Page 28 - KRH Year of 2021 CREST

26 The Regimental Journal of The King’s Royal Hussars
Reconnaissance Troop
Awet, cold January is not one a reconnaissance soldier is unaccustomed to. Throw in bygone accommodation and an impenetrable accent and one could be forgiven for thinking a New Year’s range package in Castlemartin is being described. Alas no, how we longed for the squadron bars and ammo bashing. 2021 started for Recce Tp, like it did for the rest of the country, with COVID-19 as the hot topic. The Troop was deployed to Kent in order to assist in the running and delivery of the county’s main upstream testing centre. Although not the kind of activity that the Troop dreams of, we took to it in our usual industrious and cheerful fashion counting down the days with the help of the free burger vans and the promise of being kitted out on RWMIK and Quad Bikes for Exercise IRON STORM.
Testing came and went and having completed a grateful hando- ver to 3 PWRR March arrived with the Troop back on familiar ground – SPTA. It soon became apparent that this proposed orbat was some way away, although very much needed, with the Troop’s annual BCS exercise proving to be more of an EC exercise as an implosion of vehicle faults all but grounded the CVR(T) fleet. Where the Troop’s vehicles may fail us, our soldiers never will...
May proved to be a particularly favourable one for the Troop as we deployed for a month to the place that puts hairs on any new Armoured Corps trooper’s chest, Castlemartin. As the weather gradually improved, so too did activity in the Squadron bars real- ise a crescendo as the weeks rolled on. A select few of the more committed members of the Troop even took to mapping the local human terrain with relentless CTRs into Pembroke in the early hours. They showed true recce spirit in being either self-sufficient or immensely resourceful in their Phase 6 conduct, either tabbing the hard yards back as the sun rose or hoodwinking their HVTs’ family members into providing lift to enable a speedy extraction for those weary heroes. It is difficult to say whether such commit- ment to human terrain analysis impinged on the Troop’s ability to complete its purpose of the visit to CMR, that of passing our Annual Crew Tests. The facts speak for themselves however with
Reconnaissance Troop – even more ally with the smoke
strong performances from new and seasoned gunners alike all achieving first time passes on their ACTs. Special mention must go to LCpl Jancso who, under the expert eye of SSgt Simler the Troop’s new 2iC, was awarded the ‘Top Gun’ award with a first- time Level 6 pass of over 90%.
In the interim period the Troop said farewell to Capt Toby Bonnell, a much loved and respected Recce Tp Leader, and wel- comed the ‘new blood’ Lt Will Barrell.
A proper shake-out was achieved as the KRH Battlegroup began to flex its muscles on Exercise CRIMSON THUNDER. Alas, those pesky vehicle issues from March had not been eradicated and a seemingly innocuous road move to the ECCP proved too much for half the fleet. Despite it being July the gods did not shine favourably on the new Recce Tp Ldr’s and 2iC’s start to their tactical tenure as they spent the night diving deep into the hulls of their vehicles as the rain hammered down. Indeed, the weather proved too much for Lt Barrell who forwent the sacred oath to Armoured Close Reconnaissance he had sworn just a few months prior and on his first night in the job sent up the Domino’s mini flare. The exercise improved drastically from then-on with