Remembering the Fallen - 606 Squadron take part in London's Remembrance Events

Fg Off Lis Foster

Standing at the top of a set of steps at the Royal Albert Hall in London alongside Warrant Officer Paul Hannon and with a contingent from the Royal Auxiliary Air Force (RAuxAF) behind us, I waited for the Garrison Sergeant Major (GSM) to count down our entrance to the arena for the Muster Parade during the Festival of Remembrance. My thoughts were focused totally on waiting for the words: “Left, right, stand by, quick march!”  That would be our cue to start marching and I managed to put out of my mind any thoughts of being watched by Her Majesty The Queen, the Prime Minister – and the rest of the world, thanks to the television cameras pointing at us.

Cpl Phil duley, Fg Off Lis Foster, SAC Mandy Mitchell and Sgt Darren Edwards from 606 Squadron, at London's Royal Albert Hall for the 2013 Festival of Remembrance

It had been quite a week preparing for this moment.  A telephone call from my squadron  - 606 (Chiltern) Squadron - a couple of weeks before, had asked whether I could make the Remembrance weekend’s events, as well as the week of training beforehand.  I didn’t have to think long and the previous Monday afternoon had found me at RAF Northolt and the headquarters of the Queen’s Colour Squadron (QCS) for training, along with many other slightly nervous looking officers and airmen and women from the RAF and RAuxAF.  There were some familiar faces as well, as Sergeant Darren Edwards, Corporal Phil Duley and Senior Aircraftswoman Mandy Mitchell were also attending from 606 Squadron.

 Following introductions and some basic administration, an inspection ensured everyone had remembered all their uniform and that it basically fitted.   We then began with some foot drill and quickly on to marching.  I don’t think I was alone in not having done any drill for several years, but like riding a bike, everything soon came back.

As the week went on we spent many hours practising marching down stairs without looking down – harder than it seems.  We also practised our entrance to the Albert Hall on a plan painted onto the parade square – a bit like those games painted onto school playgrounds.  Music on cue always helped, giving us a good beat to march to.

In addition to the Festival of Remembrance, the RAuxAF was also taking part in Sunday’s Act of Remembrance at the Cenotaph in London, so we also practised forming up and marching in our different sections – RAF Aircrew, Men of the RAF, Women of the RAF, RAF Police, RAF Nurses and RAuxAF.  We even practised standing still, as we would have to stand for about more than 2 hours at the Cenotaph during the service and the veterans’ parade.

QCS made us all very welcome, with evening drinks in their bar as a way of winding down after polishing shoes and preparing uniform. On the morning of day two I thought I was trying to put the wrong shoes on – they were too small.  My usually comfortable shoes were no longer so, since my feet had swollen from all the marching.  I went through the ordeal of forcing my feet into my shoes every morning, but I was lucky not to suffer with blisters and after 20 minutes or so one’s feet became used to the shoes again - or maybe they just became numb.

On Friday afternoon we travelled to the Royal Albert Hall for our first look at the venue where we would be hitting the spotlights.  Walking in to the auditorium for the first time and watching singer, Katie Melua practice, felt surreal.  The lighting was magical and we were able to take in the atmosphere for a while.  We also had the chance to practice on those steps – much different from what we had practised on at Northolt.  Before our first full rehearsal I was as nervous as I would ever be - and, yes, I tripped.  That got that out of the way.

The following morning we were back again for a dress rehearsal.  Luckily we had plenty of time to watch most of the performance before getting into position for our entrance. I never did tire of watching the performance – The Dambusters, the Merchant Seamen, the Chelsea Pensioners, the Royal Marines Band and the Poppy Girls, to name but a few  - the atmosphere was charged with emotion. Behind it all was the thought that we were there to remember those who died for us.

A couple more practices and time to watch singer, James Blunt, before lunch took my mind off the forthcoming performances.

Our next run through was the matinee in front of an audience. By now I was feeling more confident and this first performance went well. 

