Page 12 - QDG Year of 2020

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1st The Queen’s Dragoon Guards
tangible meaning, we were stood up to prepare for numerous MACA taskings, wheresoever we were required.
A Squadron were initially called up to support the East Anglia Ambulance Service in driving Covid patients between hospitals in the region. Cpls Couch and Parsons took charge of over a quarter of the available Squadron workforce and ably ran A Squadron’s contribution. Whilst ostensibly under the auspices of Lt Cooper of C Squadron, much authority was delegated to them to run the task. It is a major accomplishment that they were able to take charge of the situation and run it so smoothly.
Despite these efforts though, Corona- virus continued to ravage the UK. The decision was made that further support was required and A Squadron was once more sent into the fray.
The most prominent of these actions was the QDG’s assistance to Mobile Testing Units (MTUs), which took place from mid-April. A Squadron complete was rapidly mobilised to the far reaches of the East of England, delivering daily testing to such exotic loca-
tions as Lowestoft and
Skegness. No element was
left untouched, as even
the LAD were called upon
to make up the neces-
sary workforce. It was a
particular baptism of fire for
2Lts Allington, Al-Khamiri
and Carter who, having
only recently arrived from
Sandhurst, were launched
straight into leading teams
on the frontline. Of them I am
incredibly jealous; few new
Troop Leaders are fortunate
enough to arrive straight
onto a deployment without
even having completed Phase 2 training. They now proudly join Capt Brockless
as the most operationally experienced officers in the Mess.
It should be noted, however, that even at this, the most severe stage of
It was also at this point that a change in command took place. Charlie Ruggles-Brise, having for two years led the Squadron from strength to strength, handed over the reins to me at the begin-
ning of July. I am immensely grateful to him for the smoothness of this transi- tion. Socrates famously said that ‘societies grow great when old men plant trees whose shade they may not make use of.’ Whilst I can only apologise to Charlie for the implied slight on his age, it is with this statement in mind that I thank him for handing me an organisation that is so well-prepared for the new tasks that lie ahead in 2021.
Into the post-summer leave period, A Sqn was again immediately thrust into the action with two back to back exercises in September. Mullens Cup
was a chance to shake-out and compete for the title of being the most adept Tp in the regiment. All performed admirably, however of note was Cpl Flower’s perfor- mance, having last-minute been thrown into leading a team with little prepara- tion or training behind them, achieving a strong performance in the process.
Immediately after this, everyone was again deployed to Otterburn on a SERE training event, which turned out to be even more gnarly than we feared. The highlight of this was watching our trained killers rapidly dispatch and dismember all manner of creatures, from chickens to crickets, in a fashion that would have had even Bear Grylls on the phone to PETA.
The final foray of the year was yet again an unexpected one. November, for A Sqn, promised to be a period of focused
restrictions, the vision of a NCOs within the Squadron enabled some key training to take place. At a low-level, the Cpls and Sgts managed to instigate a series of rigorous fieldcraft lessons on the barracks training area, something that offered a welcome break from in-camp isolation. Particular commendation must go to Cpl Turner who, ably assisted by LCpl Hickmott, managed to design and run a Javelin Operators Course, all in the context of navi- gating the minefield that is Covid restrictions. A meticu- lously planned and executed three-week course saw a new generation of oper- ators qualified across the
number of
Charlie Ruggles-Brise, having for
two years led the Squadron from strength to strength, handed over the reins
to me
A Squadron complete
was rapidly mobilised to the far reaches of the East of England
regiment, with A Sqn’s own LCpl Murphy placing top of the cadre.
The easing of Covid restrictions in July saw a return to more usual regi- mental life. Whilst a number of personnel were again tasked to conduct Mobile Testing, the majority of the Squadron deployed to Warcop on three weeks of regimental ranges. For most this was a welcome return to the normal battle rhythm, and more importantly a chance to see the world outside of Norfolk, even
if they had to settle with the marginal improvement of Cumbria.
Having finished the building on the left, they would soon start on the building on the right