Page 89 - The Bugle Issue 12 Autumn 2016

destroyed and enjoyed a well-earned beer and a bacon sandwich. Throughout the nal exercise the students showed a rm understanding of reteam, section and platoon level tactics and the adminis- trative duties of a Sect 2IC.
Following the nal exercise, the FTCC students found themselves having to endure FAD dress ttings, inspections and many, many hours of drill in prepa- ration for the pass off parade. The countless hours of rehearsals paid dividends and the parade went extremely well. The students were presented with their rst chevron and promoted to Lance Corporal the very same day. Brigadier Rob Thompson DSO CBE took the parade and gave some advice on the standards that the newly promoted Lance Corporals had to accept and adhere to as junior commanders. The nal stage of the FTCC was the static range coaching quali cation. Sjt Christian oversaw the week and ensured that his years of experience as a sniper were best used to effectively teach the newly promoted Lance Corporals. The weather on the Kent ranges was perfect and an extremely successful week was achieved by all.
The 1601 FTCC started with 93 students and nished with 56 Lance Corporals. All those who attempted the course would have learned something about themselves whether they were successful or not. The FTCC achieved its mission and produced some excellent junior non-commissioned of cers. The staff worked tirelessly to make sure that the best teaching, resources and experiences were had by the students. The students themselves worked extremely hard to prove not only that they were capable of commanding a reteam but also that, ultimately, they wanted to accept the responsibility of command and lead fellow Ri emen.
Capt Sam Wilson, Training Of cer
THE RIFLES
The Readiness Year
The Battalion assumed Readiness on 5 Jan 16 as part of 1 Armoured Infantry Brigade as the Lead Armoured Task Force. All deployable Ri emen in the battalion are held at 90 days Notice to Move save for B Company which provides the Mechanised Company for the Lead Armoured Battle Group and is held at 30 days Notice to Move. The establishment of mecha- nisms and procedures to prove readiness were put in place and have been subject to continual scrutiny to ensure deployability.
While held at readiness, there has also been a plethora of training events in the calendar to keep everyone occupied. The CT1 and 2 level Mecha- nised Infantry exercises provided the only guaranteed opportunity to roll out the A Fleet vehicles in a tactical scenario. The battalion was given the lead on behalf of the infantry in the development and implementation of the STRIKE Brigade concept which was to occupy the remainder of the year with study days, planning exercises, wargames and virtual implementation using CATT. This has subsequently been handed over due to operational deployment.
The Training Year began in Longmoor village with the companies conducting Ex BASELINE BUGLE, a public order training package which saw them rotate through instructional phases and battle exercises. Instructors from the Mission Training and Mobilisation Centre were on hand to provide subject matter expertise and ultimately validate each company up to CT2.
A Company then enjoyed moving quickly abroad to a six week deployment to the jungle of Belize on Ex MAYAN WARRIOR. The arduous environment and expeditionary nature really challenged the company who bene tted from a back-to-basics light role infanteering exercise. The highlight was the innovative and intense live re ranges run with the help of a UKSF repre- sentative. Later in the year the company will deploy to Kenya to provide the COEFOR for Ex ASKARI STORM 4. B Company became embroiled in the enormous Divisional Readiness Test, Exercise TRACTABLE, on Salisbury Plain. This was a useful run-out for the battalion’s A Fleet and an oppor- tunity to incorporate the MASTIFF eet into the Lead Armoured Battlegroup, provided by 1 RRF. In May, B Company deployed to the Wainwright training area in Canada to provide part of the enemy force for Exercise MAPLE RESOLVE. This exercise gave plenty of opportunity for light-role soldiering over two weeks of force-on-force missions working with Canadian and US allies.
Following delivery of the Fireteam Commanders’ Cadre, R Company has focused on unique and innovative CT1 exercises. These have included an escape and evasion exercise in the Wiltshire countryside, a week of urban training in Longmoor village, a few days at a former, nuclear protected, subterranean seat of regional governance known as Drakelow Tunnels and an air strike on to a disused nuclear ammunition storage facility at RAF Honington. S Company has had a year of continous development as it balances quali cation cadres, mounted CT1 and 2 exercises and other tasks. A period of platoon cadres during May-Jun resulted in the successful quali cation of a number of new ri emen into these specialist roles. The company is also providing manpower for a Short Term Training Team deployment to Kenya in October.
Capt John Warburton, Operations Of cer
THE ESTABLISHMENT
OF MECHANISMS AND PROCEDURES TO PROVE READINESS WERE PUT IN PLACE
FOURTH BATTALION 87