By the time we were standing at the top of those steps for the evening performance with the world watching us, I was no longer particularly nervous – adrenaline-filled, yes, but not that terribly nervous, jelly-legged feeling that I dreaded would fix my feet to the spot.

The GSM called us forward to the top of the stairs and said:" It’s been nice knowing you…"  We watched the RAF marching down the stairs either side of the arena. Then the RAF Nurses and the RAF Police – the music changed and it was our turn. “Left, right, standby, quick march – go!”

The rest of the performance was one of the most memorable events of my life. My apologies to those standing around me, but I sang my heart out to the hymns and cheered for Her Majesty as loudly as I could.  Emotions were high and thoughts of my friends and RAuxAF colleagues SAC Chris Dunsmore and SAC Gary Thompson, killed in action in Iraq and Afghanistan, were never far from my mind.

The following morning we were up early and taken to Wellington Barracks from where we would march to the Cenotaph in Central London. Another emotion-charged atmosphere – a breeze rustled the leaves on the trees as the two minutes silence began.  The two hours we had to stand at the Cenotaph – dressed in beautifully warm greatcoats – seemed to pass quite quickly as we listened to the service and then watched the veterans march past us.  A strange fact is that watching the sea of people marching past gives you a sort of motion sickness, so you have to keep looking away.

Marching back to Wellington Barracks through the streets of London, with people cheering made us all feel very proud to have had the opportunity to represent our service – the RAuxAF – on such a memorable weekend of events.

A Windy Week in Wiltshire - Ex AGILE JAGUAR  - Fg Off Lis Foster

At the beginning of February a group from Operations Flight travelled to the wilds of Netheravon Camp, in the midst of the Salisbury Plain Training Area, to take part in Ex AGILE JAGUAR.  The week was to be spent preparing for the first of the year’s Field Training Exercises (FTXs), a mandatory Joint Helicopter Command training exercise in preparation for those deploying to theatre in the coming year.

An Army Air Corps Lynx arrives from Germany to take part in the FTX.

We arrived at Netheravon Camp in time for tea.  It never ceases to amaze me how, in conditions which can only be described as bleak, the RAF chefs provide such top quality food.  With roast beef and Yorkshire pudding waiting, we put to the back of our minds any nagging suspicions we may have had about the puddles of water that had greeted us inside our tented accommodation.

Our remit for the week was to prepare the Flight Operations room – or tent – ready for the start of the full FTX the following week.  The week was possibly of most value to the not-yet-qualified Flight Operations Assistants, as it provided plenty of time and opportunity for some serious NOTAM (Notice to Airmen) and Royal Flight plotting practice, both on paper and using AMPA (Advanced Mission Planning Aid) software.  For those of us with more experience, being able to use the AMPA software was of most benefit. 

There was also plenty of opportunity to improve our knowledge of meteorology as we were working alongside a Flight Lieutenant from the Mobile Meteorology Unit (MMU) – a sponsored reserve post.  As it turned out the local forecasts became something of a feature of the day as, perched on top of the only hill for very many miles, Netheravon Camp was buffeted by gale force winds for most of the week, which took the already low air temperatures down well below freezing due to wind chill.  The force of the wind on the tent canvas and shaking the tent poles made so much noise at night that at times it was impossible to sleep without earplugs.  The Met Officer was able travel home in the evenings as she lived nearby, and feeling guilty about leaving us at the camp, she provided us with a tin of wonderful home-cooked brownies.

Although for most of the week no helicopters were based at Netheravon, we did get the opportunity to watch them carrying out judgemental training in the vicinity.  This is where an incident is enacted on the ground and the overflying helicopter crew must make a ‘judgement’ as to how they should react.  Apaches, Merlins and Chinooks visited during the week and on the day before we left a couple of Lynxs arrived from Germany ready for the FTX starting on the following Monday.

