20110610 Wrt-NewsletterIssue4 Arrival in Theatre

8/4/2019 20110610 Wrt-NewsletterIssue4 Arrival in Theatre

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Inside this issue:

29 AES - Stories fromthe Patrol Bases(Check out page 9 forthe Hunks of the Fort-night)

3

37 AES - Special edi-tion including G4 - Itjust happens

10

44 HQ & SP SQN -Officially in the seat

20

77 Talisman Squad-

ron - Including the first

LAD article

31

11 Field Squadron -

including the new

SSM little eye

39

The BAG BOYS

NEW!

49

What did Baby Hectorfind in the ground?

Find out on page..

52

You can not miss theall new Toe-JamTimesNEW!

57

Caption competition,

can you come up with

the funniest caption?

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Issue 5

06 October 2011

Page 1

Commanding Officers ForewordIt has been another hectic week for us all over here in Afghanistan. Withthe Squadrons continuing their goodwork across Helmand - many are op-erating with little supervision or com-munication to the wider Task Force,yet they remain committed and profes-sional in all that is asked of them. It isgoing extremely well.

Ive spent the last few days movingaround and visiting guys on theground. I recently went into the North-ern Dashte a large expanse of de-sert that has few inhabitants; you drivefor miles and yet despite the ruggedterrain, blistering heat and dry environ-ment you can still come across small communities of families, each oneseeking a safe and secure place to bring up their children, raise livestockand farm their crops. It appears almost medieval in how these farm-

steads are laid out and existing, despite the technology of the 21

st

cen-tury that surrounds.

Once we left the Dashte, we entered the Green Zone, a heavily irrigatedarea of farmland and vegetation in which the majority of the populationlive it is also home to the enemy; a tactful and determined insurgent,who were clearly watching our every move. We eventually found the Pa-trol Base we were to visit, but in order to enter it we had to negotiate anold Russian minefield that had been laid by the Soviets during their occu-pation of Afghanistan in the early 80s. Rusty and decaying anti-tank

mines could be seen half-covered in the sand as we passed by.

I visited 8 Troop 37 Sqn, led by Lt Will Abbot and ably supported by CplSimpson. Along with a couple of sections, the 37 lads were doing acracking job trying to make the bases better to live in for the forthcomingwinter. They are constructing elevated guard towers to look over the in-surgent routes from which they launch their attacks against our bases, aswell as preparing defences against grenades that are fired through theair or directly at anyone who is associated with either the NATO forces orrepresentatives of the Afghan government. It is clear their efforts are

warmly received by the Danish troops in the area.


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The enduring threat of insurgent activity is very real out here. Last week, whilst I was in the Bri-

gade Headquarters, a large car bomb was detonated outside a bakery near the local police sta-tion in Lashkar Gah. It was only 200m from the Headquarters, which shook under the blast somuch I thought it was a direct hit. We continued our coffee whilst huddled under our desks.Once we had finished our lattes, we were moved into a fortified shelter for an hour whilst waitingto see if another attack was imminentthankfully it wasnt. It was like the Blitz, with CaptainJimmy Ryan keeping us all entertained with his weird sense of toilet humour. Despite such a vio-lent incident, the overall prevailing sense of security and safety is evident. The Afghan Army,some of which are being mentored by elements of the Regiment, alongside the expanding Policeforce, are delivering a credible and strong security apparatus in which economy and governanceis growing daily. It is a far cry from when I was last in Helmand in 2008.

It is great to see everyone in such good form wherever I go. Despite the threat of the enemy,coupled with the austere and basic living conditions we often find ourselves in, the boys and girlsare always up for the challenge and doing amazing things; it is called persistent courage and Isee it every day from everyone. I hope that the tenacity, professionalism and sharp sense of hu-mour from across the Regimental Group comes out in this, our second edition of the TrojanTimes. We also have a special section called the Toe-jam Times, which are a series of light-hearted articles from anonymous authors. Together, the newsletter should give you an insightinto what we have achieved over the last 2 weeks. Enjoy.

Lieutenant Colonel Kev Copsey - Commanding Officer

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29 Armoured Engineer Squadron

Officer Commandings Foreword

Welcome to the second newsletter from 29 Armd Engr Sqn on Op HERRICK 15. The Sqn is wellinto the stride out here now and I, with the SSM, have been travelling around visiting 4 and 5

Troop in their PBs and CPs. Spirits are high, everyone is settled in and the work is starting tobuild up. I will be out to 6 Tp in the next couple of days.

The sections continue to provide support to the CFs in a wide variety of tasks including a routeupgrade, SANGER step construction, base improvements for winter and the removal of obsoletestructures to create extra space. The Sqn have already impressed the soldiers of 1 RIFLES and4 SCOTS with their enthusiasm and ingenuity around the various PBs making the quality of lifebetter. A couple of larger jobs are on the horizon too!

Sadly we had the terrible news about one of our members of the Squadron being wounded in ac-tion and seriously injured. He was deployed with the EOD & Search Task Force but is still firmlya part of 29. He lived and trained in Paderborn throughout his preparation for the search role andwill return back to the Sqn. The Rear Ops Group will establish a link to him to ensure he is sup-ported throughout his recovery. Having been given immediate treatment here in Camp Bastion heis now in the best medical hands back in the UK. I am certain I speak for every soldier and familyin 29 by extending our thoughts and support to his family at this difficult time.

I would also like to thank everyone for all of the support that we have received in theatre so farwith hundreds of letters and parcels arriving over the last three weeks. SHQ are sending the mail

forward as quickly as possible to the PBs but it takes a little longer to get to some locations de-pending on the availability of space on helicopters.

Si Carvel

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Patrol Base 2 - My new home

Spr Chris Rosie. 5 Troop

On the 12th September 2011 we moved to the JOB Bastion Helicopter Landing Site (HLS) for the shortjourney to our Patrol Base (PB) in NES(S). After an airport style check-in and baggage check we waitedfor the helicopter to arrive. The Sea King landed and we piled on with all of our kit. The helicopter took offand we left the safe walls of Joint Operating Base Bastion. I sat next to the door of the Sea King and I re-member feeling an almost unbearable heat on my face as the aircraft climbed higher. As the flight wenton I started noticing compounds and people getting on with their daily lives. This is when it started to hithome to me that this was the real thing.

The Sea King landed at PB 2 and we were met by some of our Troop who had arrived on the earlier flight.They helped us off load our equipment and showed us where we were going to be living for the next 6months. We had been given an 18 x 24 tent which had individual mosquito tents inside. My first impres-sion was that there was not a lot of space but enough to get by.

That evening we met one of the Staff Sergeants from 39 Ar-moured Engineer Squadron. He gave us a map orientation ofthe Area of Operation (AO) we were going to be working in.We were told that we were going out the following morning tovisit all of the other PBs in our AO and I was to be the top gun-ner in the Mastiff.

We set off early the next morning onto our first mission. Thefirst thing I noticed was the smell; it was unpleasant to say theleast. In majority of places we drove through, I couldnt reallybelieve the way the people lived and how different life in Af-ghanistan is by comparison to the West.

After our orientation patrol, we were assigned with our first engineering task. One of the PBs had 3 mortarpits that required to be stripped out to generate more space for the infantry vehicle park. The plant hadjust stripped out the first mortar pit when we were assigned with a higher priority task from SHQ. We had

to help 6 Troop with a route upgrade becausethey needed extra vehicles to help with re-sources and force protection. The other twomortar pits would have to wait. (Ed: See SprShaws Article)

The first week has gone well. Although it hasbeen very warm and nerve racking at times,the experience so far has been exhilarating.The Tp is looking forward to getting stuck intosome bigger tasks and Im sure they are on

the horizon.

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5 Troop settling in around the TV

5 Troop, PB4 stripping out of a mortar pit


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Patrol Base NAHIDULLAHSpr Matthew Chadwick- 6 Tp

After months of training and hard work wehave finally arrived at our forward locationin Helmand Province, Afghanistan. After asmooth handover from 9 Troop, 39 Engi-neer Armoured Squadron we have begunour 6 month tour! The Troop has beenslowly making their way to PB NAHIDUL-

LAH (NDH) in NES(S). During our shorttime in the country the Troop has been outon two tasks. Firstly, the replacement of abroken culvert and secondly a road build tohelp movement for locals and ISAF. Therest of the time we have been planting ourfeet and settling in.

PB NDH is better than I had expected orled to believe. Inside our accommodationwe have a welfare area with a TV and

BFBS, so even when we are away we cankeep up with current affairs and the footy! The carpenters have managed to create benches and tablesfrom spare wood and blow up mats that make it a home away from home. We have two 12x12 tents witha section sleeping in each. We have made them pretty comfortable with our flags and photographs theonly let down is the smell of feet! There is also a small gym and the PB is large enough to run around. Wehave all been taking full advantage of the facilities and Op MASSIVE is in full force. We have a regular de-livery of mail and even at this early stage are very grateful of any news from home. We also get a goodselection of newspapers and magazines (occasionally a month or two out of date, but cant complain).

