Page 8 - QDG Volume 9 No. 2 2021

6 1st The Queen’s Dragoon Guards
The Queen’s Dragoon Guards has provided a notable operational contri- bution this last year of which we can all be proud. Our soldiers deployed in support of NATO deterrent operations on the Eastern flank of Poland, were at the forefront of an infantry-led Task Group on peacekeeping operations in Mali, and as I write, are currently leading that same Task Group on long range patrols. In preparation for operations, our soldiers exercised in Cyprus, USA and across the UK. Exercises were conducted despite COVID-19 related restrictions. At both squadron and regimental level, external training agencies consistently graded QDG not only ‘green across the board’ but also ‘best in class’. Our operational reputation for excellence, therefore, continues to be built on the firm founda- tion of proven utility of our reconnaissance role enabled by the professionalism of our indomitable soldiers and officers.
At the start of the year, B Squadron were half-way through their six-month deployment to Poland as part of NATO’s Enhanced Forward Presence (EFP). Working in a US Army-led battlegroup, the 140-strong squadron comprised a mixture of Regular and Reserve soldiers and was called ‘Cassino Troop’. Impor- tantly, most soldiers were drawn from our paired Regiment, The Royal Yeomanry, helping to institutionalise a vital and mutually beneficial relationship. The deployment also provided a valuable vignette as to the benefit of a mixed force of Regular and Reserve soldiers who provide different but complementary skills and experiences. Major Ben Matthews’ summary of their exploits
conveys the challenges of operating our Jackal vehicle during the coldest winter in a generation and living with severe pandemic-related restrictions.
Concurrent to this deployment soldiers from
C Squadron completed
a six-month pre-deploy-
ment training package that
prepared them to deploy to
Mali within a Task Group led
by 2nd Battalion The Royal
Anglian Regiment. Training
for a United Nations peacekeeping mission was conducted exclusively in the UK – largely in the forests of Thetford – but the squadron deployed in May to arid deserts where temperatures nudged 50 degrees centigrade. An environmental challenge presented initially in addition
to the operational threats on what is routinely billed, at least by the media, as the ‘UN’s most dangerous peace- keeping mission’. C Squadron led the Task Group’s activities throughout the
tour, from route and envi- ronmental reconnaissance through to tactical actions to find and understand human security needs and threats in hard-to-reach parts of the country. Projecting up to 250 kilometres from where they were based in the regional hub of Gao and covering circa 1200 kilometres on each three-week patrol, they traversed extremely chal- lenging terrain with great skill. In addition to capturing these activities, Major Bryn
Williams’ account illustrates the chal- lenges of the United Nations mission in contested parts of Mali where peace is a relative term.
Over the course of the year, A Squadron enjoyed a hugely varied and demanding training programme. Initially
deploying to Cyprus for a month-long dismounted range package (entirely self- sourced and resourced), it then deployed to Louisiana. Working to a US brigade, it provided dismounted reconnaissance behind the forward line of enemy troops in the swamplands of a training area that was originally used to train US ‘GIs’ for the Vietnam war. Upon return, A Squadron, joined by Regimental Head- quarters and members of Headquarter Squadron, entered the six-month long training progression to prepare to deploy to Mali. Now-deployed, QDG leads the third rotation of troops in Mali and, making a virtue of our ability to project and work at range, is contributing to the protection of civilians and peace- keeping reform. Major James Curry’s report covers an especially diverse year spanning three continents.
Each of the activities outlined were enabled, of course, by the hard graft and expertise of our Headquarter Squadron soldiers and officers. Their knowledge, selfless commitment and tenacity got our soldiers and equipment to and from far-away countries in good order whilst
Commanding Officer’s Foreword
Our operational reputation for excellence, therefore, continues to be built on