Year in the Life
A Year in 26 Engineer Regiment Light Aid Detachment Introduction – Capt Bromidge, OC LAD
B
ill Murray once said, ‘Whatever you do always give 100%, unless you’re donating blood’, and I can honestly say that 26 Armoured Engineer Regt LAD consistently gives 100%. There has been the donation of blood (2 times inter-sqn boxing champions and the odd spanner rash) but for sustained periods it has been hard sweat and tears to ensure the Regiment meets its commitments. We have never failed yet! 26 Armoured Engineer Regiment is sat in 25 Engineer Group, part of 3 (UK) Div. It provides close combat engineer support to each of the battlegroups within 12 Armoured Infantry Brigade. When I arrived in May 2019, elements of the LAD were deployed on Op CABRIT 4 whilst commitments on the home bank remained frenetic, and it hasn’t stopped since. The ability to conduct our core business during my tenure has been challenging as we strive to maintain the balance of supporting our dependant sub-units whilst safeguarding our own training and maintenance requirements. The LAD has continued to provide tactically and technically trained REME personnel who are fully integrated within their dependent sub-units. Supporting circa 30 variants of equipment including plant and armour whilst stroking the ears of Titan, Trojan (T2) and Terrier to
ensure they don’t ‘fall over’ has been demanding. REME tradesmen have continued to support a myriad of commitments with deployments to Belize, BATUS, Kenya and Germany whilst our excellent relationship with 4Bn REME has allowed shared synergies to develop. We are currently committed to Op CABRIT until Sep 22 whilst continuing to meet our demands on home soil and overseas training activities. It continues to be busy but its ‘good busy’ with plenty of opportunities. Consisting of 4 cap badges, across 11 nationalities and Cornwall, the relentless dedication, professional pride, and cohesion of the soldiers within the LAD is tremendous; always raising the bar, they never miss the ‘line of departure’.
OP IRON KRANE – 8 AES Fitter Section Scribe: Cpl McNeil Since the end of summer leave 2020 and the easing of the first national lockdown, 26 Engineer Regiment have been in full time, with FHPI measures in place we came back to a fleet state not looking too healthy. Before we knew it, there was a plan in place to rejuvenate the fleet so 30 Armd Engr Sqn could begin Collective Training. The Operational Readiness Matrix had been advanced by 12 months, so they were first out of the door for the Op CABRIT rotation. Whilst the fitter section assisted in the preparation of equipment for exercises and other background activity, we were requested to provide unique Armd Engr SQEP in support of Op IRON KRANE. Working under 4 Bn REME we prepared the Land Training Fleet (LTF) in Sennelager that arrived from BATUS. This was a great success where we managed to present all Armd Engr platforms to the start line in good condition. Following a well-earned Kayaking and Sailing AT package at Portsmouth’s Army In-Shore Sailing Centre we went on Christmas leave for a break. On return, the unit adopted a muchneeded EC surge to enhance the LATF fleet and raise the BUF availability as it was transferred to 33 Armoured Engineer Sqn who would start pre deployment training for the 2nd rotation of Op CABRIT. Easter came and went, and we were straight back into the grind as 8 Armd Sqn would now hold the BUF prior to our mission readiness training serials. To bring my fitter section up to speed I introduced a Special to Arms training plan. Every Tuesday I would take members of the LAD out on to the training area and go through scenarios such as Trojan power pack lifts in the field and WR 512 recovery capabilities. This was also a great success as skill fade had hit everyone hard through lock down, so it was good to get out and get dirty.
Ex TALLINN DAWN – 33 AES Fitter Section Scribe: Cfn Fairhurst/Cfn Lindsey
The view from the top of a Titan
4th January 2021, a week before the rest of the regiment returned to work, we found ourselves staring down the barrel of an intense period of pre-deployment training. Our first big milestone was Ex SCARAB RUN, the squadrons CT CHARLIE exercise, a chance for the
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