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6 Troop settle in for a good, old fashioned game of

monopoly

6 Troop settling in, mail is morale!


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The Troop has also started a bit of celebrity spotting and so far we have spotted Ross Kemp and CherylCole. Unfortunately, Cheryl did not make it as far down as PB NDH but a lucky few of the 6 Troop guysgot a glimpse and a quick photograph when they were on courses in Bastion. All that is left to say is thatwe have all settled in well and we will keep you all updated on 6 Troop adventures.

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Spot the celebrity

Spot the celebrity


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Route TAVISTOCK ImprovementsSpr Phillip Shaw- 6 Tp

After one day of travelling into Afghanistan,just over a week in Camp Bastion, a fortyminute Chinook flight into our Patrol Base,it was finally time to put all the skills wehad learnt as a troop, sections and indeedas individuals into practice out on the

ground in Southern Afghanistan. Our firsttask was a route upgrade just off one of themain supply routes running parallel to ourpatrol base. As with anything out in Af-ghanistan nothing is ever as simple as itsounds.

Firstly in order to carry out the task, spe-cialist equipment had to be brought in from several different locations around our area of operations. Thisincluded a Self Loading Dump Truck, one Wolfhound, one Husky (big armoured trucks) and finally themanpower to operate and drive each of the vehicles. We would also be working with Afghan civilian plant

operators therefore the language barrier and cultural differences would have to be taken into considera-tion. Improvised Explosive Devices are always a threat and before we could start work on the task site therest of the route would have to be cleared and deemed safe enough for us to carry out the task. All thesefactors require detailed planning and organising in order for the whole task to be completed safely, to therequired standard and on time.

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Working hard on a route upgrade

6 Troop working on a route upgrade


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The night before the task was to be carried out we met up with the members of 5 Troop in another Patrol

Base close to the task site. Here we received orders so each person knew exactly what role they were tocarry out the following day. Reveille was at 0530hrs, a quick wash then breakfast and a brew. We were allin the vehicles ready to make the short drive down to the task site. As daylight broke, we turned off themain supply route and onto the track leading us to the task site. It couldnt have been more than 200mdown this track before we hit our first hurdle of the day, Lt Tomsetts Husky had broken down. With nopower and the rest of the convoy at a standstill along the track, we had to act quickly in order to preventourselves becoming targeted.

We quickly cleared an area for the other Husky to move around to the front of the convoy, hook up to thebroken down vehicle and recover it back to the Patrol Base we had just come from. After a quick rethinkon logistics and manpower required, we were soon back on the road. With one Husky and several mem-bers of 5 Troop lighter. Standing in our way of the route to be upgraded were several VAs (vulnerable ar-

eas, where Taleban bombs might be found). In this case it was 4 culverts which unfortunately other PBsaround the area could not get eyes on. It took us several hours to check these VAs and with the help ofthe infantry clearing the last culvert it was time to start the task.

Through an interpreter we explained what needed to happen and set to work. We had top cover from eachof our vehicles in the convoy and in addition the PBs close enough also gave us cover from any insurgentthreat. Within 3 hours the route upgrade had been completed, aggregate had been laid and then rolledflat.

With only a few minor complications the task all ran smoothly. The route is now a far safer place for thelocals to traffic their livestock and vehicles across. The whole task took just shy of 12 hours to complete,we even made it back to our PB to watch Manchester United beat Chelsea! A good day all round........

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6 Troop looking like they are ready for anything


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Hunks of the Fortnight!Just look at these fine specimens of physical prowess!

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Here they are just chilling after a session in the gym.

Phew, that last rep was hard!

You can see this man has been work-ing out already!

He appears to be missing a piece of equip-ment to make him grimace so much...dumbbells?!


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37 Armoured EngineerSquadron


We are now getting in to our stride and as you will see from the articles below there is a lot going

on. Across our areas of responsibility we are building medical facilities, accommodation, eatingareas, ammo stores, sangars, new camps and upgrading old ones. The work is entirely reward-ing and will serve to make the front line fighters safer and more comfortable. I am hugely im-pressed and indebted to everyone who is working hard in the Squadron, both here and backthere (even the G4 platoon - although I'm sure someone said that stuff just happens).

I've been up to the new area of operations three times now and visited the outstations that arebeing developed; Corporals Vinante, Anderson and Cooper and their men are doing sterling workin some challenging circumstances; it is really good to see the professional, can-do attitude com-ing through in all we do.

The next few weeks will see us roll out the armoured support group with Corporals Dodson, Ste-vens and Roberts leading the way in support of the Danish contingent - more of which in the nextnewsletter I expect.

I hope you are all well back home and enjoying seeing the photos. As ever, please let us know ifthere is anything we can help you with on the home front - if you need an Armynet account setup; it is not too late - let Sergeant Sean Killen know and I will get your beloved to an internet ter-minal (by hook or by crook) to square it away (although you might have to give me a couple ofdays!). Take care of yourselves.

Guy Boxall

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Page 11

Squadron OverviewCaptain Dominic Riley

So here we are 2 weeks in and it feels like we have been here forever! The guys are spread to the fourwinds in a total of six different locations and we've certainly been thrown in at the deep end. UK responsi-bility has recently extended to the North and this means we are taking over a new area of operations fromthe Americans.

This means as Engineers we have a huge role to play. The US Army by its very ethos is extremely expe-ditionary, in real terms this means that they are not fussed about infrastructure and if they told you theywere leaving tomorrow you could well believe that they would be capable of doing just that. The BritishArmy's ethos is quite different and thus much work needs to be done.

Originally just a 9 Tp task, 7 and 8 Tp are now supplying sections to the build in order to meet the dead-line of the in bound British battle group that is replacing the US Marine Corps. The construction tasks aremanifold with a major upgrade of the main FOB ongoing. This includes the provision of water, power, ac-commodation and of course Force Protection, plenty of HESCO to fill, sangars to build and EPADs andEPATs for those of you familiar with the terms. (These are pre-design 'kits' easy to build but providing ex-tremely good protection to the guys that live and work inside them. They are used for accommodation, op-erations rooms and medical posts). Additionally in the main FOB we will have to build concrete pads forthe REME to fix the vehicles on, an area for the logistic support vehicles, an ammo bunker to protect the

ammunition from the weather, a fuel point and of course ensure that the base and the people in it are pro-tected from the elements, be it hot sunshine or the winter rains. A lot of work I'm sure you will agree.

That's not the whole story though. The main FOB has a few satellite patrol bases and check points thatsurround it to give us a bigger foot print on the ground. A patrol base tends to be bigger than a checkpoint. Both these are not as well developed in terms of the infrastructure. For example the main FOB hasa well but the CPs and PBs will be on bottled water. The emphasis on these satellite bases is on forceprotection rather than creature comforts. The lads tend to enjoy these smaller bases more as they are farfrom the interfering grip of SHQ!

Around the rest of the AO there is plenty for the rest of the lads to be getting on with but don't let me keepyou, here are the troop updates...


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Forward Operating Base KHAR NIKAHSapper 'Pistol' Pete Broxton - 7 Troop

On the 13th Sept 2011 our section deployed in the evening to Forward Operating Base, FOB, KHAR NI-KAH by CHINOOK helicopter. Our Section Commander Master Two Stripes Cpl Nick Amos and secondin command Riggers big hair Lance Corporal Shabba Rigby, where already waiting for us. The sectionconsisting of, Sappers Pistol Pete Broxton, Billy Crump,Bobby Balfe, Terry Tez Pangop and Meatball Eminem G10slave JJB Malcom!

Once we had arrived and had received a quick FOB brief wewere baptised with two hour stags, although poor Pistol drewthe unlucky straw and ended up doing 4 hours, cheers infan-try! We then started with our first task which was to finish avehicle platform, another engineer Sqn had started... we hadto strip out 99% of it out to make sure we hit the standard of7 Troop 37 Armoured Engineer Squadron! Many thanks toour ginger POM Billy Crump who made our job easier.

Most days our section commander has been fully kitted up,with additional combat nappy, half barmine and morale for

his recces for our up coming jobs.

On our second evening we were all given training on being 'number twos' in the mortar teams which wasrequired as everyone has two jobs when stationed here in the FOB. Once we finished the training we allhad to go through their initiation which we can not tell you anything about as it is a Engineering mortarteam secret. So far we have a count of 335 rounds of various types, fired.

On the FOB we have sinks and showers and great chefs but the main fall down is the bags which substi-tute for toilets... don't ask! The most recent job we had, to my delight, was sorting out the stinking drain-age, all went well with many time saving ideas

from master two stripes, Balfey and myselfpistol Pete. I especially enjoyed wadingthrough the bog to clear the last of the block-age.

