British Military Current Events

[Kirkhill]

At Depot PARA in the mid-80s, after 6 weeks of training and testing, we gave our recruits rifles and had them doing perimeter patrols of the base as part of the regular guard force because: IRA threat.

Depending on how you do it and (more importantly) who you have doing it, you can absolutely prepare a civilian for certain aspects of military life in that timeframe.

The Ukrainian marching and right turns looked a bit shambolic but their field work didn't look bad.

 

[dimsum]

The Ukrainian marching and right turns looked a bit shambolic but their field work didn't look bad.

Well, close-order drill isn't exactly Pri 1 for those recruits...

 

[dapaterson]

If you cannot left incline at the slow march while executing an eyes right with a sword, the Communists win.

That's basic military arts and sciences.

 

[Kirkhill]

Well, close-order drill isn't exactly Pri 1 for those recruits...

There's probably a lesson in there somewhere.

 

[GR66]

I expect there's more than a little bit of hubris and exaggeration to the statement that straight-off-the-street civilians are "pretty much fully-fledged infantry soldiers" after five weeks of training, but it does make one think about how long a training regime needs to be, doesn't it.

Takes me back to my Junior NCO course and understanding the difference between "Must-knows", "Should-knows", and "Could-knows".

🍻

Makes you wonder about our own Army Reserve system. We try very hard to shoehorn a part-timer into the same training standard as a Reg Force member and of course when it doesn't work they require a long work-up training period to make them deployable anyway.

Maybe we could just have a significantly larger pool of troops trained to a basic level...a whole bunch of organized Platoons/Gun Detachments/Troops rather than Reserve units that try to mirror our Reg Force structures with Platoons/Companies/Battalions/Brigades as part of the ORBAT. When we need to ramp up you simply pull in as many of the part-timers as you need and create the new unit from scratch (kind of like the Korean War Special Force) and begin their work-up training and vehicle/weapon familiarization for their Roto 1 deployment.

Reg Force would be an NCO/Officer heavy Roto 0 force and the leadership cadre for the "Special Force" units.

 

[Kirkhill]

Makes you wonder about our own Army Reserve system. We try very hard to shoehorn a part-timer into the same training standard as a Reg Force member and of course when it doesn't work they require a long work-up training period to make them deployable anyway.

Maybe we could just have a significantly larger pool of troops trained to a basic level...a whole bunch of organized Platoons/Gun Detachments/Troops rather than Reserve units that try to mirror our Reg Force structures with Platoons/Companies/Battalions/Brigades as part of the ORBAT. When we need to ramp up you simply pull in as many of the part-timers as you need and create the new unit from scratch (kind of like the Korean War Special Force) and begin their work-up training and vehicle/weapon familiarization for their Roto 1 deployment.

Reg Force would be an NCO/Officer heavy Roto 0 force and the leadership cadre for the "Special Force" units.

2 of 3 summers of 5 weeks on joining the Reserve? Plus a couple of weekends at the armouries each month.

 

[daftandbarmy]

Well, close-order drill isn't exactly Pri 1 for those recruits... or any Air Force

There, FTFY

 

[Kirkhill]

New release

Policy paper

Integrated Review Refresh 2023: Responding to a more contested and volatile world​

The Integrated Review Refresh 2023 updates the government’s security, defence, development and foreign policy priorities to reflect changes in the global context since Integrated Review 2021.

Integrated Review Refresh 2023: Responding to a more contested and volatile world

The Integrated Review Refresh 2023 updates the government’s security, defence, development and foreign policy priorities to reflect changes in the global context since Integrated Review 2021.

www.gov.uk

 

[daftandbarmy]

New release

Integrated Review Refresh 2023: Responding to a more contested and volatile world

The Integrated Review Refresh 2023 updates the government’s security, defence, development and foreign policy priorities to reflect changes in the global context since Integrated Review 2021.

www.gov.uk

Top tip: any review with 'Integrated' in the title is anything but...

 

[Kirkhill]

Virtual Combined Arms Tactical Training

British Army's virtual battlefield that's kept troops' combat skills razor sharp for two decades

The war in Ukraine has shown how militaries still need to master combined arms warfighting to win on the battlefield.

www.forces.net

 

[GR66]

Virtual Combined Arms Tactical Training

British Army's virtual battlefield that's kept troops' combat skills razor sharp for two decades

The war in Ukraine has shown how militaries still need to master combined arms warfighting to win on the battlefield.

www.forces.net

Sounds like a perfect solution for Canada...virtual training for our virtual equipment!

 

[daftandbarmy]

Sounds like a perfect solution for Canada...virtual training for our virtual equipment!

Oh, wait, is that the Chimera entering the chat?

Corps 86's Chimera tank destroyer

When I did CACSC in 1990, we used the Corps 86 ORBAT, including the Chimera. We all understood that it was not a real vehicle (and not even a fully developed concept), but just a placeholder or "icon" to represent a capability for us to plan with. At the time, we thought of the Leo Jagdpanzer...

army.ca

 

[Kirkhill]

Archers to the Brits IRL

The self-loading, rapid-fire Archer Artillery System's a game changer in battle

The British Army has just struck a new artillery deal with Sweden to buy new Archer artillery guns.

www.forces.net

 

[daftandbarmy]

35 years ago today...

IRA man Alex Murphy convicted for infamous corporal killings dies at home

Alex Murphy, one of the men convicted for one of the most infamous killings of the Troubles, has died at home in west Belfast.

www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk