Page 13 - 103RA 2018-20

Regimental Journal 2018-20
and for newly promoted
Bdrs, this meant their
first taste of Detachment
Command, an exciting
role with almost unparal-
leled responsibility for that
rank across the field army. ADE 2018 was a huge success, seeing numerous battery members qualified in new gun qualifica- tions and 3 young officers qualified as CPOs, one of them achieving top student on the course. 209 Battery left ADE in high spirits, upskilled and with a sense of integration and unity that the soldiers and young officers would need going forward.
Ex STRIKE 2 of the training year was a mere 5 weeks later in November and saw an impressive consolidation of skills learned on ADE. Two days of technical firing was the first time new DCs and CPOs fired the battery without the direct supervision of GTT SMIGs and it was nerve wracking for them! But the pressure produced results and a combination of HE, Smoke and Illumination rounds made for a thorough weekend of skills, drills and keeping the OPs on their toes!
The autumn saw the annual return of the Hotpot Supper at 209 – an all ranks bty event which has run since the fateful days of the first world war. The community would host a meal for those about to leave for France and the Bty has commemorated this sombre moment in an act of remem- brance and unity ever since. Typically, the
Hotpot Supper runs on the Friday evening of the remembrance weekend, followed by a day of preparation for the parade on the Sunday, followed by the parade itself. The all-ranks social environment is not a typical one and this annual event is a great way of everybody in the Bty getting to know one-another in a more relaxed environment and a way for the junior leadership to get to meet soldier’s families. It is highly valued and will continue to be.
The autumn saw the annual return of the Hotpot Supper at 209 – an all ranks bty event
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