Overall we have settled in well and morale israther high, Im quite sure that will drain awayin the not so distant future with some longhours and jobs!

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Spr Broxton, Balfe Malcom and Cpl Amos coming

to the end of a long days work.

A view from Forward Operating

Base KHAR NIKAH


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Patrol Base RAHIM 8,6,4 SangarLCpl Ross 'Atko' Atkinson - 8Troop

On the 9 Sep 11 the advance party from 8 troop 37 Armoured Engineer Squadron moved into Patrol Base,PB Rahim in the early hours of the morn-ing and were welcomed by the 26 Squad-ron lads from 32 Engineer Regiment, whowere very happy to see us. We spent theday doing a handover takeover of our ac-commodation and some plant, HUSKEYsand an SLDT(P) which were all looking abit forlorn from over work. On the 12th

Sep 11 we were tasked to deconstruct anelevated sangar built only two days beforeour arrival as its supports were bendingunder the weight and it had been deemedunsafe. So our 'troop' consisting of fourplant operators and a fitter, led by CplSimpson began the strip out of the EES.Naturally we had no one who was able touse the SLDT(P) so all the HESCO fill hadto be removed by hand in full kit. The onlybreak in the day was when we had todown tools and get down from the sangar as a Chinook flew in. Underestimating the downwash of thehelicopter, because we wanted a good picture we lost 3 of our 4 cameras to the dust which was not great.

By the end of a long and sweaty day the condemned sangar was down and we could start building ourHESCO sangar to replace it.

Up early, our small section, now led by Cpl Cooper, began the tricky task of incorporating our sangar intothe deteriorating and uneven existing corner wall. After some ground prep we finally managed to attachthe new HESCO to the old and were on our way to completing the first layer in a day.

After quick showers and a bit of scoff we got down to someserious monopoly in the evening. It was during the eveningthat Troopy Abbott invented 'monopoly lottery' where the

'winner' got to write this media article, "So who's got OldKent Road then? you can do it."

Thankfully the next day the rest of the Troop arrived andafter a quick orientation were straight into kit and buildingHESCO. It was a mega first day, especially as the toplayer had to be filled entirely by hand, a lot of sweat and afew hundred sandbags later the top layer was in. Our'stand in' chippys; who were really traded signaller's andpainters; did a good job on the roof and stairs, who needscarpenters? Sangar complete, the troop was thrownstraight into a multitude of tasks from upgrading the gym tonew desert roses round the PB.

A hard and fast start to the tour but at this rate the days will fly by.

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Luxury...................PB Rahim in all its glory

The start of another hard days work


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Camp Life (Patrol Base RAHIM)Lieutenant Will 'Sqn OC' Abbott - 8 Troop

Greetings from 8 Troop, today is the 20th September 2011 meaning thetroop have almost been in theatre for three weeks, not that anyone iscounting just yet! No doubt you will have all heard about the hard work,blood, sweat and tears. So here is a little insider into how the Troop havebeen relaxing, unwinding and getting to grips with life in Afghanistan. Ishould point out at this point that no one has actually cried! However eve-ryones money is on Sapper Pascoe to be the first to well up, the big softythat he is!

Over the past few weeks the Troop have been up at 0700hrs each day,working through until the day's tasks are complete, leaving them some timein the evenings to relax. There have been a few heated games of monop-oly which mainly end in LCpl Atkinson being bankrupt and getting 'pinged'to write media articles. Sapper Bond has turned his hand to chess andproven himself to be a grand master, beating all challengers, apart from theTroop commander for obvious reasons (editors note: liar). Operation 'Getmassive' is in full flow thanks to the makeshift gym at PB RAHIM, the pro-tein powder is on tap and Sapper Jahatah is currently leading the way.However everyones money is on Sapper muscles Atkinson to get themost improved prize after starting off with the body of a 5 year old boy! Fit-ness is key but imagine a goldfish in a bowl exercising - the current record

stands at 50 plus laps of the helicopter landing site in the PB.

Sapper Yallop has fallen in love with two stray cats, however Staff Normanhas quickly told him that if he goes anywhere near them he will get rabies,this resulted in Sapper Yallop's love affair coming quickly to an end.

The food here is good, we get 3 square meals a day which mainly consists of fried bacon, fried sausage,fried bacon, fried sausage and then to top it off a little more fried bacon. However Sapper Carter-Smithand Cpl Simpson have used their haggling skills to good use managing to secure the Troop some sau-sages one night, which they quickly cooked up on a makeshift BBQ. BBQd sausage made a nice change

from fried!

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Troopy Abbott posing -

as usual

Hard at work in Patrol Base Rahim


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The living area consists of three tents, an ISO container and a sitting area which is all cordoned off, mean-ing the Engineers get to have their own 'love in'. The door proudly bears the 'Noddy' emblem of 37 AES(please see attached pose with Sapper Nicholl and Sapper Pascoe). The toilets consist of a foil bag, towhich I will add no more! The showers are rigged up in tents and plumbed into the water system in the PB.Sapper Robertson can be found in them most nights drenched in water, holding a spanner whilst trying tofix a million leaks. The internet here is ok and everyone is allocated roughly twenty minutes a day. Unfor-tunately lap tops were not designed to be lugged around the steaming hot dessert and seem to be on theirlast legs already. We have a couple of Sat phones which are literally a brick with an antenna attached.They are a bit intermittent and make the person on the other end of the phone sound like R2D2 or ET butthey serve a purpose and if you are into robots it's a win, win situation.

Unfortunately 8 Troop will be splitting in two tomorrow to start separate tasks in different areas of opera-tions. Morale is high, and I have no doubt they will go on with the same professional attitude, workinghard and playing chess, thats just how 8 Troop rolls.

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Spr Pascoe and Nicholl showing the OC and 2IC what guns should

look like.


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Combat Out Post OUELETTELieutenant Alex 'O Group' Dow - 9 Troop

Gatorade milkshakes, chilli dog burgers, muffins, an endless supply of sodas and RIP energydrink this was the beginning of tour for 9 Troop, who are currently based in a US Marine Corpsbase known as COP OUELETTE. At an important transition between US and UK units, we havebeen working hard to prepare OUELETTE and smaller patrol bases in the area for 2 MERCIANsto occupy. In the ten days the Troop have been here, we have already constructed a new medi-cal centre, built an ISAF accommodation area, upgraded the shower facilities and set up thepower and lighting across the whole camp. Cpl Vinantes section has spent the last five days in asmall ANA/US checkpoint, expanding and upgrading it for a partnered multiple to move into in afew days time.

Daily routine is based around the tasks; weve been working into the evening in order to get tasks

completed with a break in the heat of the day. Spr Hawthornes guitar is a much appreciated as-set during this break; combine this with Cpl Andersons HESCO armchair and a tropical flavourdrinks powder and you have the recipe for a perfect lunch break.

With plenty of tasks on the horizon and a busy schedule, time is passing very quickly already.Unfortunately, the American caterers have already left, so we will have to get by somehow with-out the Gatorade milkshakes!

Lastly here is a small 'token' effort from the G4 team - they are an episode late but you'll have toforgive them as the OC and 2IC have got them working hard, without sleep, its all they deserveyou see!

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G4 - It Just HappensApparently

Anonymous member of the G4 PlatoonG4 for most people is a boring bind that is kind of understood, but nobody really wants to delve in to findout what truly goes on. In some cases those more challenged by G4 have been heard, when asked howdoes that work?, quoting such oddities as yep, it just happens. As explained by Field Marshall Rommeltowards the end of WW2, he said the battle is fought and won by the Quartermaster Department(obviously 37s) before the first round is even fired. This is still the case today, but many still try to ignorethe big fluffy tail that is still wagging that partially deaf and blind dog!

Over the coming weeks we, 37 Armoured Engr Squadrons G4team, who it apparently just happens for, will keep you allabreast of the goings-on of our journeys in and out of the hub of

Camp Bastion. Some tales may be of woe. Some may bringlaughter. Some may not be exactly, completely 100% accurateor strictly true, but everyone knows that truth should never get inthe way of a good story.

Anyway, onto the journeys start. True to form, the Quarter Mas-ters Department of 37 Armoured Engineer Squadron once againdrove off into the dawn-breaking skies over Europe days beforethe rest of the Sqn would even wake. This time though, it wasnot to Thetford, or even Salisbury Plain, but Hannover to catch aflight to UK, so we could fly back over Germany... perfectly rea-sonable of course! On arrival in UK we were given two Minis to

move the 17 people and all their kit to live for 7 months over toBrize Nortonbudgets you see; again, this is perfectly reason-able!

Brize Norton - Theres a place thats moved with the times.Dont ask for a lift there; that plane at the front gate might look like a knackered 1970s show piece, butthats the duty drivers motor. Of course we love the RAF (well, on the way home from Cyprus anyway)but after trying to book in for a flight that they didnt know existed, we had a little sense of humour failureperfectly reasonable of course!

Lets get this straight; we drove, flew and drove some more to get a flight that didnt exist... possibly not soreasonable! After Capt Joe Monaghan, the mild-mannered QM had explained that the flight did actuallyexist and that the check-in desk had their flight numbers mixed up on their board, we were in luck - theyfound our names under the right flight number... very reasonable indeed!

It was now very late in a long day, so we got some sleep in a very reasonable hotel just a stones throwaway from the terminal, only to be woken up 4 hrs before the flight... What the? We could have leopardcrawled to the terminal in that time - WITH all our kit on. It was said that it was a ploy to make sure wewere hanging out and slept all the way on the flight, which we did.

After getting the blood back in our limbs, we arrived at somewhere really hot but actually quite reasonable.There were chairs and tables, just like the ones we used to have at school, you know, about 6 inches offthe floor and big enough to get one arse cheek on... quite reasonable though I must say, as they had freesnacks and water which should not be sniffed at in todays financial climate!

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The Quarter Master 37 Armoured

Enigineer Squadron

Making G4 just happen


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The next part of the journey was aboard a massive beastie aircraft which had been loaded up and wasready and waiting for us. The only row of seats left when we boarded were right at the front of the air-

crafts slide-in bays of seats. Winner I thought, a bit of free leg room for us. What are the chances of thathappening? We buckled up, took off then the seatbelt lights went off to allow for a bit of a stretch. It wasat that moment that I found myself facing the entrance to the only two covertly placed slide-in portaloos!What are the chances? Let me tell you, it was about 1 to164 on that flight! For the next few hours I wastrying to sleep off our early call at Brize, whilst people queued up for the bog and at the same time tram-pled all over my feet and body armour in the 12 square inches of space for my feet and kit, not that I like tocomplain.

We neared our destination in the dark and donned our helmets and body armour for the landing in CampBastion. That was a laugh a minute, as you can imagine there was plenty of space to put our body ar-mour on in the 12 square outside the busy and now buzzing portaloo! I didnt visit myself as I must havementally counted the sheer number of customers out of one eye and thought better of it. It was slightlyamusing (for the first five minutes) seeing grown men dash for the plastic palace like 4 year old kids whohave just woken up and dont know where they are.

Our body clocks were all to pot after a lengthy travelling cycle of eat-sleep-move-eat-sleep-move as weflew a portion of the globe to our temporary new home.

Finally we arrived in Bastion, for those who have travelled into military zones such as this, youll know thebest way to cope is to jump on the conveyor belt of briefings, instructions, form-filling and cattle herdinguntil youre told to sleep and eat again. When you wake youre briefed some more on the current situa-tion, what to do and what not to do by the guys and girls who have just done it, seen it and been there. Its

good... very good, current and life saving stuff that keeps us switched on.

In the next episode ofG4It Just HappensApparently, 37 Armoured Engineer Squadrons QuarterMasters Department will share the delights of the first few weeks in Bastion, then well get right into themeat of G4. I know youre excited, but calm down. Well have a few photos next time too. Until then,farewell from the 24/7 G10 for Menand women of course but it didnt rhyme, sorry.

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Final WordsCaptain Dominic Riley

There you have it another cracking two weeks in Afghanistan and we didn't even have to force the guys to

say they were enjoying it. Recently we have received some high praise indeed, from one of the infantry

CO's no less. Amusingly the locals have even asked if the ISAF troops keep slaves - when asked why

they pointed to the Engineers and replied 'because that lot do all the work'! I think I'm rather proud of that!

One thing is clear, we are busy, busy is good. It makes the time go quicker and the tour easier. We wish

you all the best back home, the boys are thinking of you and I hope you are all enjoying the updates. From

all in the Squadron management team, till next time, take care and best wishes.

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A few extra photos

from 37 Armoured

Engineer Squadron


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44 HQ & SP SQN NEWS

Officer Commanding Foreword

Welcome to the second 44 Headquarters & Support Squadron newsletter. Time already seemsto be passing by quicker than expected. I hope the same can be said for all the families at home.The articles that follow my introduction will give you a more detailed and in some cases a morecandid update on what the Squadron has been up to and will be straight from the mouths of sol-diers. They will explain their story as they see it with only editorial censoring being administeredif deemed necessary.

Since I was last in touch the squadron has certainly stepped up a few gears and are now fully in-volved with the myriad of tasks that a Headquarters & Support Squadron are required to fulfil insupport to the wider regimental group. I feel the only way I can effectively show the diversity and

complexity of the Headquarters Squadron role is to give you a quick synopsis of each departmentand the type of task they have been involved in up until now, so here goes;

Members of Support Troop have been involved in the movement and protection of the outgoingand our Commanding Officer. Their task was to assist in a road move around the main areas ofinterest in Task Force Helmands Area of Operations. The Construction Supervision Cell person-nel are continually being tasked to carry out reconnaissance and detailed design reports for fu-ture tasks. The Engineer Resources Team is flat out, ensuring the Field Squadrons are suppliedwith their requirement of engineer material when and where they need it. The Deployable Engi-neer Workshop wrestles with technical drawings to produce bespoke equipment for the units de-

ployed forward of Camp Bastion. The Light Aid Detachment is working long hours to ensure allthe Engineer Group vehicles and equipment is as road worthy as feasibly possible. The G4 teamare constantly busy accounting for and supplying our guys and girls with all the stores and equip-ment they require to carry out their tasks. Finally the SHQ element, including the Chief Clerk andthe small but able Signals team, provide the resources required for the command and control ofthe squadron. They are all skilfully guided by Captain Andy Kerr and the Squadron SergeantMajor Scott Misun who ensure that the squadron functions at maximum output, giving directionand guidance to individuals and departments when needed. I nearly forgot, we also have a longterm lodger in the shape of the RSM, WO1 Gaz Mutch, who conducts the majority of his busi-ness from Camp Bastion and supports all the Engineer Squadron Sergeant Majors by givingguidance and advice when needed.

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I hope this has been a good insight into what we, 44 Headquarters and Support squadron, are up

to and that it has illustrated the diverse roles and responsibilities we have as a Squadron whilstdeployed on Op HERRICK 15.

I would like to thank you for your ongoing support and understanding; it makes a real differenceto the team and is very much appreciated.

Major Chris Darke Officer Commanding

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Take Over of Authority (TOA) Saturday 17 September 2011WO2 (SSM) Scott Misun

At 1200 on the 17 September the Sqn took over authority as the Task Force Helmand Engineer

Group Headquarter& Support Squadron. Within seconds the 54 Sqn flag was replaced with ours

and the numerous Commando dagger stickers removed from the Ops Room. Other various no-

tices mentioning strange things like Galley, Rig and Wets were also disposed of. The only other

thing to be endured were the remaining Commandos who on a daily basis thought they were

auditioning for Mr Universe.

The Sqn are now settled into a routine. Daily works are ongoing, guards are being undertaken

and various small improvement projects are happening on camp. Everyone is in good spirits and

living the schoolboy dream. The blokes dont seem convinced when I insist that civilians would

pay thousands for the experience!

Look forward to the next edition where we will be meeting Iqbal our friendly laundry operator. Not

to be missed!

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OFFICER COMMANDING MAJOR CHRIS DARKE ADDRESSING 44 HQ & SP SQN


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First Patrol in Afghanistan

By Sapper BakebergHaving just finished our initial training package, SSgt Hudson approached me saying that we had

to reconnoitre one of the check points in Nad E-Ali South. The roof of the Operations room that

they were using had collapsed when a helicopter hovered above it. The check point was called

CP Perkha and we were to fly out of Camp Bastion at 06:40 on Wednesday the 14th

of Septem-

ber 2011.

After waking up at 04:30 and getting everything ready we booked out at the Operations Room

and got a lift to the airfield. As we arrived we found out that our flight was only at 10:00. So we

came back to base and had a decent breakfast before we returned back to the airfield.

It was another wait as we only ended up flying out at 11:00. We flew in a Sea King Helicopterwhich was not so nice because it is really hot inside. As we lifted off and started gaining altitude

we constantly had really hot air blown in our faces. As soon as we reached altitude it was not that

bad anymore as we had some decent airflow through the gunners hatch. Our first stop was at

Lashkar Gah and then off to Patrol Base 2, which was where we got off. The flight was ok at first

but as we neared the Helmand river, the pilot dropped altitude and snaked the helicopter through

the air, making it a more difficult target for the insurgents to hit.

We arrived at FOB 2 and were directed to the transit tent where we each had our own bed space.

It was a long hot day. We had a bit of time to read our books and sort out any last bits of kit. I

packed my day sack ready for the patrol the next day. We were meant to patrol out at 12:00 hrson Thursday.

The next morning we had breakfast and got all our kit together and waited for 12:00 hrs to report

to the Rifle Companys Operations Room. When we arrived there we were told that our patrol out

had been delayed as the section who were meant to take us out were involved in an operation

and that it was taking longer than originally planned. So we waited in the waiting area where we

were able to make copious amounts of tea and sort out any last little bits with our kit. It was a

long wait but eventually the infantry patrol came in at round about 17:00 hrs.

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Sapper Bakeburg and his temporary new home


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We were then told to be ready to go out in an hour or so. We got the settings on their radios so

that we could put ours on the same channel. As we waited the hour we had loads of time to drink

some water before we left. I dont know if it was because I had drunk too much water or whether

it was just my nerves but I constantly had to urinate.

We set out when it was still light but the sun was going down pretty quickly. The first bit of the pa-

trol was through a built up area and was round about the same time that all the locals were on

their way to mosque. As we reached the outskirts of the town we saw less and less people. We

soon came to a check point which was about half the way out to CP Perkha. I think the relief on

our faces were visible to be in a secure location. It did not last long because 10 minutes later we

set off again. At this stage it was getting darker and darker by the minute. We left the track

straight away and started off through fields and drainage ditches, most which was filled with wa-ter. It was hard going, and we could not really see that far around us as the maize was fully

grown. I was surprised when we stumbled on to CP Perkha. It was dark at this stage, and just be-

fore the main gate there was a massive puddle where myself and about another 3 people in the

patrol fell on our backsides.

It was a great relief to finally take our body armour off and take a bit of time to relax. Having done

this we got working on taking all the measurements and photos we needed of the Operations

Room and the rest of CP Perkha. We were meant to patrol back the next morning at 05:00 hrs to

catch our helicopter flight back to Camp Bastion, but that got cancelled when the wind picked up

during the night. It was a long night as it was almost impossible to get any decent sleep. Thewind was blowing sand all over the place. In the morning when we got up we were covered in

dust.

The patrol back the next day was not as bad as there were a lot of people and children all along

the route back. The little kids were running after us and even offering us what looked like sweets

or berries, but we thankfully declined their offers. We made it back to FOB 2 safe and sound but

had a long wait for a flight back to Camp Bastion. We waited almost a whole day and ended up

getting a lift in a Jackal vehicle back to Bastion. It was a really interesting trip back because we

were able to see a lot more of the countryside.

It was a good start to the tour getting out on the ground so early. It was a good feeling comingback and we were grateful that we came back safe and sound.

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Our first move across HelmandLCpl Sevutia - Support Troop

At 0645, the Escort Multiple, consisting of two Huskys and two Ridgebacks, were lined up, fullyprepared for the task of moving the Commanding Officer of 35 and the Commanding Officer of 24Commando Engineer Regiment around the different camps to see their soldiers.

The first right turn after leaving Bastion led us onto Highway 1, the M1 of Afghanistan. 45 minuteslater, we were safely turning into our first destination MOB Price, the Danish HQ, for the CO to bebriefed by 37 Sqn, whilst the rest of us enjoyed real pastries and the best coffee in Helmand.

Leaving MOB Price we preceded through the busy town of Gereshk, unfortunately losing 1 Heli-copter Landing Site marking kit to a local child armed with wire cutters, before turning off High-way 1.

We headed due North on Route Badger for an hour to FOB Oulette where 9 Troop, 37 Squadronare based. Once we were parked up the two Commanding Officers went to do what Command-ing Officers do whilst the lads tried to get their heads down in the shade knowing that there was agood distance ahead of them still to travel. The next leg of the journey saw us heading south toour third destination. It was a long dusty road, after not driving a Ridgeback for four months itwas hard work trying to follow the tyre tracks of the lead vehicle. Eventually we arrived at PatrolBase Attal. After a quick turn around we were on the road again this time on Route Elephant

heading west to the Afghan National Army base, Patrol Base Jahan Zeb.After finishing at Patrol Base Jahan Zeb we were heading further west on our way to the finaldestination of the day, MOB Lashkah Gar. We spent the night in Lashkah Gar before we headedoff early the next morning to see elements of 29 Squadron based in Patrol Base 2.

On route back to Lashkah Gar, a few people, who are not members of 35 Engineer Regiment,were not feeling that great and had to utilise the sick bags in the back of a Ridgback. It took al-most 3 hours and involved everyone dismounting in Gereshk to try and stop the local childrenpinching what ever they would get there hands attached to the outside of the vehicle. Once clearof Gereshk we were soon back in Camp Bastion safely and looking forward to the next 6 months.

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Support Troop - ready for anything


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44HeadquarterandS

upportCompany


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Running For Charity

SSgt Rob Finn - 44 Headquarter and Support Squadron

Here is what we are doing;

10 people from 44 Headquarter and Support Squadron have started to run the equivalent dis-tance from Wembley via all the Premiere League Football Clubs in the UK, in alphabetical order,eventually finishing back at Wembley. The total distance is 3020 miles. This will be split be-

tween the 10 people with a dead line of 1 March 2012. Can I at this point reiterate there is no cy-cling or rowing involvedjust running?

Initially this does not seem like a huge task however when you factor 2 weeks R&R into the timeline and not forgetting the volunteers taking part in this challenge are also going to have to con-tinue putting one hundred percent into there own jobs it does not leave a great deal of time tocomplete the 3020 miles.

The brave volunteers for the challenge ahead are;

Warrant Officer Class 2 (MPF) Fitzy Fitzsimmons

Staff Sergeant Rob Finn

Staff Sergeant Ted Hudson

Staff Sergeant SF Hammy Hammett

Sergeant Foxy Fox

Sergeant Sammy Chandler

Sergeant Caz Carrington

Lance Corporal Ronny Fong

Sapper Anton Bakeberg

Sapper Tim Jervis

As you can already see from the list of elite athletes this has got challenge written all over it, es-pecially when just getting up in the morning is a struggle for some. On the up side at least if anyof these blokes belong to you, you should hopefully notice a good change when they return.

The chosen charity is a childrens charity called Dreams Come True. The charity helps childrenthat are terminally ill get away and be able to smile and enjoy what may well be there last monthsor even days.

We have a just giving page where any of you can visit and donate as much or as little as youwould like to. The page is www.justgiving.com/helmand-premiere-league-run.

So there it is, the challenge has been set and the volunteers have stepped forward.

Look out for photographs and updates in later editions of The Trojan Times.

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http://www.justgiving.com/helmand-premiere-league-runhttp://www.justgiving.com/helmand-premiere-league-runhttp://www.justgiving.com/helmand-premiere-league-run


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The Special exploits of SF Hammy

It was a warm evening with the sun going down far away in the distance. SF Hammy has THATlook in his eye. Ever gobby and ever deadly, he knows something is going to happen, but due tosigning a disclaimer vowing to secrecy he carries on with his daily work. This trained tea drinkersays nothing.

Whilst sat in the dining facility (DFAC) with his beards he sits down to his meagre portion of whathe can only class as peasant food. He sits and just looks at his food, not even bothering to pickup his diggers to tuck in with.

All of a sudden there is a strange rumbling from outside the DFAC. The noise and vibrations getlouder and more intense, he starts to smile. All of a sudden the lights go out and a number ofthunder flashes go off within the DFAC. Pandemonium ensues, the infantry are screaming likelittle girls, the RAF Regt are hiding under the tables, the Engineers are robbing all the chocolateclairs from the desert counter.

All of the sudden the lights go back on. There is now a chair on its back where Hammy was sat,and a note saying Be back whenever, Im off to eat Lobster, steak and beluga caviar.

On the way back to the Sqn HQ lines the following was seen on the inside of a porta-loo amongstthe rest of the tour graffiti.

When Chuck Norris grows up he wants to be like SF Hammy

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Page 29

Robbie Flynn'spuzzle page

Across:1. Grown up boy

Down:1. Opposite to woman

1

1

Robbies Art

Use your imagination tocolour in the civilian versionof what excites me daily

Interesting fact:

At night time, the Mr Sun goes to bed

and Mr Moon comes up to say hello.

Joke corner:

Knock Knock

Whos there?

Doctor

Doctor Who


30/65

Ellies blog from Afghanistan

Page 30

Hey kids

Me again, my tan is coming along but I am starting topeel. Im back and I have grabbed a couple of yourdads whilst I was out and about. They were not sun-

bathing like me, but working very hard.

For the second blog of this trip I have found two of your dads who want to say hello LCpl SavSevutia and Major Steve White.

Sav Sevutia is part of the Combat Support Tp and is one of many guys thatprovide the vehicles and Bridge for the Regiment to use. Bill is also part ofthe Force Protection Multiple and will provide protection for anyone drivingout of Camp Bastion.

