Page 108 - RSDG Year of 2021 CREST

114 EAGLE AND CARBINE
All in, the exchange experience so far has been one of great energy, learning and welcome. The next year is set for, among a great many other things, a patrol up into the Sub-Arctic with the Canadian Rangers – an indigenous auxiliary security force tasked with search- and-rescue tasks in the true north (in short – they’d do alright in Norway); as well as a possible Level 5 collective training event. But the smaller victories, the day-to-day cross-learning between Canada and us, will continue indefinitely and I for one am honoured to be a part of it.
Major W O’Connor
It was 1630 on Saturday 17th of September 2020 and I had just pulled up at the reception of The Defence Academy in Shrivenham having driven down from Fife. My car was full of the kit I would need for the next 6 months of self-induced tor- ture for which I had volunteered. After getting a car pass, I went to the next layer of security and stopped to show it to the man on guard at the entry gate. He took great pleasure in finding out I was an LE, and proceeded to tell me it was only an attendance course and not to worry! This did nothing other than to steady my resolve to doing the best I could and try not to let myself down.
Now I must say from the start that this account is my personal experience of attending the coveted Intermediate Command & Staff Course and as such it may show some bias in how I viewed it. If you are a Late Entry Officer reading this, I com- mend you to fight for a place on this course as it opens a vast number of opportunities. Direct Entry Officers, you have no choice! If you are anyone else, please enjoy my short submission on my 6 month exploits during the course.
The first day experience of being in a room with 230 Majors from across the Army was quite daunting for me, but not being a wall flower, I was happy to chat away as we waited for the arrivals brief. There were one or two familiar
faces from my last 28 years in the Army which is always welcome, although the anticipation of the task ahead was beginning to loom. We had a brief from the Academy staff and it was pretty much like any other course: stick in, you’re in your own time now, do well etc, however all the LEs were asked to remain behind when the course was dismissed to their syndicate rooms. We were told to move to the front of the audito- rium, and we were addressed by a member of the staff who told us, and I quote, “Don’t try to keep up with the DE officers, you won’t manage. Do your own thing and relax and enjoy the course”.
This annoyed me from the start. I was not there to make up numbers, I was there to make the best effort I could during a very demanding 6 months of formal education. My peers may well have been from different educational back- grounds but I can hold my own in other areas and that’s what makes the Army work. We all have something to offer. This point still grinds on me to this day, not that you can tell...
The Foundation term is the first 3 months of the course and this is all Staff Officer training. You learn a myriad of things from how Defence works to Doctrine and History. For me this was my favourite part of the course. The chance to hear from all corners of the Army was welcome,
ICSC: The LE Perspective