All in all the week provided some valuable training opportunities and for those with no experience of live ops, it was a gentle nudge in the right direction, although I’m sure things would have been more exciting had we been present for the FTX.  It was also a good job we were all aware that we had the RAF Fitness Test to complete the day after our return, otherwise we may have been tempted to try rather more of the fantastic field catering than was absolutely necessary.

Getting to grips with the AMPA software

Exercise Vixen Eagle - Cross-country Skiing

Seven members of 606 were selected to attend the RAFs Exercise Vixen Eagle, a Nordic Skiing course aimed at personnel with all levels of Nordic Skiing experience. All the members from 606 had no experience at all, a complete unknown.

The day we were due to travel to the airport the snow arrived in the UK, which made everything considerably more difficult. The flight to Munich had been cancelled which meant getting 52 people to Germany was the main objective. After a 5 hour wait in what was the longest queue some of us had ever seen, we managed to get everyone on a flight to Stuttgart, adding an extra 2 hours onto the transfer but at least it meant we were on our way. We arrived in Zweisel around midnight and were shown to our chalets where we settled in for the night in anticipation for skiing the following day.

The next day, after collecting our Nordic ski equipment we were given our groups for e week. There were 3 categories bronze, silver and gold, each demanding higher skill and experience respectively. Everyone from 606 had been entered into bronze groups having never cross-country skied before. Fitness level was also taken into consideration so that all the groups were evenly matched. We boarded the buses to Bretterschachten ski area, which is wide undulating area largely wooded with coniferous trees and crisscrossed with tacks and cross-country ski trails.

The week progressed from leaning the first elements of cross country skiing such as the "diagonal gate", sliding one foot in front of the other, putting all your weight on the leading ski and combining the use of the poles to assist in propelling yourself forward. Sounds relatively easy on paper but unless you commit yourself fully to the movement you either don't get traction when going up hill or your skis start sliding in strange directions and potentially end up with you being closely acquainted with the snow. With perseverance though we all started to get the hang of it and each day there were new skills and longer distances being covered.

“Kick double pole”, “double pole”, and “half snowplough”, the skills were being picked-up and the terminology learnt. By day 3 we had pretty much got the basics and were covering numerous kilometres of “Loipe” (marked cross-country skiing track).

Day 5 was the tour day where we covered a 20Km route and ventured to the top of the Grosser Arber, the highest peak in the area; with an overall climb of around 400m it certainly tested everyone’s endurance and fitness levels. The hard work was rewarded with a lunch stop at the slipper café for some well-earned strudel and hot chocolate. As the name suggests, you’re welcomed with walls of slippers to change into before going upstairs to the warming hospitality and home-cooked food. Going back out into the cold the return leg was tough but it was certainly a satisfying day. We all slept well that night in preparation for the assessment and time trial day.

It was the last day and once the assessments had been competed we were all given a number in preparation for our individual time trial. 1.5Km route as fast as you can, it was an imperative to not let the red mist of the trial cloud your technique otherwise it was back to being like Bambi on skis and time just slipped away. This was followed by the main event, the team 4x500m relay, a comical event of fancy dress, teams going all-out on the uphill section and as much speed as you dare on the downhill to the finish. The finish was preceded by a sharp right-hand bend lined with people cheering and showing their encouragement, some even provided a gantlet of snowballs to avoid. It was all in good humour and everyone had a great time.

The last night was awards and presentations where everyone was awarded their skiing competency that they had achieved for the week. There were also other awards for fastest time trial and best fancy dress, 606 Sqn came away with Bob Lacey Memorial trophy for going “over and above” which was a great surprise to us all and humbly received. All had a great week and everyone who attended from 606 came away having learnt something new and achieved the bronze award. Many thanks to all of the instructors and organisers for putting on such a well organised event. We’ll be back next year!

Off-Road Driver Training at Dalton Barracks 

LAC Phill Butwell

Driving the 4-Tonne truck through water.

