Page 87 - MERCIAN Eagle 2015

Pte / Jodie Dawes / Bulwell ARC / Presented with her Lord Lieutenants Certificate by
Col David Sneath MBE / 16 Jun 15
Protection job in Iraq, and has just passed the Section Commanders Battle Course (SCBC) at Brecon prior to leaving the army. With valuable on operational experience
he will be another high quality member of the Company.
Reserve recruiting remains a difficult
and challenging endeavour, but it is slowly starting to yield a bumper crop of top quality soldiers, with the previous “TA” stigma now evaporating thanks in part to the cross pollination between Regular and Reserves on TELIC/HERRICK, and the necessity for reserves to fill a large chunk of the Army’s future deployable ORBAT, the dividends of being in the reserves is clear.
The bounty for Ex-Regulars has been
a positive factor on attracting recently departed regulars to the fold, and we look forward to embracing their experience and utilising their skills to further develop C Company and the Army Reserves as a whole in the future.
C (Kohima) Company / Recruiting Stand / / 02 Aug 15
Recruits of C (Kohima) Company / Look at Life Weekend / Beckingham Training Area / 30 May 15
demonstration. It is rare, especially so
in the reserves that you are afforded the opportunity to watch the capability of the various weapon systems available to a Light Infantry Company, and this helped give
an understanding of what Company level assets were truly capable of.
Following on from the defensive and offensive actions phase, we also completed a 5 day exercise centred on Urban Operations. The week involved a build-
up phase of lessons, and culminated in
a withdrawal from Celini village, and an assault back in. Many of us agreed that
the week provided a good opportunity for all. Sandhurst does very little on urban operations, and the course managed to
not only give a good tactical overview of
the way urban operations are fought, but also give it context. Throughout the course as well, it was clear the strong move away from recent non-conventional operations, with a focus on fighting a more conventional enemy. As a Reservist, it felt good to be
part of this, and to be part of a wider army effort, that would allow me to go back to
my Company, and have a real impact on the training we focused on. By structuring the learning so that it built up slowly in intensity, I was able to gain the most from the
lessons and felt I came away with a good
As a Reservist, it felt good to be part of this, and to be part of a wider army effort
understanding of the principles taught. Overall, I found that the course was not
only extremely challenging, but also gave me an excellent base to go on and develop much of the training learnt and move on to more specific types of operation back at Battalion. My concerns about integrating
with Regulars were never realised and all
of the Regulars were not only welcoming, but also accommodating of my knowledge gaps. The course required a level of preparation that I think it was almost impossible to gain in a Reserve setting. Battle fitness is very different to the ability
to run a PFA, and though I felt I improved over the course, having both a knowledge gap and gap in my physical ability left me at a distinct disadvantage compared to many of my Regular counterparts. But in the
end with help from my Regular colleagues around me, I was able to complete the course. The course strengthened my convictions in the integration process, and showed that the Army is capable of working as an integrated force.
THE MERCIAN EAGLE
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