Well, some weekends I get into green kit and become a member of the only Territorial Army troop left on the European mainland. The troop is a part of a regular Amphibious Engineer Squadron who's main job is to provide a large water obstacle crossing capability using the M3 Amphibious Rigs.
Most of the troop are ex-regular army but by no means all were originally from the Royal Engineers. We have ex-infantry, ex-transport, ex-artillery and, like myself, ex-signals, giving the troop a very wide range of experience. No bad thing as if you don't know the answer to a problem, then there's probably someone in the troop who not only knows the answer, but has also solved the problem several times before for real.
When on the road the vehicles are big. Much bigger than the old M2 amphibians that they replaced but with automatic gears and the option of 4 wheel steering when required we manage to get them to most places that they are required without too many scrapes.
Once on the water, in their natural environment, the rigs move through the water like a dream, moving easily in any direction with the help of having equal power and steering at the stern and the bow. You can see some video of the rigs in action here.
With a large cab, good heaters and BVs fitted (boiling Vessels) life for the crew can be very comfortable but the fun really starts when you begin to cam the monsters up! The cam nets are huge and there are a million and one places for them to catch in daylight, let alone in the dark.
The M3, built in Germany by EWK are purpose designed mobile bridging and ferrying units that are normally linked together. They can be built into a bridge, or more commonly coupled together to form a very manoeuvrable ferry capable of carrying the heaviest main battle tanks.
As well as the rigs there are plenty of other tasks required to keep the traffic flowing across the obstacle. Traffic to marshal, access to keep clear and maintain, the never ending need for life jackets and the constant requirement for piping hot water in order that the 'Bank Support' party can drink endless cups of tea and coffee. After all, it's their only source of heating and nourishment. Could someone in the troop let me know if that was a 'dig' or not.
The troop also keeps it's hand in with all the normal engineer skills of bridging, water supply, demolitions, mine warfare, roads & airfields etc. Some skills are more popular than others but all are carried out with the enthusiasm of people who know that they are back to reality soon.
It's not all work and it may not be a surprise to anyone that the beer tends to flow once the troop gets together... but then again, when you get 30 plus ex-squaddies (most of which are married) away from their wives, you're just asking for a party!
As well as engineering we also keep up to speed on all the normal soldiering skills, having to cover things like NBC, First Aid, the Law of Armed Conflict and spend some time on the ranges, ensuring that we are not only safe handling weapons, but also that we have a good chance of hitting things we fire at too.
In May 2001 a couple of us managed to get ourselves sent to Cyprus. Believe it or not we worked our bits off from 07:00 to 19:00 every day in the blazing sun repairing the patrol roads on the UN Buffer Zone. Mind you, when we told the rest of the lads what we were doing, not one of them believed us and they automatically assumed that we were on a swan. At least, if I'm going to spend some time working, it might as well be in the sun (well cab at least!).
My wagon for the two weeks was this ex-US Army CAT 950F front loader. Although it had it's own built in 'greenhouse' it was nice and powerful and once it got going on the patrol tracks, it managed to bounce quite well or should that be 'alarmingly'!. At least once I nearly bounced into the neighbouring Turkish minefield. Anything to concentrate the mind on a long hot afternoon.
More pictures of Op TOSCA and our arduous Cyprus trip, click on the flag
In November 2001 I had a phone call at work and I was given 10 minutes to decide if I wanted to take part in an adventure training trip to South Africa. The answer I gave was of course "Yes, and do you want your arm back!". Three days later after managing to find the money, get my kit issued and get my inoculations I was flying from Hannover to Heathrow and on to Johannesburg, just going to prove that even the TA can move fast when it wants to. Just over a week spent in the Drakensburg Mountains walking the 'Giants Cup Trek'. Lots of mountains and some awesome views.
We also managed to get to visit the site of the battle of Wagon Hill at Ladysmith, where our squadron served, and the famous Rorke's Drift where 140 held off around 4000 Zulus back in January 1879. During our visit there were plenty of Zulus around but as far as we could tell they seemed friendly enough.
For more pictures of Ex Natal Diamond, click on the flag
As well as being a Combat Engineer and an M3 Pilot I am also a Plant Operator with my first course on the Volvo 4400 at Waterbeach. This was my first experience working with plant machinery and I really enjoyed it. Maybe I'm just a big kid who's really happy playing with big toys.
In January 2002 I found myself on another plant course in the UK, this time learning the new CAT 320B heavy crawler excavator. I have to say that as it was my first course at the RSME in Chatham, as far as I can tell, all the stories about the school weren't all true.... all the stories about the town of Chatham itself however were! I managed to pass the course and still have a good time as the other members of the course were a good bunch (Well almost all!).
In September 2002 I was back at RSME doing another plant course. This time it was the CAT M318 medium/heavy wheeled excavator. In a lot of ways very much the same as the last, but this time you could get from the park to the digging field quicker, giving more time for a cup of tea. Again, a good time was had by all and a great deal of money was spent in the Command House, Churchill's and The Cannon.
The troop was called up in January 2003 and served in Kuwait and Iraq during Gulf War II. The troop acquitted itself admirably and managed to work well doing what it's supposed to do, amphibious engineering. We got some really good jobs to do while we were out there, including the honour of being the first troop to 'splash in' with M3's on operations, much to the disappointment of some of the squadron.
You can see some of what we got up to while we were out on Op TELIC by clicking on the sand coloured M3.
The main Annual Camp for the troop in 2004 was up in Kiel where we carried out some engineering work for the Kiel Training Centre. See more about it here.
Ginge organized a battlefield tour of Arnhem and the surrounding area for December 2004 and another one in September 2005. Some of the pictures are available here.
The annual camp for 2006 was a mixed engineer module and MATTs camp using the excellent facilities at the training area in Waymouth. Although it is in England, that's abroard for us. For more pictures click here.
Mick Hindley organised the ODE (or Operational Discovery Experience, that's modern for Battlefield tour!) for 2006 of the Ardennes, covering La Roche, Bastogne and the Hürtgen Forest. The weather was superb, the scenery spectacular and the only thing ruining the weekend was England getting put out of the world cup.
March 2007 and another plant course in Chatham. This time on the new in service D5N Medium Crawler Tractor. A nice bit of kit and much easier to operate and a lot more comfortable than the old D6.
Another trip to sunny Chatham in May 2007. This time there was no time to play driving around in big diggers. This time it was classroom all the way with plenty of late nights and report writing. If I'd known I probably wouldn't have bothered but managet to get 'top student' when I would have settled with a pass.
More forign travel as the annual camp for 2007 was practicing our combat engineering skills on the island of Jersey, hosted by the Jersey Field Squadron RE (M). A real case of 'work hard & play hard'. For more you can click here.
Another chance to get out and about with an exchange trip with an Engineer Company of the South Dakota National Guard. Spectacular views of the plains and the Black Hills. As their letter head saiys "Great faces, Great Places". For more you can click here.
If you are a member of the troop or an ex-member of the troop, email me for access to the chat forum.
See some video of the M3 in action here.
