Page 88 - Rifles 2017 Issue No 3

THE TEAMS OF A COMPANY FOUND IT A PLEASURE TO WORK IN A NEW ENVIRONMENT AMONGST A DIFFERENT CULTURE
live ring package for a separate Kenyan Platoon. The training was done under time pressure, which thrilled the partner force and enabled the platoon, operating with A Company to conduct sub-unit level live ring for the rst time. The fourth team worked on a real time task, conducting a reconnaissance for a short term training team at the Kenyan Army School of Armour. Operating at reach, and with mission command from company HQ, teams were required and trusted to achieve capability devel- opment of the Kenyan platoon to a high standard. Most importantly, each team experienced challenges unique to their tasks, and were given suf cient time to adopt new techniques and adapt old ones to suit the Kenyans. The learning curve was steep, but the experience and lessons learned were shared, meaning that despite not experiencing all aspects of the specialised infantry role, the company was still able to understand what worked well and what didn’t.
Ex ASKARI SHIELD
A Company deployed on the nal phase of the exercise with a now fully trained and integrated, Kenyan platoon. Team 4 was embedded with the Kenyans and, the remaining three teams, with Kenyan soldiers attached, were dispersed across a large operating area to conduct counter insurgency operations in different population centres all of which had limited security infrastructure in place. The task of continuing to develop and empower the partner force when in contact, in our accompany role, was highly demanding. Flexibility, management of risk and innovation were constantly required due to the small size of the teams. Working amongst a volatile local population and ever present
media were demanding as well. Framework security,
key leader engagement,
the development of local police forces and the estab- lishment of an effective screen of our area of opera- tions all had to be accomplished at a high level. At the same time, we had to partner our Kenyan force, mentoring them all during the many decisive actions that took place during the exercise. The culmination of the exercise was the Kenyan platoon, accom- panied by their Team 4 mentors, and supported by other teams defeating an insurgent strongpoint.
After an extremely demanding seven weeks, A Company were given three days of adventurous training with Rift Valley Adventures. This gave the Company some much earned down time, allowing the Company to unwind and nish on a high. The exercise had provided some fantastic insights into our future role of working with partner forces with limited support. We were also able to build strong bonds with the Kenyan Army and local nationals we worked alongside. The teams of A Company found it a pleasure to work in a new environment amongst a different culture, which will become our core business. A Company now looks forward to its approaching readiness cycle ready to take on any operation the Army might throw our way.
Lt Matt Smith Spec Inf Team Commander
Ri eman Riddle approaches a compound that needs to be cleared using in close quarters combat and newly acquired marksmanship techniques
Teams put under mental and physical pressure during the A Coy assessment cadre