Page 115 - Bugle Autumn 2014

Handover Parades
As with much of the Army and the wider regiment, 6 RIFLES has undergone a huge amount of structural change since the last edition. As we move into our new Army 2020 Order of Battle (ORBAT), as of 1st April 2014 we have said goody to B Coy in Taunton who have now become 675 (Rifles) Sqn 6 AAC. E (Rifles) Coy 4 Mercian in Shrewsbury have joined us to become E Coy 6 RIFLES and we have also taken on MS Sqn Royal Mercian and Lancastrian Yeomanry who are now 10 Pl, E Coy based in Hereford. A real welcome home for them as until 2006 they formed the reconnaissance Platoon of E Coy. These events were marked by a series of parades throughout April.
On 1st April, B Coy, complete with Exeter based 4 Pl, formed
up for the final time in Wyvern Barracks to mark their change from Rifle Green to Army Air Corps blue. The parade, that provided
a considerable challenge to the Riflemen on parade was well attended by family, friends and many VIPs including Lady Gass,
HM Lord Lt of Somerset, Brig Rupert Jones, Rifles Col SW, and senior AAC representatives. Ably supported by the Salamanca Band and Bugles, B Coy 6 RIFLES marched onto parade proudly to ‘Mechanised Infantry’ at 140 paces per minute. After the address by Brig Jones they were presented their new AAC berets before marching off, now as 675 (Rifles) Sqn, at 120 paces to the Army Air Corps March, ‘Recce Flight’. For the Coy to perform such a task with minimal preparation was a remarkable feat and a fitting tribute to their service with the Battalion. We are sad to see them go, but the connection and the Rifles ethos will remain with the Sqn in the future, borne out in their name and in their dress. They remain very much part of our family.
Handover of the Hereford Platoon with Her Majesty’s Lord Lieutenant of Hereford, The Countess of Darnley
the Yeomanry where they have seen sterling service. It was felt regimentally, however that there was always a gap. This has now been filled by the MS Sqn, now known as 10 Pl, E Coy. The Rifles are well loved in Hereford, a fact highlighted only too well when the Adjt was inundated with requests to attend right up until the day before the event. The MS Sqn marched onto parade in front of amongst others, HM Lord Lt for Hereford, The Countess of
On 8th April, E Coy formally marked their
return to the regimental fold. A large portion
of the Coy formed up on a fine spring evening
with the Battalion HQs from both 4th Battalion
The Mercian Regiment and 6 RIFLES. After
CO 4 Mercian thanked E Coy for their service
with both 4 Mercian and The West Midlands
Regiment, Maj Dom Maxwell-Batten, Second
in Command 6 RIFLES welcomed the Coy to the Battalion on
behalf of the Commanding Officer. Following a superb flourish by the Battalion’s buglers, the Riflemen were then presented with their new Tactical Recognition Flashes by the 2IC, Adjt and RSM, before retiring into the ARC for a fantastic supper provided by the seemingly endless talent of QPSI ‘Decca’ Winter. It was a fittingly stylish, but low key welcome home for a Coy with a proud Rifles Heritage.
Finally, on 21st April we welcomed MS Sqn of the Royal Mercian and Lancastrian Yeomanry, based in Hereford, into the Rifles fold. Traditionally a Light Infantry unit, in 2006 the Pl in Hereford joined
Handover of B Coy as they became 675 (Rifles) Sqn Army Air Corps with Lady Gass, Her Majesty’s Lord Lieutenant of Somerset.
Darnley and the respective mayors of Hereford, Leominster and Ross-on-Wye. The highlight of the evening was the presentation of new berets to the Riflemen by the Cadets of Hereford and Worcester ACF, who in true fashion as one of the ‘Pillars’ of the Regiment have been carrying the bugle in Hereford since the TA departed in 2006. The OC of MS Sqn, Maj Tony Freeman was then presented with a silver bugle by the
Regimental Association. 10 Pl, E Coy, 6 RIFLES then marched off, this time at 140 paces per minute to a fitting round of applause. Following the parade, Riflemen of E Coy enjoyed a superb buffet alongside the cadets, association members and dignitaries. A real example of several generations of the regimental family coming together.
This has been a period of significant change for the Battalion, but one in which it has shown true flare and a forward leaning approach that was manifested in three quite different, but very fitting tributes to these battalion sub units.
6 RIFLES has undergone a huge amount of structural change since the last edition
The CO Lt Col Chris Carter MBE, 4th Battalion The Mercian Regiment, handing over E Coy to 6th Battalion, The Rifles 2iC, Major Dom Maxwell-Batten
THE RIFLES
SIXTH BATTALION 113