Sav has a special message for you at home.

Drau bula vinaka tiko Vilimaina Sevutia, Kei, Semesa Sevutia keimami bula-

bula vinaka talega e Afghanistan, au sa loloma yani veikemudrau. Qai iatikoga na veinanumi ena masu!!

My second interview was with Major Steve White. Normally he is the OfficerCommanding 44 Sqn but he has another job to do out here. He is part of thetraining team from the Brigade that are carrying out the important role ofteaching the Afghan National Security Forces. In Steves case he will be in-volved in teaching the Afghan National Army to carryout the role which wecurrently do. The reason it is so important is that it will help us leave Afghani-stan in safe hands. He will live with the Afghan Army for most of the time so

no Pizza Hut for Steve, never mind more for me.

Steve wants to send his love to his wife Ruth and their boys Cameron,Struan and Cchulainn and of course the dogs.

As a special treat I managed to gate crash the Commandos party and get apicture with Cheryl Cole.

Remember every day they are away is a day closer to coming home.

Ellie OUT x


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77 TALISMAN SQUADRON NEWS

Officer Commanding Foreword

Friends and Family of TALISMAN Squadron,

Since I last wrote to you, 31 Armoured Engineer Squadron have returned to Hohne and we havetaken over. Our flag is up, the Ops room has been adjusted to account for our slighty OCD ten-dencies and we generally own the volleyball court! We have got off to a busy start and alreadyeach of the Troops has completed an operation in support of the Combat Support Logistic Regi-ment. Their task: to lead the way, proving and clearing the routes, for a Combat Logistic Patrolas it resupplies the bases around Helmand Province. As I write this, 10 Troop are out on theirsecond operation; this time a Deliberate Route Clearance. They have made excellent progressso far and are due to wrap it up by the end of the day. This will have been a hot and hard dayswork, requiring courage, sustained concentration and also patience from all involved. A cracking

start!

When not on task, life in Camp Bastion for most includes continuous and mission specific train-ing, early morning Troop physical training (PT), a bit of volleyball and a bit of personal down time.The articles below will give you an insight into some of this and also the operations. I am pleasedto say we have now also managed to pull together more photos from across the Squadron onFacebook, so there may be a chance of spotting that someone special........If you are unable tospot them this time, then let us know with a Facebook comment and the SSM will endeavour tocapture him or her for the next albums he loves a challenge!

Best wishes,

Major Sam Hughes

OC TALISMAN

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10 Troops First OpSpr Lack

Our first TALISMAN Op was to lead a Combat logistic Patrol (CLP) convoy of 60 vehicles to re-

supply all the patrol bases (PBs) around Helmand province. I was excited at first because this

was the first time I had been on tour and I wanted to get out on the ground to see what it was like,

however I was a bit apprehensive about what to expect. An early start meant that people were

tired but morale was surprisingly high. Before we had even left Bastion, our TSA (Talisman

Search Advisor) got lost trying to meet up with the CLP. The journey should have taken about 5

minutes but ended up being 35 minutes. Once on the road, the driving standards were some-

thing to see. The local nationals were MAD!

Trucks over taking cars at speeds over 50mph, drivers on their phones and waving all over the

road, while their loads where hanging off. I'm surprised I didn't see a major crash. The worst

truck I saw had a car on its flatbed with huge bales of crop on top of it, with another car on top of

that. I have no idea how the load hadn't fallen off or how they managed to stack everything so

high. At one point a tractor got that close, it took off a wing mirror from the support vehicle.

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The busy roads of Afghanistan

A beautiful sunset falls over the convoy


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Civilian activity on the route was quite high. I was quite surprised how the kids reacted to us; one

minute they're giving us the thumbs up and the next minute the same kids are throwing rocks at

our windows and cameras. Some kids were trying to steal things from our storage bins.

When we reached the area of the Nahr-e-Bughra canal it got quite tight. As we were heading

down by the canal, there were cars and goats trying to get around us when there was barely

enough room for the Mastiff. As we reached the PB it was so surprising to see the normal pat-tern of life in the compounds around us. Some of them used British made cages for roofs, an in-

dicator that we are trying to help. There was even a mobile phone shop! Returning back to Bas-

tion at the end of the patrol, we all felt relief at completing our first operation outside the wire.

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The terrain is very varied throughout the move

You learn to sleep anywhere!


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Page 34

The first 2 weeks

Spr Van-Vollenstee - 11 Tp

Weve been here in Afghanistan for two weeks

now and over that period we have been learning

and rehearsing old and new skills to carry out the

Talisman role. Today was the first time that 11

Troop carried out the skills and drills of a Talis-

man troop. I can talk for everyone when I say; we

were looking forward to it, keen to get out on the

ground.So it started off incredibly early as we were pre-

paring all the equipment and vehicles needed for

the Op. We got out on the ground not long after

and it looked bleak until a couple of kilometres

into the desert where there were dozens of Af-

ghan compounds surrounded by farmers fields. I

thought for one minute that I was in the desert

then it seemed that I was in someones back gar-

den. As we were clearing the route looking for

the best option to take, we came across a line of

stones which indicated a type of marker that

could have possibly been an IED so we avoided

it. Route selection was vital for the lead mastiff to

guide the CLP through a safe route.

As we were clearing routes the Afghan people were just watching us as we passed by in our 25

ton vehicles; they did not seem bothered. We soon passed with no problems and were on our

way to the 1st

check point so the CLP could drop their stores off (i.e. water, rations).

What a Tash!

The roads are pretty tight


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Page 35

As the day went on it was interesting and exciting but in the back of my head I knew there could

be a potential threat anywhere. As we were moving through the green zone we encountered a

very tight left turn which was notorious for vehicles to get stuck and even roll, so everyone took

their time and all the Talisman Troop made it round with ease. Then we received a message on

the radio that the CLP had a vehicle roll on the corner so we had to wait for them to be recov-

ered. As time passed by we finally received another message that it was all good to go and carry

on with the Op. The final drop off had been a success but time was getting on and nightfall was

approaching. We made our way back in pitch black conditions but we stayed strong, leading the

rest of the convoy.

Oops!


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A normal week - If it existsSpr Tom Egan

A normal week is quite busy it really all depends on the Operations and tasks that have been

planned. Each day will consist of various training but the day nearly always starts with PT. This

will involve a run or some gym work, lovely for all those body beautiful blokes! The training will

also always include the main elements of our normal job such as medical training, search train-

ing, vehicle training and weapons training.

The medical training has been really good we have even started videoing the training to allow

us to look back over the day and learn from each others mistakes. It also allowed LCpl Kara

Fowles, our Troop medic, the chance to watch us all, picking out any mistakes and helping us to

remedy any faults. She is quite a tough cookie, picking us up for any little thing!

Each day would normally finish off with a game of volleyball, just for a bit of extra PT, you know

how it is! Life is beginning to settle into a good routine, although it is still fast and furious when

preparing for or on an Operation or task. Either way, the time is flying by and before you know it,

R&R will be just around the corner!

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Another day at the office


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77 Talisman Light Aid DetachmentCraftsman Sloan

After settling nicely into the Light Aid Detachment work started to come and we found ourselvespreparing for our first Operations out on the ground. Morale has been high what with CraftsmanMy Little Poppet Wainwrights and Craftsman Colossal Head Simmo Simpsons (as hes namedon his letters and care packages from home) letters coming through. Myself and LCpl Walkerwere two of the first to head out into the green zone. The day of the Operation started fairly earlywith a 0330 reveille. We did some last minute preparation loading rifles and the GPMG on ourvehicle (a 15t SV) then headed out onto the ground. The route was fairly simple to start with but

we didnt let that distract us from the potential IED threat which is always in the back of ourminds.

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Several competitions are already underway, Cpl Chris Costigan and LCpl Craig Walker are hav-

ing a closely contested crap tash challenge, Craftsman Poppet Wainwright and DoughnutSimpson are the next Arnies with their gym queen antics and everyone should be about ready tochallenge Phil Taylor for his darts crown come March!

Finally to close, it has been a hectic start to the tour with Operations starting from day one and nolet-up in sight. It will be a difficult but rewarding tour. We would all like to thank you all for the let-ters and parcels you have been sending, they provide more morale than any crap moustachecould ever hope to achieve!

