C

Registration number: KFP 697P

Engine type: 2.25 Diesel

Gearbox type: 4 Speed Manual

Vehicle spec:

This vehicle is a 1975 Series III that was converted by Worcester-based Carmichael & Sons Ltd to their Redwing FT/5 specification. The vehicle was allocated when new to the famous Cape Hill Brewery in Smethwick, in the West Midlands. Henry Mitchell took over his father’s pub, the Crown Inn in Smethwick, and set about constructing a small brewery adjoining the premises. The Cape Hill Brewery was completed in 1879 and became a joint venture with prominent local brewer William Butler in 1898, forming Mitchell’s and Butler’s.

The brewery went from strength to strength acquiring a large number of pubs, hotels and other breweries. Merging with Bass in 1961, the company had operated around 4,000 pubs and with its merger with Charrington United in 1969, inherited a further 5,000.
The Cape Hill brewery closed in 2002 with production switched to Burton upon Trent. The brewery was demolished in 2005, and the site is now a housing estate.

The vehicle was donated to the Collection in June 2025 by the National Brewery Heritage Trust, a charitable trust that is dedicated to protecting and preserving Britain’s brewing heritage.