For the Saturday of the December Training weekend 606 Squadron's Operations Flight (Ops Flt) deployed to Dalton Barracks, formally known as RAF Abingdon, to carry out some driver training.  This was broken down into 3 different sections, off-road Land Rover training, reversing with a trailer and driving large vehicles off-road.  The Flt split into 3 groups and we rotated throughout the day around all of these sections.

The first activity that I did was the off-roading in a Land Rover, under the watch and guidance of Marcus (SAC Van Hagen).  This was something that I had never done before.  It took a while both to get used to driving the Land Rover, but more so getting used to the idea of seeing a steep muddy slope and, rather than finding a sensible route around it, gunning the engine and running straight at it until we reached the top!  The off-road driving was, for me, the most enjoyable part of the day as it gave me the opportunity to do something that I have never had the chance to do before.

RAF 9-Tonne Service Vehicle, known as the SV

After completing the off-roading my group moved onto practising reversing a Land Rover with a trailer.  The activity started with a quick brief and demo from Cpl Stu Edwards, who made it look a lot easier than it actually was.  Following a slow, yet successful first attempt, Cpl Edwards upped the game by reducing the width of the parking space to only a foot wider than the Land Rover and, despite even that, the time it took me to park improved as my confidence grew.  This was an enjoyable experience - not in the thrilling sort of way that the off-roading was - but it involved focus and precision, both of which are needed in the Ops Room. 

Our final activity of the day was the opportunity to drive both a 4-tonne truck and one of the new 9-tonne Service Vehicles (SV) around a muddy track.  This gave us the chance to drive two very different vehicles.  The SV has only recently come into service and is full of electronic aids and features, whereas the’ 4-Tonner’ has been in service for many years, has limited gadgets and is left hand drive, just to add to the challenge!  For me the most surreal moment was driving the 4-Tonner with the front wheels following the ruts in the mud, but the rear wheels weren’t, so the truck was going forwards with the back end trying desperately to go sideways.

All in all it was a fantastic day giving me the chance to do some training that was not the norm, yet still relevant to our life in the RAF Reserves.  The highlight of the day was waiting to start the off-road course and seeing a mud covered Land Rover cresting a slope, yet still being able to see the huge grin on Lucy’s (LAC Roper's) face!

If you go down to the woods today….

Fg Off Lis Foster

 For the November training weekend, Ops Flt relocated to woods on Hankley Common, part of the Longmoor Training Area, where scenes from the recent James Bond film, Skyfall, were shot.  Here we were to undertake a field ops Exercise, alongside other Flts from 606 Sqn.

With an advance party of SAC Stu Taylor, and ACs Roper, Butwell, Church and Carlyle, I travelled to the training area on the Friday afternoon, where we were able to erect 3 of the 4 tents required for the exercise before nightfall.  The remainder of the equipment was then set up the following morning in time for the arrival of the rest of the Flt.

The main training for the weekend was an exercise put together by SAC Stu Taylor and Cpl Les Birch – who has now left the Sqn – using their years of experience from working in Ops rooms in theatre and on live JHC exercises.

 

For the Exercise, Ops Flt was split into 3 groups, plus an Exercise Control (ExCon) team.  Each group had a mentor (Fg Off Cooper, Cpl Wallington and myself) whose job it was to subtly guide, while letting them run the exercise in their own way.  After allowing for time to set up the Ops rooms with maps, flying programmes, ‘Pilots to See’ boards and meteorology, the Exercise  then went on to run for some 8 hours, until 2000hrs. Each group had the same injects, but dealt with them in their own way – from General Whinge demanding a helicopter to take him into a danger area with no notice, to arranging casualty evacuations for a convoy that came under fire.  The pace of injects was good and allowed everyone to experience something of the life in an Ops Room.

During the day there was a visit from the HAC, Air Marshal  Macfadyen and Lt Col Natrass from Reserves JHC. The VIPs talked to us all individually and seemed genuinely interested in the training taking place.

