Page 27 - Mercian Eagle 2013

AGC (SPS) Detachment
Administratively preparing the Battalion and its personnel for any deployment is always a challenge; failure to do so could prevent personnel deploying. Fitting
the essential admin tasks into the very
busy training schedule was difficult, but
with the Detachments (Dets) ‘One Team’ ethos all tasks were carried out to a very high standard. As the Bn who would be deploying departed on summer leave, those supporting the Bn back in the UK formed into the Rear Operations Group (ROG) and would continue in this capacity until June 2013. The deployment saw the RAO, Capt Sal Circo take 10 members of the Det to Afghanistan leaving the RAWO, WO2 Si Slater, leading the 10 members of the Det who remained with the ROG.
The SPS Det in Afghanistan delivered personnel administration in its many varied guises to 1,200
personnel of the
the RAO, Cpl ‘Izzy’ Qalo, Cpl ‘Danny’ Waltham and Pte ‘Scotty’ Lyall were on ‘Op MASSIVE’ using every opportunity to get fit with varying degrees of success. The large amount of protein drinks consumed by Pte Lyall may not have had a huge effect on his muscle mass, but it certainly had an effect on his wind production.
The demanding pace of life on ROG continued despite the Bn’s departure. A few weeks after the Bn’s deployment saw the arrival of inspection teams from 3
Div and 4 Bde SPS Branches. This was a baptism of fire for the recently arrived RAWO, WO2 (SQMS) Si Slater and the rest of the team, but as expected the Det passed with flying colours. ROG was a turbulent time for the Det’s manpower with various members leaving the army on discharge or in SSgt Amanda Power’s
case, departing on maternity leave to have her bouncing baby boy. Both SSgt Power and Cpl Amy Palin provided a weekly one-to-one allowances and pay clinic to the wives
and partners of our deployed soldiers. This proved very popular with the wives and was for SSgt Power to learn
Sgt Tats Taylor, Lt C Stalker and LCpl Bentil take a break from Sanger Duty in FOB SHAWQAT
Transitional Support
Unit Nad-e-Ali (TSU
NDA). SPS personnel
were embedded in each
of the seven locations
of the TSU from the
relative comforts of
Camp Bastion, to the
austere conditions of
Forward Operating Base
(FOB) SHAWQAT and Patrol Bases (PBs) PIMON, SAALANG, FOLAD, WAHEED and PB4. LCpl Chilinda and Ptes Lang and Shoremi found life in the PBs an interesting and, with the exception of the frequent IDF, enjoyable experience. Sgt Tracey Searle was taken out of her comfort zone and employed as the Battle Group (BG) BUZZARD responsible for the helicopter movement of the TSUs equipment and personnel – a real test of her organisational and communication skills. Meanwhile, as well as operating as the BG SSA and Staff Assistant, Sgt ‘Tats’ Taylor found time to entertain the troops with various quizzes and his daily dose of cringe worthy jokes. Back in ‘Bastion’ and when time allowed
The SPS Det in Afghanistan delivered personnel administration in its many varied guises to 1,200 personnel...
The Rear Ops Group (ROG) AGC Antenatel Sympathy Group for SSgt Amanda Power
banter between those deployed and those on ROG had helped maintain team spirit and cohesion. We wish fond farewells to Lt Stalker, WO2 Myers, Sgt Jones, Cpls Hillhouse, Watson, Mowbray and Qalo and welcome into the fold Capt Templeton, WO2 Slater, Cpl Westfield and Pte Pulfrey. The past 12 months have ensured our soldiering and SPS technical skills have been fully tested in some very demanding environments and situations. Although extremely busy and at times stressful we have all come through the experience
and are undoubtedly better soldiers, administrators and people for it, and we all agree that on reflection it has been an enjoyable and memorable experience supporting 1 MERCIAN.
also an opportunity
some valuable parenting tips. LCpl ‘Jopo’ Jopson demonstrated that he had many strings to his bow, turning his hand from maintaining office equipment, to repairing the Chain of Command (CoC) vehicles when required. Disappointed not to deploy with the Bn, Pte Nathan Lee jumped
at the chance to deploy with the 4 Bde decompression team to Cyprus in Feb 13. As well as providing administrative support he was also employed as a member of security forces which meant he was always kept busy.
When the team came together for the first time after the Bn’s return in Apr 13 there were many new faces, but the constant
RAO
Det Comd RAWO
Capt S Circo Capt E Templeton WO2 S Slater
1 MERCIAN REME LAD AQMS WO2 J Guthrie MBE
The Light Aid Detachment (LAD) has had a somewhat busy year, conducting numerous training exercises, equipment courses and operational preparation which has seen the LAD members spread to the four winds. Mission Specific Training (MST) saw many of our tradesmen learning new skills on how to maintain and repair new and previously unseen equipment. So whilst the head sheds were in the final planning phases for the deployment, the LAD were ensuring that we had the necessary equipment knowledge and expertise to support throughout the tour. Training culminated
in the Field Training Exercise (FTX) which helped cement newly acquired skills and
trade knowledge, whilst also preparing the LAD for weatherproofing of accommodation tents which flooded to knee height in some locations. This proved priceless training due to the frequent storms we suffered in the various LAD locations around the Area of Responsibility (AOR)
Deployment finally arrived and the advance party of the AQMS and EME, Captain (now Major) Peters, left to start the handover process from the outgoing 1 Royal Anglian. After a seamless takeover the remainder of the LAD arrived and work began in earnest. The Fitter sections were sent out to their respective Patrol Base’s(PB’s) led by Sgt “Chilts” Chilton
(PB FOLAD), Cpl “Greeny” Green (PB 4), Sgt “Russ” Jennings (PB SALAANG), Cpl “Macca” Veitch (PB WAHID) and Cpl “I wish I was a Reg” Ruby. The work-flow began to increase dramatically and the initial part of the tour led to many late nights, sometimes with 36-hour shifts to ensure the TSU had their equipment in a usable state. There were a few recovery tasks carried out
by our recovery crew, led by LCpl “Fish” Whatmough, but due to the excellent driver equipment care carried out by the TSU
very few recoveries were required due to vehicle breakdowns. The credit for this is down to the junior commanders and drivers carrying out before-and-after use checks
THE MERCIAN EAGLE
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