Page 14 - Mercian Eagle 2016

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B Company Group on conclusion of Ex IRON SWORD 2016
spent down in Castlemartin in July,
where the platoons were able to conduct dismounted live firing up to Platoon level, and having achieved good results in the Annual Crew Tests, integrated firing up to vehicle pairs. Immediately on conclusion of the Gunnery Camp the Company deployed out on to Salisbury Plain to support
the Company Commander’s Tactics Course (CATAC), this time as
a light role company,
shortly before departing
on some well-earned
Summer Leave.
After Summer Leave, another trip out on
to the Plain, this time for a CT2 exercise
in our Warriors. The
complexity of the exercise built steadily over the course of the week, culminating with an attack onto Copehill Down in some very dense fog. Having been warned earlier in the year that we would once again be supporting the CAMD (while some argued that it was a re-show, I maintained it was because we had done such a fine job in 2015), we set about rehearsing for a much larger and grander affair, which was being overseen by Battalion HQ. It lived up to
all expectations, with record numbers watching the company assault onto a complex trench system supported by Russian tanks.
There was no time to rest following the CAMD, with a quick trip up to Tamworth for Remembrance Day and then the Company deployed out to Lithuania for Exercise IRON SWORD in mid-November, an Overseas
BATUS in May as OPFOR, which will be a major highlight for most of the soldiers in the Company – for around half the company it will our first time in BATUS!
Hails/Farewells
This year has seen the departure of
a number of key personnel, including
the Company 2IC, Capt Ed Whatling,
who moved to 1 AI Bde as SO3 G1; WO2(CSM) White, after nearly 21 months as CSM, who moved to Chilwell as RQMS at MTMC; WO2(WSM) Scott who moved
on to BGWO; CSgt Moitt, who swapped over with CSgt Hough at OPTAG; Sgt Nicholls who moved to BMATT in the Czech Republic; and Sgt Bircumshaw to ITC as an Instructor.
Congratulations to the CQMS(Tech),
CSgt Howdle who secured promotion to WO2 and has taken over as WSM, and
Sgt Mellor, who promoted to CSgt and moved to the Int Cell before returning
as CQMS(Main) in late 2016. We have welcomed WO2 (CSM) Werrett from Recce Platoon as the new CSM, CSgt Buck from ATDU as the new CQMS(Tech), Sgt Mardell on promotion from C Company as 4 Pl Sgt, and Sgts Mills and Ryder on promotion from Recce Platoon as new Warrior Sgts.
The complexity of the exercise built steadily over the course of the week...
Exercise with NATO. We have all, at various stages of our careers been cold and wet on exercise, but I don’t think anyone was prepared to defrost boots in the morning when temperatures hit -15°C! It was
testament to the skill and robustness of the soldiers that nobody suffered any cold related injuries. Even now, two months later, the company is still buzzing about the exercise and the final attack and defence of the village – some notable performances from 5 Platoon to cover and track the opposition’s advance into the village.
Our focus now switches to the Committed Year in 2017, and supporting the Army’s training events. We deploy to
B Company soldiers conducting a Casevac during the CAMD 2016
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