Page 40 - Light Dragoons 2023 CREST

2022 was an eventful year for The Light Dragoons. It saw a successful deploy- ment of the regiment on Ex WESSEX STORM on Salisbury Plain Training Area (SPTA). C Sqn deployed to Poland to revisit Bemovo Piskie Training Area in Poland for Ex SPRING STORM. In May, Regimental Headquarters, elements of HQ and C Sqn deployed at short notice on Op INTERFLEX until December 2022. Op INTERFLEX was a defence wide commit- ment to train the Armed Forces of Ukraine in basic infantry skills. This operation was the largest training mission conducted in the UK since World War II. Concurrently, in September, B Sqn deployed to Oman on Ex KHANJAR OMAN under a 2 SCOTS BG, escaping the poor English weather and topping up their tans.
In February 2022, The Light Dragoons Battle Group deployed on Exercise WESSEX STORM. This was an impor- tant event for the Light Dragoons, being the first time the regiment has deployed en masse since November 2018. By suc- cessfully completing this exercise, the Light Dragoons validated as “Combat Ready” and were raised to high readiness
until July 2023. HQ had to adjust quickly, training a host of new officers in RHQ and reverting to conventional tactics after Ops NEWCOMBE/CABRIT. All the while bat- tling some less than appealing weather!
The exercise and the weather did not disap- point, the first phase saw the sabre squad- rons being tested on the Combined Arms Live Fire Exercise (CALFEX), where the squadrons were hit with some of the worst weather seen on SPTA in recent years. The Squadrons had to contend 70 MPH winds, a quagmire of bogs that made the ground resemble the Western Front, mak- ing manoeuvre off tracks almost impossi- ble. It is testament to the skill of the crew commanders and drivers that the BG was able to operate and hide itself in this con- gested and difficult battle space. Combat Ready Training Centre designed a com- plex and novel exercise that saw the BG advancing from South of SPTA towards the North. This tested our skills in disper- sal, meeting key training objectives and our ability to remain hidden from a very capable enemy in 2 SCOTS. Highlights included a Klauswitzian raid by A Sqn on KEEVIL Airfield, where the A Sqn
found a gap in the enemy’s STAP and proceeded to pairs fire manoeuvre down the airfield, similar to the BBC’s take on “Rogue Heroes”. B Sqn completed a com- plex raid on Baden’s Clump Compound, inserting en masse and taking the enemy completely by surprise. C Sqn’s support troop, under Sgt Richardson and Cpl Coles, became 2 SCOTS worst nightmare and hunted the hunters, even taking the scalp of CO 2 SCOTS. The final phase saw the LD move to Caerwent and then onto Sennybridge Training Area (SENTA). If we thought the ground was poor in SPTA, SENTA was next level. This phase enabled the BG to operate in the knowledge that we had already passed the exercise and were ‘Combat Ready’. This final action saw 2 SCOTS on a familiar training area in the knowledge that LD would be restricted to tracks. A Sqn sort to recce the enemy defensive position by fire and try to get them to expose their dispositions with- out becoming decisively engaged. B Sqn would seek to deny them access to the arte- rial routes by setting up ambushes. C Sqn and a Coy of 1 LANCS were to raid the enemy position itself. Limitations with TES (Tactical Engagement Simulator)
The Regimental Journal of The Light Dragoons
Operations and Exercises Ops Overview 2022
Ukrainian troops training for the Donbass in North Yorkshire
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