Page 89 - Light Dragoons 2023 CREST

As Recruit Harris, who works as a Police Officer from Monday to Friday, pre- pared to lead his section out of the har- bour area and into an ‘enemy pre-seen’ serial, the vehicle carrying the DS (who are also the enemy, which the recruits well know) went past as they moved into posi- tion. Seeing an opportunity here Recruit Harris decided that he had gathered enough information from this ‘encounter’ and sent his section back to the harbour, unbeknown to his platoon staff. Around one hour later, Cpl Chitty – Harris’ section staff, emerged from his position where he had been diligently waiting for the section to pass through, tracing what should have been the steps of his recruits all the way back to the harbour they had been living in. Perplexed and to his absolute fury, he found them in their sleeping bags. Recruit Harris calmly explained that he had seen the enemy, and believed his job was done. Despite this initial confidence, he did sadly fail to answer many of Cpl Chitty’s questions regarding the enemy picture and the section was, in a rather uncouth man- ner, woken up and sent out to try again...
In July 22 I arrived at Prince William of Gloucester Barracks, Grantham, unsure exactly of what to expect from the Army Reserves. I suspect most people in the Regular Army who have not yet had the pleasure of working with Army Reserve soldiers would also not know what to expect, or worse, perhaps approach them with negative expectations.
There is some chaos of course, when you mix, to list some recent examples; a 49-year-old builder who has six children, a 25-year-old accountant working at PWC, a
19-year-old medical student and a 37-year- old McDonalds employee. However, what you ultimately end up with, is the most enormous pool of life experience which enriches their platoons and the training establishment. An enrichment which I believe is simply unrivalled within the Regular Army.
My time at ATR Grantham has broadened my horizons of what the Army, as a whole, has to offer and what exactly it is that the Army Reserves bring to the party – and it is enormous. They are committed, moti-
vated and keen to serve. They bring in a huge amount of experience from all walks of life and skills that they have spent years learning on ‘Civvi Street’. We are exceed- ingly lucky to have them as part of our Army and the calibre of recruit is such that I genuinely believe that the future of the Army Reserves is bright. I can highly rec- ommend the job as a Platoon Commander at ATR Grantham and, anyone lucky enough to be selected will have an amaz- ingly rewarding time here.
GSAI
The Regimental Journal of The Light Dragoons
MA to COS SJFHQ
‘A good MA
is never seen, but always present’. My right arm didn’t get the memo
In September 2022, I made the move away from Regiment and traded in my Cavalry flair for straight jack- eted Northwood and Standing Joint Forces Headquarters (SJFHQ). SJFHQ is the 2* HQ, held at high readiness in line with the Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF – 10 Nation framework that has a UK HQ) and global crisis response. My
role in SJFHQ is supporting the Chief of Staff Brigadier Jo Butterfill which involves everything from accompanying him on business trips, attending meet- ings that are way above my pay grade, to aiding in the day to day running of the headquarters. When deployed to Denmark on Ex JOINT PROTECTOR 22, I was placed into the Operational Planning Team, tasked with the deliv- ery of real-world plans, exercises and operations.
Working in the multi-national envi- ronment has widened my military and political understanding and opened my eyes to strategic level planning and the wider political implications of military
activity. Working in an environment where you are comfortably the most jun- ior officer is very different. Being asked to hold a full Colonel to account is less enjoyable, however, exercising in build- ings is far more agreeable to Salisbury Plain. The job has provided lots of inter- esting experiences – from a deployment to Denmark, visits to Europe, ski trips to France and a whole lot of bag-carrying and note-taking. SJFHQ has deployed to multiple countries in the last 12 months and is somewhere I would recommend to anyone looking to gain some wider mili- tary experience away from RD. Oh, and it is also a 40-minute tube into Central London!
AR
Platoon Commander ATR – Grantham
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