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11 FIELD ENGINEER

SQUADRON NEWS


Last time I sat down to write this we had barely arrivedin Afghanistan and 11 Squadron was just getting itsteeth into the arrival process and final training. Therehas been a significant change since then. The handoverwith 59 Commando Squadron is complete, having beenfinalised with myself and OC 59 Squadron conducting aheli-recce handover, hanging out of the side of a Lynx.The vast majority of 11 Squadron are now out on theground, living in the Check Points and Patrol Bases withthe Infantry Companies in Nad-E-Ali, while SquadronHeadquarters and Echelon are in Bastion. All three

Troops have got their teeth into demanding tasks insupport of Combined Force Nad-E-Ali, which is cur-rently 42 Commando, but will shortly change to 3SCOTS. All the Troops are also grappling with the chal-lenges of working in Afghanistan including managingthe infantry Companies expectations (No you cant have an all weather volleyball court), aggre-gate contractors (No Im not signing to say you have delivered it all. Why not? Because thattruck is upside down in the ditch!), local contractors (Thats not a crane thats a truck with a ropeon the back) and the weather; which remains brutally hot but is being soaked up to achieve a preR&R tan. As you would expect everyone is approaching the challenges with professionalism,drive to succeed and a wry sense of humour; you can be enormously proud of their performance.

The SSM and I have been forward to see 2 Troop in action, more from the SSM later, and wealso took 2 Troops mail forward however this turned out to have been largely Lieutenant Allensmail and he was roundly abused by all for hogging the mail sack with 3 parcels and 5 eblueys.This is, however not the record, with Spr White receiving 10 parcels in a single day. Please dokeep writing, there is nothing quite like opening a letter or ebluey at the end of a hard day.Eblueys are particularly good as not only are they something to open, but because they areprinted in Afghanistan and so get to you very quickly.

Unfortunately, we have also had our first and hopefully last accident, and our thoughts are withCpl Kell and his family, as he is currently in the Queen Elizabeth Hospital convalescing followinga quad bike accident in Bastion. We wish him a speedy recovery.

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By the time this has been published we will have posted the first set of photos for the Squadronon the Armynet site. We hope you enjoy them and rest assured there will be more to follow asthe guys get into their stride. If you have any photos from events back in the UK please let SSgtDuncan know and he will get them posted on Armynet. If you have any articles or ideas for thenewsletter please pass them to SSgt Duncan who will let us know and our Editor, Sgt Baxter, willbe happy to incorporate them. I have heard the first Squadron partners Sunday BBQ was a bigsuccess, as was the first trip out to Bangor, and our thanks go to SSgt Duncan, Bernadette andher team for organising both. The next events will be published on the Armynet site and flaggedon Facebook and I hope you will be able to come along.

Regards

Henryk Pietrzak

OC

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1 Troop Hit the Ground Running

Spr Carroll, 3 Section, 1 TP

On the 21st

September I left camp Bastion for Patrol Base (PB) Wahid as part of the advancedparty to take over 1 Troop, 59 Commando Squadron RE. We were transported in by a Chinookhelicopter which was a low and swift ride over the farmlands of Nad E Ali North area of HelmandProvince. On arriving at PB Wahid we were met by are Troop Commander who had arrived sev-eral days prior, we then proceeded to take our baggage to are new accommodation which at thetime was a mere empty Hesco squarein very poor condition.

Our immediate task was to takeoverour fleet of vehicles consisting of aMastiff, Husky, Wolfhound, EPLS, SelfLoading Dump Truck (SLDT) alongwith three pieces of plant equipment. Itwas vital that these vehicles werechecked for serviceability along with afull with having all the gear as we aregoing to be relying on these vehicles alot to move across our Area of Opera-tions (AO) as we move to complete thetasks we will be set.

Once the handover was complete we moved on to sort out our personnel admin and get settledfor the night however it wasnt long before our Troop Commander appeared with the news that

we would be deploying out the Patrol Base the followingmorning. Basically a patrol of the Afghan National Army alongwith partnered British Soldiers, who had been on patrol for 4days, had become cut off and could not extract themselvesback to one of our Patrol bases as the only road leading out of

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Royal Engineers and their toys hard at work

Happy about the news of

leaving the Patrol Base


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At 0700 hrs we left PB Wahid and made our way to a nearby checkpoint to collect the stores we

would need to bridge the gap caused by the collapsed culvert. Once the materials were on boardwe made our way to the task site. The task was carried out, with us building a makeshift bridgeout of Helicopter pad matting with little difficulty and we were able to get all the ANA and Brits outto safety with all their kit.

Once back in the confines of the PB, there was no time to rest as we had to turn our dismal ac-commodation into something slightly more desirable as it was set to be our home for the foresee-able future. We managed to level the floor and then lay down ground matting; this was followedby the erection of a sun shelter. This was now to be our home.

The shelter had not long been built before we had to make our way to the helipad to await the ar-rival of the remainder of 1 troop. The helicopter made a sharp landing and we got to work helpingto unload kit and transport it to our new 5 star accommodation! Its safe to say that we had a hec-tic first few days but Im settled in now and looking forward to future tasks.

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Hard at work with extra care being taken

Luxury washing facilities


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Chinook Taxi to Forward Operating Base Shawqat please

By Sapper MacNab2 TroopAfter being in Camp Bastion for nine days including five days RSOI (Reception Staging Onward

Integration) training, I finished packing my kit and headed off to little Heathrow, the British airport

at Camp Bastion. When I got there I was excited to be leaving the safety of Camp Bastion and

being able to get out on the ground and see the real Afghanistan.

Once all my kit was off the coach I waited for the transport out of Camp Bastion to our Forward

Operating Base (FOB). I would be flying out in a Chinook (large troop and stores carrying heli-

copter). As I waited two Chinooks took off heading to different locations then I saw the helicopter

which I was going to be getting on taxi round to our holding point. When it stopped the RAF guy

dropped the tail ramp and let all the guys off who was just about to the finish their tour and gohome. I was just starting mine!

After piling on endless boxes of personal equipment, Bergans and day sacks we all sat down in

our seats and got ready to take off. After a few last checks from the RAF we were in the air, this

was my first time flying in a helicopter and as we gained height I looked out and realised just howbig Camp Bastion really is. I found myself glued to the window looking out over the sandy floor

which stretched out for miles around. As we got closer to our location the sandy desert floor

changed and was replaced by lush green farmers fields, I could see bright blue canal systems

and the famous Helmand River. The RAF loader tapped me on the shoulder and told me to look

out of the window; there it was FOB Shawqat, the Helicopter Landing Site marked with purple

smoke. After a couple of minutes circling around high up in the air we started our descent which

was fast and tactical, out of the tail ramp, as we flew low over the fields and compounds, I could

see children waving at the RAF doorman who gave them a thumbs up. There were farmers in the

fields getting down and holding on to their things, then the RAF doorman signalled to us one min-

ute till landing.

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The view of Camp Bastion from the helicopter window


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As soon as the wheels hit the ground everybody unclipped their belts and started to run back and

forth unloading all the luggage out of the back of the

Chinook. I was sweating from the heat coming from theexhaust. Once all our kit was off more lads jumped on

and off it went. Everybody got down and held on to their

bags to stop them taking off with the down wash. We

were met by the camp WO2 who gave us a brief and

told us the dos and donts and about the general run-

ning of the camp. He also told us about some of the

camps history.

I eventually arrived at a tent, home for the next six

months, and started sorting my bed trying to make it ascomfortable as possible. Some of the lads from the Stabilisation Team came to the tent to see us,

these guys put funding into local projects and plan tasks, they came with some blankets and rugs

and a few footballs for the lads.

In the morning I went on my first guard duty in

the watch tower which we call a sanger. After

being briefed on what I could see and what

the feelings of the local people were, I looked

out and to the west could see the people go-

ing about their daily tasks. The shops were

buzzing with farmers buying seeds, there

were kids carrying sacks that were nearly the

same size as the kids carrying them. There

was not too much to see to the south, open

ground leading to a highway and a petrol sta-

tion. I could also see the local police station.

Later on in the day I was told that our troop would be going out on a task in a couple of days time

to the north of Nadi-Ali. The task would be to take down a sanger that was no longer required

and hand the buildings back to the locals. We spent the next day sorting out our stores, checking

everything over and making sure we had the right equipment to successfully complete our task.

There was a lot of preparation to do before we moved out to complete the tasks ahead. Excited

about the task and putting our training into practice we all rested getting ready for days ahead.

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Loving his new home


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EYE SPY WITH THE SQUADRON SERGEANT MAJORS EYE!

So the day finally came when the OC and I

were able to get out of the comfy slipper city

of Camp Bastion to boost the morale of 2

Troop. Flying out on the Chinook to FOB

(Forward Operating Base) Shawqat, we came

bearing gifts in the shape of mail in a big

sack, unfortunately for the lads most of it was

for Lt Allen (crated)! 2 Troop were busy get-

ting themselves and their vehicles ready to go

out on their first task, the winterization of oneof the southern PBs (Patrol Base) in their AO

(Area of Operation). After having a tour of the

camp and the Engineer real-estate with SSgt

Hodgson we went for a cold drink at the

NAAFI. You would not have had a NAAFI

back in my day!!!!! After this I had a walk

around on my own to see Cpl Bruce Forsyth

practicing vehicle casualty extraction with the

troop , racing against each other to see who

could remove the casualty quickest. Then after an hour in the gym and the troop getting to watch

the OC run round the dirt track which seemed like 100 times, it was time for evening scoff

(dinner). It never ceases to amaze me how good Army chefs are out here and what they can do

with Bacon Grill (Army version of Spam).

