Page 24 - QDG 2023

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which significantly reduced the tear down time for the exercise. The last boots off the ground were the QM, Maj Hansen, who had been in the USA for more than 6 months and returned in June to tie off a rather unusual exercise for C Sqn. Not a shot had been fired but many a pan had been bashed, staff officers frustrated, rodeos visited, bars frequented and tornados suffered, but a great experience was had by all. The GOC raised a special mention for the QDG section of the RLS and C Squadron received praise across the board from individuals who had experienced the previous attempts at RLS out there. While it wasn’t our typical exercise, C Sqn showed once again that whatever situation we are placed in, only the best will suffice and this showed in spades in Texas. The Squadron had earned some leave on their return to the UK and upcoming activities organised by Capt Barham kept tongues wagging as to what he was going to produce over Ex Lost Eagle.
Ex Lost Eagle was an unusual exercise for several reasons, not least because it was an all singing all dancing naviga- tion exercise aimed at getting our young soldiers through crew commanders, but also because it was hosted by the Barham family, comprising of two gener- ations of QDG officers. Capt George Barham the OC and 2IC at the time who planned and organised it, and hosted on private land by Edward Barham, formerly QDG in 1988-90. It posed a great oppor- tunity to blow away the cobwebs from Texas and get some green training done, and to conduct some ‘retention positive activity’ (read: activities that would have been switched off if they had been put on the risk assessment for approval by
RHQ). The first phase of navigation was led by Sgt Griffiths and each challenge increased daily and often caused some individuals to deliver more miles than navigation. The final phase focused on resilience and involved beach runs and tours of the military canal. On anti- quated military equipment the highlight was when tenants of the
ised FFR Land Rovers most of the Sqn started to check the dictionary definition of the words ‘fair’ and ‘experiment.’ After re-calibrating our understanding of the dictionary to the ‘Post hoc Ergo Propter Hoc’ experimentation approach of the army, the Sqn realised its place in the exercise and set about causing mischief.
Barham family allowed the Sqn Seniors to drive their restored CVR(T)s- bringing back great memories for the SSM.
In August the Sqn came back from Summer Leave and commenced training for Ex SCORPION CYCLONE, the 1 DRS Bde part of the wider 3 (UK) Div Ex IRON TITAN- for which C Sqn under QDG BGHQ would be the OPFOR. Sadly, due to numerous other commit- ments the Sqn had to deploy with no Tp Leaders, but thankfully the trio of Gilliam, Hutchings and Griffiths stood up to the task of being Tp Ldrs.
Sadly, due to being in the screen for a long three days the RL failed to notice the entire
Sqn and Sgt Griffiths had to be sent out Tank Hunting.
We started the exercise with a Back-to-Basics Programme to complete standardised basic training, which in the magnificent extended summer of late September was wonderful. We then progressed to providing OPFOR for the RL CT2 Battle Lanes. All of this was conducted around the main event of the progress of Fiji and Wales in the Rugby World Cup. Afterwards the Sqn provided a non-thinking enemy for a RL BG Attack and then we commenced plotting against the Lancers.
The first RL movement, an advance West to East, did not allow for much plotting as in the interests of being ‘fair’ our Arty Support was
1 DRS Bde were using the
exercise to conduct an experiment ‘to prove the concepts that had delivered real success in WARFIGHTER ’ but the Bde Commander was clear that this was to be a fair experiment. Our enemy - two Sqns of the Royal Lancers in Warrior APCs and a US Mech Inf subunit in Strikers looked quite formidable. Which is why on receiving our issue of non bowman-
removed, and the Sqn had to rely on the immense weaponry that a Land Rover can offer. After the Sqn managed to withdraw to the Eastern Area we were allowed some support back and hit into a stalemate. This period allowed for the Sqn to start some more ‘out of the box thinking’ from the left-hand arc of let’s raid a Tp Hide through to the right of arc of spray tagging the US vehicles. High- lights included a Mad Max style advance into the centre of the RL Screen outriders
annnnnnnd sleep.