Page 37 - RADC 2017

OVERSEAS ASSIGNMENTS
BATUS
Maj A Phillips, RADC
The British Army Training Unit Suffield (BATUS) is based within the Canadian Forces Base (CFB) Suffield on the prairies of southeast Alberta, Canada. BATUS
is the British Army’s largest armoured training facility, and largest training area
in the Commonwealth measuring 2,691 km2. The training area’s vast size can accommodate live-firing and tactical effect simulation (TES) exercises up to battle group level.
There are four main exercises conducted each year between May and October, Prairie Storms 1 to 4. The winter months are used for maintenance and repair of
the training area, vehicles and equipment. The military population of BATUS varies greatly throughout the year. There are approximately 220 permanent staff; 560 temporary staff during the winter and 660 in the summer; and 1,500 exercising troops per Prairie Storm exercise.
BATUS was formally established in January 1972 after a 10 year lease was signed in 1971 between the British and Canadian Governments, authorising battle group training to take place at the training area of CFB Suffield. The first live rounds were fired in July 1972. In 2006, after
the lease had been extended on several occasions, an agreement was made between the two Governments allowing the British to maintain their training in Canada indefinitely.
BATUS Medical Centre and Dental Centre are located in the same building, with the facilities being shared by both the British and Canadians. The dental team is small and consists of a dental officer, a corporal practice manager and a Canadian civilian dental nurse. Twice a year for two weeks
at a time, a Canadian dental team from CFB Wainwright, use the dental facilities at BATUS to treat Canadian military based at Suffield.
The nearest cities are Medicine Hat, 45 minutes to the east, and Calgary, 2.5 hours to the west. The smaller city of Medicine Hat is renowned for being the sunniest city in Canada. It is also home of the ‘World’s Tallest Teepee’. BATUS is approximately 2,500 feet above sea level and the nearest sea port is Vancouver, some 1,300 km to the west.
The weather in Alberta can be quite extreme, depending on the time of year. In the summer temperatures can be in excess of 30˚C and in the winter temperatures can dip below -40˚C. During the winter snow often features in the forecast, but this can quickly melt if warm Chinook winds blow in from the west. Snow in the summer months is also not unheard of!
For those adventurous at heart there are
plenty of activities to take part in. Locally there are mountain bike and horse riding trails, and a small ski hill in the Cypress Mountains which is great for those learning to ski or snowboard. For those that enjoy
a round of golf, there are several golf courses around Medicine Hat. There is
also an ice skating rink in Ralston, the local village where the majority of military families are housed. Everyone at BATUS has the opportunity to learn to ice skate and play ice hockey. Then there is all the fun to be had in the Canadian Rocky Mountains, which are 4 hours to the west.
Trails End Camp (TEC) is a British Army Adventure Training Centre based in the foothills of the Canadian Rocky Mountains. During the summer months TEC offers sky diving, kayaking, horse riding, and mountain biking. In the winter months they offer ice climbing, downhill skiing and back county skiing.
Alberta is cowboy country, which means June and July is rodeo season. This is when Calgary hosts its world famous ‘Calgary Stampede’ which features bull riding, chuck- wagon racing, and lots of other horse and cattle activities. Ralston Village also has its own rodeo and offers the less experienced staff of BATUS an opportunity to have a go at calf roping.
So why not come to BATUS and see if you can lasso yourself a wild horse or ski ‘Delirium Dive’ in the Rockies?
OBITUARY
Ray Gardner
16th December 1932 – 29th October 2017
Ray Gardner died on the 29th October 2017 at the age of 84 years.
Ray was a dedicated and loyal member of the Royal Army Dental Corps Association and had been present at the Armistice day parades held in November at the Cenotaph in Whitehall, London, each year. He was particularly privileged to be the custodian of the Association tribute wreath laid at the base of the Cenotaph during the parade. Attendance was also undertaken on many occasions at the Field of Remembrance held a few days prior outside Westminster Abbey.
As one of the founder members of the RADC 50 Group, later to be renamed the Reunion Group, he attended all the annual reunion gatherings when he met up with former old comrades. There were also the ‘Turning of the Page’ ceremonies held at the National Memorial Arboretum to which Ray and his wife Anne rarely missed.
Raymond Stanley Gardner was born on the 16th December 1932 in Birmingham and educated at Kings Norton Grammar school. In his youth he was a member of the 53rd Birmingham Company of the Boys’ Brigade where he enjoyed drill parades and camping. Called up for National Service in 1950 he joined the Royal Army Dental Corps and qualified as a Dental Clerk Assistant serving at a Dental Centre in Wales.
After National Service Ray joined the Accounts Department of Birmingham City Council and in his spare time was a keen artist but also continued to show an interest in medical matters, hoping at some time to gain employment in some aspect of that profession. In
later years he took an Open University course gaining a Science Degree.
He was also keen on Ancestry and undertook a detailed history of his family which resulted in reaching as far back as the 14th century.
Ray’s funeral was held at St.Agnes
Church, Moseley, Birmingham on the
10th November 2017 and was also
attended by members of the Reunion Group including Colonel Quentin Anderson with his wife Anne. A guard of honour was mounted from the RADC, formed by Colonel Richardson, WO1 Dufty and SSgt Mear, who paraded outside the church as Ray’s coffin entered. Ray’s burial service was conducted thereafter at St. Nicholas’ Churchyard, Kings Norton.
Ray is survived by his wife Anne, his step son James and his brother Barry.
Ray will be sadly missed not only by his family and friends but also by members of the RADC Association and particularly by the Reunion Group.
Brian Sims
RADC BULLETIN 2017 35