Page 60 - The Wish Stream Year of 2021 (Crest)

Lucknow Platoon
Cultural Visit
to London
OCdts Greaves, Mann & Moss
Following the relaxation of the Covid restric- tions at RMAS, Lucknow Platoon, the reha- bilitation platoon, has gained great freedom
to take part in enriching activities beyond the gates of the Academy. So far Lucknow has been to the DSEI expo (Defence and Security Equip- ment International), the Brookwood Cemetery, and recently on the 14th of October, to London on a Reconnaissance Navigation Challenge, designed by three cadets of Lucknow (OCdts Greaves, Mann & Moss) to culturally enlighten the OCdts of Lucknow.
Developed and delivered with a full set of Recce Orders, this activity sought to expose the OCdts to a variety of cultural landmarks in our capital city, and to challenge their ability to plan, deliver a back brief, and then execute their mission, achieving the intent of their superiors. The OCdts were broken down into groups and given a score card with a list of culturally significant landmarks, split into the following categories: museums/ sights, transport, photos, statues, pubs, and extreme. An example for each category as fol- lows: The Imperial War Museum, a Boris Bike, top of a skyscraper, Churchill and FDR Statue, Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese pub and 10 Downing Street.
To assist the execution of this trip and minimise financial burden, primarily focused on assisting with the accomplishment of the Transport cat- egory, the Sandhurst Trust kindly gifted £200 to the Platoon, to be distributed to the OCdts. Along with the provision of lunch, this meant that no OCdts were required to spend any money to achieve their mission on this task.
To ensure inclusivity for this event, as several Lucknow OCdts are acutely injured, a Short Route was developed to minimise risk and the need to travel all around London. This saw alternative objectives such as specific paintings
within the National Gallery, and an amended list of sites and statues.
The OCdts were dropped off at Trafalgar Square by 1200hrs and had to return to The Chan- dos pub by 1745hrs, giving the OCdts 5hrs and 45mins to navigate, explore and culturally enlighten themselves on what London has to offer. To account for the safety, and keep track of the location of each group, they were required to send location reports on the hour every hour during the event. Additionally, three mandatory RVs were given to each group to achieve, and this had to be supported with photographic evi- dence on the day.
While we aimed for every group to enjoy, be chal- lenged, and to be culturally enlightened through this trip, to what extent this would be achieved was difficult to see. However, all came clear at the end of the day when the whole Platoon occupied The Chandos pub and were exchanging photos and stories of their day, with each group trying to claim victory. We hope that this event inspires the OCdts to broaden their horizons and seek to deliver something uniquely challenging to their soldiers whom they may command in the future.
58 SANDHURST