Page 511 - The History of the Royal Army Veterinary Corps 1962–2021

THE HISTORY OF THE ROYAL ARMY VETERINARY CORPS 1962 – 2021
and an even better handler. Theo truly was man’s best friend, and they rest in peace together.
Private Steve Smith, RAVC: Many things come to me when I think of Lance Corporal Liam Tasker. He was always there when anyone needed help. One of the easiest blokes to talk to, very profes- sional in all he did, although he took everything he did very seriously. He was one of the boys, a true friend to me in the short time I knew him. You will never be forgotten my friend BLT. Rest in peace brother.
Private Monique Reynolds, RAVC: Lance Corporal Liam Tasker was a big part of our unit. He was an amazing dog man and he inspired a lot of other dog handlers. Theo and LCpl Tasker did a brave job together in Afghanistan and he saved a lot of lives. I’ll miss his laugh and banter, especially when it was about himself. Liam, you will be sorely missed. Rest in Peace.
Private Andrew Duffy, RAVC: Lance Corporal Liam Tasker was always fun to be around. You were always keen to work the dogs and you were going to be chief dog trainer. You taught me a lot mate, I’m going to miss you Liam. I can’t believe you are gone.
Private Alex Day, RAVC: Lance Corporal Liam Tasker, I only knew you for a short time, but from this I can say, you loved your work from the little tasks to the biggest of tasks. You always made us laugh with your larger-than-life humour, and most of all how much you taught us. There is a big part of us missing now and we will always remember you forever mate.
Private Rosy Jones, RAVC: Liam, it was a privilege to have known you. I hope you are looking down at us when we are working our dogs. You helped me and Private Kirton so much with our dogs. You were going to be the Chief Trainer, we joked about. But I believed that you would have made a great one. All our love to you.
The battle against the dreaded IED continued at pace.
The HASD capability, licensed for theatre in July 2009, was proving its worth and work was in hand to progress further to break the threat.
The IE3D capability was conceived in mid-2010 and initiated in October 2010 with an aggressive timeline to deliver. However, as we have seen so far, the devastating effects of the improvised explosive devices was the driving force behind change after change for Military Working Dogs and handlers.
The exponential rise in IED strikes led to a review
of Counter-IED(C-IED) in Iraq and Afghanistan in late 2008. The following extract from a report dated November that year puts into context, the C-IED fight in Afghanistan55 during Op HERRICK 13 when the RAVC was about to unleash something new against the Taliban.
IMPROVISED EXPLOSIVE DETECTION DOG (IE3D):
‘Paws before Feet’
The threat from the ‘new’ LMC IEDs was constant and ever growing even more rapidly than previously reported, the casualty rate for UK forces in Helmand was mounting, whilst the definition of an IED, as stated in the Macmillan Dictionary (Dec 2010), is given as: “a simple bomb that someone, especially a terrorist or guerrilla, has made themselves.”
The term IED originated in the 1970s after the Provisional Irish Republican Army (PIRA) used bombs made from agricultural fertilizer and Semtex smuggled from Libya to make highly effective booby trap devices – remote controlled or command wire bombs. An IED typically consists of an initiation system, a detonator and an explosive charge. They are extremely diverse in design and may contain many different types and variations of initiators, detonators and explosive charges.
IEDs remain the favoured weapon of choice employed by Enemy Forces (EF) in an attempt to undermine UK and ISAF objectives and political resolve. IEDs may incorporate military components but normally include some non-military items. By definition, the improvised nature of such devices introduces significant uncertainty as to the stability of components and many ‘Victim Operated’ IEDs (VOIEDs) encountered in Afghanistan have used extremely sensitive firing switches.
The initiator is a mechanism that sets off the device. They can range in complexity from the more complex Remotely Controlled IED (RCIED) and Command Wire (CW) operated devices, to the simpler Victim Operated (VOIED). The detonator contains small amounts of explosives which can be chemically, mechanically or electrically initiated. This relatively small detonation provides the energy required to cause the main charge to function. The explosive charge can vary in size from the smaller sized devices which are used in the anti-personnel role, to much larger charges which are typically used against protected mobility vehicles. They can also be designed for use against targets such as the Warrior Armoured personnel carrier or the Challenger 2 Main Battle Tank, using either a shaped charge or an explosively formed projectile in order to ensure penetration of the armour.
The IEDs experienced in Northern Ireland (NI)
55 LWC/OSG/Comd 101/08 PJHQ C-IED Study Team Report Dated 12th November 2008.
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