Page 12 - Example Journals

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1st The Queen’s Dragoon Guards
Capt Lough & Sgt Thomas on ranges with USMC and ANA
of an impending, so called, ‘green-on- blue’ attack. We were also taught the tactics, techniques and procedures (TTPs) used to counter the ‘green-on- blue’ threat including the employment of guardian angels (an armed sentry similar to a body guard).
At the end of January, A Sqn (along with B Sqn and RHQ) deployed to Castlemartin for Ex PASHTUN TEMPEST. As many readers will recall, January is not the ideal time to visit Castlemartin and our expectations were met with one of the coldest and wettest rst few days on exercise that many of us had ever experienced. The exercise focussed on training us to shoot under dif cult and realistic conditions (as realistic a substitute south west Wales in January is for Helmand in August, anyway!) We learned to shoot from civilian pickup trucks, similar to those that we would use in Helmand and to counter ambushes, abandoning stricken vehicles and covering one another, while extracting as small teams to safety. We became acutely aware that our vehicles were far from bullet proof and getting in and out of such a vehicle, normally involving climbing over seats, all while wearing body armour, returning re and trying to communicate with your team mates over gun re and while wearing hearing protection (now a mandated requirement) was challenging in the extreme.
As we would frequently switch teams in theatre, often going into Camp Shorabak with our USMC colleagues, it was vital
this excellent training, ably delivered by LCpl Pettinger from the QDG RAP.
While the focus for much of MST was on ‘hard skills’ (shooting, CIED and rst aid), it was during this period that the squadron started to receive ‘soft skills’ training. This included some language training, with three of cers and one Tpr attending the three week patrol Dari course and everyone else conducting at least a few days of classroom tuition. Although Pashtu is the most commonly spoken language in Helmand, the of cial ANA language is Dari and hence this was taught.
The squadron also got its rst exposure to the Operational Training and Advisory Group (OPTAG) at this stage. This consisted two days of lectures in Normandy Barracks, mandatory for every serviceman deploying to Afghanistan, known as the All Ranks Brie ng followed by an excellent advisors’ cadre delivered in Dempsey Barracks by the OPTAG Security Forces Advisor Training Team. This focussed countering the insider threat posed to coalition forces by their Afghan partners (a hot topic in the media over the last few years). We were taught to recognise the early warning signs of an impending attack as well as how to react and deal with heightened ‘atmospherics’ that might be the warning
Sjt Bailey and Tpr Mole
Tpr Evans