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Good Strut

Two weeks in and already the SSM is starting

to go a little crazy


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The next day the troop were up to more of the same, sorting out the G1098 store with shelving,

packing kit, packing vehicles, sorting radios and going over their Action on drills, all in the very

hot temperatures of Helmand. In the evening Cpl Bruce Forsyth gave us all a rendition on his gui-

tar, which the OC describe as a cat with his arse sewn up being squeezed very hard!

The following day and it was our turn to fly back to Camp Bastion and for 2 troop to roll out on

their first job. Firstly a few of us including the OC had to go across to the ANP stations to have a

look at a drainage issue. Although it was hot and sweaty getting over there in all our kit, we did

get a nice cup of Earl Grey tea out of it! Loaded onto an early flight we went round the troop to

wish them all good luck and took ourselves off to the Helicopter Landing Site (HLS) only to be

told we were going to be delayed by 5 hours. So we went back and waved 2 troop out the gate.

Just as the OC and I were going to head back to the HLS we were told by Capt Hayes (you do

get a mention, but I almost forgot because I have hardly seen you out of the Ops room or on stag

in the sangers in the early hours of the morning missing a step on your way down, falling head

over heels, landing in a heap and giggling like a school girl, keeping the on-going shift enter-

tained) that we were delayed yet again. We finally managed to get our flight around midnight fly-

ing into Camp Bastion which from the air looked like Las Vegas minus the fountains and dancing

girls! If only!

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Fun times counting spades


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Star Struck.................

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THE BAG BOYS!

Firstly, allow me to introduce myself, I am Major SteveWhite and you may know me by some of my earlier work asOC 44 Sqn. However, on HERRICK 15 I am OC of theKandak Advisory Training Team (KATT) that your otherhalves are in and we are attached to the BAG! Now beforeI go any further I will give you an easy reference terminol-ogy aide memoire for when we talk to you about our jobsout here.

ANA Afghan National Army

3/215 3rd

Brigade of the 215 Corps of the ANA

Kandak ANA Regiment / Battalion

KATT Kandak Advisory Training Team

Tolay ANA Squadron / Company

TATT Tolay Advisory Training Team

Baluch ANA Troop / Platoon

4th

(CS) Kandak The 4th

Kandak (out of 6) which is the Combat Support (CS) one more later

BAG Brigade Advisory Group 2 RIFLES Battlegroup are the BAG for H15

PB Patrol Base

CP Checkpoint

JAHAN ZEB The name of the PB that most of us live in locally known as Jay-Zee!

TOMBSTONE The camp where the BAG is based out of. It is a small camp inside . . . .

SHORABAK The camp that the ANA are all based out of, beside Bastion

I think that will give you all enough of a fix on the terminology that will no doubt be coming overthe next few months from us.

How are we different from the other squadrons? Well for a start we are not operating as part ofthe 35 Regimental network, we are effectively attached to the ANA under the control of HQ 2 RI-FLES. The clue as to what we do is in our title; we advise the ANA!

At the KATT level I command TATTs for the ANA Engineer Tolay (clearly the group you will bemost interested in), the Artillery Tolay. The Brigade Reconnaissance Tolay, The Counter IED /EOD Tolay and the Route Clearance Company (the ANA version of our TALISMAN that 77Squadron are providing) As you can see I have a big Kandak to advise the Kandak Commanderon, and I meet up with Lt Col Attullah every single day where we share Chai (their green tea) and

chat about the Kandak and what it is doing, what he is planning to do with it and other normaleveryday stuff. I also have a US Marine Corps section here called an Anglico team that assistswith helicopter and fast air support.

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I am sure you have heard the stories, but we are living in a small PB compound with ANA com-pounds either side of us, and it is named PB JAHAN ZEB. It is approximately 70m by 70m and at

full manning I will have over 60 personnel under my command here, all geared to assist the ANAin fulfilling their mission and keeping us safe. And to let you know how important this is, our Kan-dak has been given the first fully independent area of operation (AO) in the Brigade. I have noother Battlegroup living here with us as a partner so it is just us and our ANA! Which has madefor some interesting times already, I can tell you.

Daily routine here revolves around firstly, meeting up with our ANA counterparts, getting out andabout on the ground with them providing assistance, mentoring and advice as it is needed orasked for. The other major aspect of our lives here in Jay-Zee is to ensure we stay as safe aspossible as a dislocated and un-partnered location and between these two efforts the majority of

our time is taken up. We have no chef here so meals are from the ration packs or every now andthen a wee bit of fresh donated by our American brethren or that comes through the system.There is no running water here so all of it is brought in for washing ourselves and our clothes,cooking and drinking. Thankfully we have moved away from the horrendous deep trench latrinetoilet blocks and now operate with wag bags. For those not conversant with the delights ofthese items, I will allow your other half to explain them to you!

Mail will only arrive here and be taken out every few days so please do not worry if your mail ar-rives in fits and starts, but please do keep sending it as it is a huge morale boost. If I can put anearly request in, Christmas on tour is a surreal affair but could I ask you to all send one decora-

tion out in order to make ours as festive as possible, thank you. Do not send anything that re-quires plugging in because we are short of power but battery operated things are more than wel-come.

Your other halves are part of a small team operating as part of a bigger one and I want to reas-sure you that I am looking after them all and we, in turn, are all being well looked after by 2 RI-FLES. I hope that I have given you enough of an insight into the world of the BAG that yourother halves will be filling in the details from now on.

I thank you for your continued support, our jobs would be infinitely harder without it, and pleasetake care of yourselves for us.

Steve White

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PADRE'S PROGRESSI left Germany just over 2 weeks ago and learning curves continue to be vertical on my first tour.A 9 hour flight with a stopover in Cyprus plus Cheryl Cole (who?!) handing out in-flight meals! Athree and a half hour time difference plus altitude of 2000ft plus temperatures of 30+C, all addedto the sense of dislocation in the first days. An intense 5 days of training on arrival which included15 power point presentations on the first day was a shock to the system as well. The rest of thedays included a variety of practical training sessions covering such delights as environmentalhealth (how to poo into a silver bag and dispose of it), how to extract a casualty (me as the casu-alty being bumped down metal steps), and how to do emergency drill in the event of a vehiclerolling over (how to unbuckle yourself whilst hanging upside down and get out without breakingyour neck or anyone else's). A life in the day of a padre...

I have a pod'tent called a GodPod which is divided in two...the rear space for sleeping and work-ing and the front with armchairs, brew kit, bookcase, a table as a worship focus, cuddly toy (!),etc, as a quiet space for whoever needs it. It is air-recycled with electricity but its overall locationleaves a little to be desired. It is opposite the diarrhoea and vomiting isolation tent and within 5meters is a slurry pit where they empty the contents of the Porta-loos! About 200m away is thelanding area of a particularly noisy helicopter that operates throughout the night. Wherever youare there is noise...generators, air conditioning units, helicopters etc. However I do realise that allthis is 5 star luxury compared with some of the other locations so it is about being thankful forwhat I have and realising there is always someone worse off than yourself.

My 'flock' here is scattered to the far ends of Camp Bastion 1, 2 and 3 so a lot of walking and lo-cal bus catching to be done. Good for keeping fit I guess...though I have just been offered apushbike until mid November so watch this space! Maybe I need one of those little flags flutteringfrom it with departmental colours on it! I feel I have touched base with as many as possible so far.There is a strong sense that people are here to do their job and keen to get on with it. Moralegenerally appears to be good but it is also clear that support from home from family and friends isSO important and of great comfort to all concerned.

My reflections the other day with someone as they prepared to go out on an operation includedthe lines from Psalm 91, one of the songs of the Bible written by the soldier king David (the onethat killed the giant Goliath).

He wrote

'I will say of the Lord, "He is my refuge and my fortress, My God in whom I trust"

If you make the most high your dwelling -Then no harm will befall you.'

Sounds like a good plan to me!

God bless.

Padre Clare Callanan

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One for the kids..............or big kids

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35 ENGINEER REGIMENTAnd the adventures of

BABY HECTOR

Baby Hector Tales Part 2

Something in the Sand

by Victoria Copsey age 10

He bent down and carefully pulled the object out of the ground and saw that it was...............

A shield with the XXXV written on it.

WOW - a shield! exclaimed Baby Hector with a big smile. I wonder what the XXXV means?

When he got home he asked his moth

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20110610 Wrt-NewsletterIssue4 Arrival in Theatre