Page 70 - MERCIAN Eagle 2021

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Battalion Headquarters
CSgt Cotterill, OpsWO
In preparation for Ex ASKARI STORM 1/21, and in the immediate wake of our unit move from Episkopi to Weeton, January saw us in Catterick for a CAST exercise. This gave us the opportunity for a full run out with the team, including attached arms, following
a ‘mini CAST’ at Troodos the previous autumn, with both exercises under the watchful eye of the CAST(N) staff. Some excellent lessons were captured, whilst the poles of the 18 x 24 plans tent were fully ‘strength tested’ against the North Yorkshire snow drifts.
The deployment to Kenya, which directly overlapped with CAST during a spike in C-19 infections across the North, was
a challenging period for the Battalion. Without an RMO of our own, the 1 LANCS RMO, Maj Atinuke, or “T”, certainly had her work cut out, and numerous other members of the team stepped up to the plate of working firmly “out of lane” to cover off the roles of those affected by C-19. Breaking clean of Nyati camp (albeit with heavily tweaked ORBATs) to attack
Ex WARRIOR, Ex CENTURION, Ex VIKING and Mission Zero was delayed, however, finally gave us the opportunity to shake out as a BG and get stuck in. The exercise provided an excellent opportunity to test the ‘Vanguard concept’, HQ survivability with the use of multiple C2 nodes, convergent manoeuvre, the use of donkeys, as well as the employment of RPAS. ‘Sundowners’, atop a suitably steep high feature adjacent to the BG AA, proved to be a great end
to the exercise, and due to C-19 social distancing it was actually the first time that some members of the BG met one another.
Preparation for Op TORAL 13 began in earnest on recovery from Kenya; including a plethora of individual mission specific training courses, alongside a significant driver training programme to achieve the conversion to a light protected mobility Battalion. Soldiers were dispersed across the UK for their individual training, whilst the driver training bill was achieved via
both internally delivered distributed training as well as courses at Bovington and Leconfield. Our first Op TORAL 13 All Ranks Brief (ARB) took place at the end of May, which was the precursor to Ex KABUL EAGLE in June. This was a 2 week training package at Swynnerton which was aimed at the Platoon / Multiple level within the Coy wrap. RQ Miller built an excellent FOB, allowing CAV and Foxhound callsigns to practise and rehearse Op TORAL Force Protection TTP’s in a complex urban environment. This exercise was enjoyed
by all as the pressure on soldiers and commanders progressively built up within a series of realistic and well resourced scenarios. July and August saw soldiers continue to complete iMST, including a bespoke Dari course at the local AEC in Preston, and well as ARB 2. A 2 week LFTT package, co-ordinated by Capt Elliot and CSgt Joynes of the G2 cell, saw the Coys complete their live fire progression at Warcop.
Ex KABUL LION (CSTTX at CATT, WARMINSTER) took place at the end of July, and allowed members of the Battalion to familiarise themselves with operating
a US style Combined Joint Operations Centre (CJOC), whilst the subunits were able to become more versed in executing tasks and responding to incidents via radio orders as they unfolded. It was great to see all elements of the Battalion adopt a positive learning culture, making massive gains as the week progressed and the complexity of the incidents increased. OC Guns (Capt Whimster) and OC Recce
(Capt Sidwell) enjoyed their time in the hot seat as battle captains, whilst concurrently honing their elaborate PowerPoint skills for the production of ‘post-incident operational storyboards’. The G5 team, under Maj Townsend, delivered a comprehensive plan for the security of an upcoming ANAOA graduation ceremony. This period also marked the moment when we were ordered to force generate for Op BATONNE, whilst
subsequently being stood down for Op TORAL. Ultimately, neither deployments went ahead, however the training was still invaluable for both BHQ and the Battalion as a whole, and the completion Ex KABUL LION marked the start of some well deserved summer leave.
Recovery from leave saw BHQ co- ordinating a significant increase in O&D activity, notably the support to: Ex RURAL STRIKE, Op TOSCA, Ex BISMARCK CHALLENGE, Op TANGHAM, 16Xs
PF Cadre, Ex ASKARI STORM 3/21,
Ex DYNAMIC WARRIOR, Op RESCRIPT,
Ex STEDFAST LEDA, EX KHANJAR OMAN, MAB 2, BATUK TDS, 4 RA, Urban Ops STTT in Saudi Arabia, EX WESSEX STORM, EX JACKALS RECCE, and PROJECT THESEUS. The Ops Officer, Capt Borley, became well versed in the production of impact statements. A recce to Kenya
was also squeezed into the programme
for Ex ASKARI STORM 5/21, allowing
us the opportunity to understand how 1 Gren Guards were delivering ‘Task Force Hannibal’ and giving us useful context for our upcoming deployment in the spring to provide OPFOR for the 1 PWRR BG.
Finally, UK Ops throughout the winter period cannot go unmentioned; the Battalion demonstrated a great deal of flexibility and resilience throughout a very uncertain period of actual and potential commitments. Soldiers were deployed across all corners of the UK, notably
for Op ESCALIN as well as numerous MACAs. Christmas stand down was a tense moment as we were held at very high readiness up until 31 Dec as one of several UK Resilience Units (UKRUs); thankfully,
a large scale deployment on a proposed MACA task aligned to 2 MERCIAN did not go ahead, although it should be noted that small teams were deployed throughout the Christmas period in support for the NHS. We look forward to the new year and the opportunities that Ex ASKARI STORM 5/21 will bring to us as Task Force Hannibal.
THE MERCIAN EAGLE