Page 9 - MERCIAN Eagle 2021

CO Foreword
Lt Col Dean Canham OBE
‘Extraordinary’ years are, I suspect, reported on all-too-often in these
pages; 1 MERCIAN has however had a rollercoaster over the last 12 months. The pivot in the latter half of 2020, from being a battalion on its way to Kabul to
a battlegroup training in Germany for a deployment to Estonia, through Covid-19 lockdowns and Brexit, was – to say
the least – challenging. Unsurprisingly, the officers and soldiers of the
Battalion proved more than up to it and demonstrated everything needed to be able to confidently head out onto NATO’s north-eastern flank in 2021.
companies and platoons here give you the full tour experience.
While the balance of the Battalion has been away for most of the last year, the demands on the Rear Operations Group back in Bulford, led by A (Grenadier) Company, were manifest; readiness for UK operations, maintaining armoured infantry skills and supporting those deploying forward and returning, kept them running hot. Alongside them,
C (Meeanee) Company maintained a laser-focus on those troops requiring rehabilitation; their results remain starkly positive.
The Battlegroup returned from Estonia in September and embarked on welcome periods of leave to see us
through to 2022. Whilst the programme for the coming year remains uncertain
as far as training opportunities and readiness demands are concerned, implementation
of the Integrated Review will see us bring together 1 and 2 MERCIAN into a
new 1st Battalion. Whilst the news of
the amalgamation was unwelcome, it will leave the new 1st Battalion as one
of the largest battalions in the Army
and well placed for the future. Positive developments are underway already as a result; C Company has been reinstated as a rifle company – Kohima – and is growing back to full fighting strength.
I hope you enjoy reading about our year of standing firm and striking hard!
The 1 MERCIAN Battlegroup deployment to Estonia on Operation CABRIT 8 launched in March and routinely gusted
toward 1200
soldiers strong. It
was founded on B
(Malta) Company,
Dragon Company and
HQ (Eagle) Company
from 1 MERCIAN,
alongside Badger
Squadron RTR, C
Battery 3 RHA, 30
Armoured Engineer
Squadron (26
Engineer Regiment) and a company group of 300 French troops. We trained alongside the Estonian 1st Brigade and were held at readiness to deploy within it should there be a Russian incursion. The first three months of the tour were a relentless Combined Arms rehearsal for such an incursion; the latter half allowed us space to refine lower-level skills and crack numerous cadres as well as some adventure training. The reports from
We trained alongside the Estonian 1st Brigade and were held at readiness to deploy within it should there be a Russian incursion
Enhanced Forward Presence Battlegroup
THE MERCIAN EAGLE
1MERCIAN
7