Page 108 - Mercian Eagle 2013

106
Cpl Power assists a recruit
staff management as his main effort, above that of training recruits. Secondly, the scale of everything at the ITC is much larger
than that of a battalion. Platoons when
fully loaded are at 48 recruits, compared to the usual 30. These are divided into four sections, rather than the usual three, so square harbour areas
with training teams working independently far more than they would in Battalion.
Getting back to “the basics” and conventional warfare after almost two years of training for and conducting counter- insurgency operations was another change for me at ITC. Despite having recent operational experience from operating in Afghanistan, ITC does not teach these mission specific tactics techniques and procedures to the recruits, but focuses
on core skills which will form the basis of any type of combat across any theatre. Therefore, I had to quickly adjust back
to the type of platoon commanding I
had practised back in Brecon before the HFT and MST cycle. The final exercise
in Garelochhead, Scotland was my first exercise with my recently acquired platoon and it felt strangely satisfying to be back living in woodblocks rather than compounds and conducting a platoon advance to
contact, with nearly fully trained recruits was particularly enjoyable.
One other benefit of ITC is the diverse cross section of peers and the chance to work closely with people from other battalions and regiments. My training team upon arrival consisted of a Royal
Welsh Sergeant, two MERCIAN and two Royal Welsh corporals. Currently I have two Royal Irish Corporals in my training team now that the Royal Irish have recently joined the POW Div. This allows for a wide range of experience and knowledge within the
training teams, which is ultimately beneficial for the recruits. Working closely with these other regiments helps us form a good divisional ethos and it is clear that officers and NCOs from The Mercian Regiment
are very similar in character to those in the Royal Welsh or Royal Irish.
Outside work, the mess life at ITC is excellent. The large number of platoons across the ITC means the mess is full of platoon commanders, with about 40 livers in. Clearly this is a much larger number than in any Battalion. It is therefore a great place to catch up with friends not seen since Brecon, or get to know new faces from across all infantry cap badges, with regular mess social functions, both formal and informal which are second to none. ITC Catterick really is a good place to be (location aside!) The stability and certainty of the job along with the social life makes
it a good posting for any rank and the satisfaction gained from turning a civilian to soldier in 26 weeks is huge.
ICQB, Warcop. Cpls Power and Mazey
became a new concept
to me, as was having
two reserve sections on
a platoon attack! Each
company contains 7-9
platoons at any one
time and there are five
divisions in 1ITB alone.
Despite the grand scale
at ITC, everything just
seems to work. The
necessary administration is all done in advance and very little work is required prior to conducting the training. In terms of supervision from the chain of command it is also different to that of a regular company,
The necessary administration is all done in advance and very little work is required prior to conducting the training.
THE MERCIAN EAGLE