The 606 Sqn chefs provided a cook tent with a communal facility for boiling ration packs, as well as tea and coffee, and this became a focal point for people to congregate in the evening.  With the generator being switched off at 2200 we all settled down to an early night.

The weather throughout Friday and Saturday had been beautiful, however, we were woken in the early hours of Sunday morning by an enormous clap of thunder – the heavens opened and when I turned on my torch just before 0700 I found I was lying in a large, quickly growing puddle.  Luckily the all-weather sleeping system had worked and I was at least warm and dry inside my bivvy bag.

After getting up and moving the kit out of the floodwater I took my packet of ration-pack porridge over to the cook tent, only to find that the chefs had worked their magic and bacon, sausage, eggs and beans were just about ready for breakfast.  Amazing!  Ops Flt had slept in the tents we had been using for the Exercise, but much of the Sqn had slept in bashas in the wooded area.  I’m sure the cooked breakfast was doubly welcome for them.

Unfortunately the torrential rain did not abate and it was decided that it would be best to pack up our kit and return to Benson, where the tents would need to be unpacked and hung up to dry.  It was a good job we had managed to have such a good run of Stu and Les’s excellent exercise on the Saturday.  The weekend had been a real success and many thanks have to go to Stu for organising such high quality and imaginative training.

It's more than just a hobby...sometimes..

As a serving member of 606 (Chiltern) Squadron I get to do some pretty cool things and sometimes, the opportunity to combine some of my many other hobbies rears it head .....

For instance; last month a group of squadron members and I participated in some adventurous training which happened to include hobby number one: Mountain Biking. This took the form of a challenging (read muddy, cold and wet) pedal along the South Downs Way over a long weekend. Good stuff..

This month The Squadron asked me to support a small exercise on the Longmoor training area providing lights and power for the Chef's. Opportunity number two: photography. I normally concentrate on sports/action myself but recently have been experimenting on the more creative side of the of the hobby and saw this as a way to try some things i'd seen others do.



 

Wide Angle SV

First, using a ultra-wide angle lens (Sigma 10-20mm) and a handy SV I got this.




















Later on that evening i'd started to lose the light and ended up experimenting with my mini tripod and some ever increasing exposure times, coming up with this:

Chef's by Tent Light

For those interested in such stuff this was 43sec/f22 @ ISO400 using the light from a distant spotlight, the fluorescent light from the tent and my torch (shining on the number plate)

I think it was around 11pm and the light had well and truly gone when the cloud cleared and it started getting cold - so I took the opportunity for a long exposure of a DAF and a Land Rover lit only by the Moon:

DAF by Moonight

You can tell how long I had the shutter open: the stars have moved.... well technically we moved, but you know what I mean. Again, for those wanting to know 109sec/f14 @ ISO1000. Not long after this it clouded over again and the heavens opened.... but that's another post..

Phil Duley.
CPL
606 Eng



Day 5 at Queens Colour Sqn

Day 5
9am what a lie in! Though we would be needing it as the next two days would be pretty early starts. The day started straight into mustering at QCS again with a few more attempts at the stairs and the square again. Mastering both with a few minor niggles it was off to lunch and then on the coaches to head for the Royal Albert Hall for our first rehearsals. The feeling we all got as we pulled outside the Hall was out of this world, it was actually becoming a little bit real as we all got our passes and entered. What an unbelievable sight! What an incredible feeling! Everyone now was starting to feel the pride and the nerves.




Even though we had to wait around for quite a long time we got to watch Alexandra Burke rehearse and some of the bands which was a great sight to see. Suddenly we were all called up and sent to our required positions. A few more practises down some flights of stairs and we were good to go... To wait around for a little longer. With the anticipation building we were all very eager to get down the actual stairs to see what they would really be like. Our time came and we were off! Everyone was trying to keep in time and concentrate so hard that I think it threw us a little. As soon as we were down onto the floor our short march started then we were stood to attention together as one. We waited for the others to join with more music as a video being played on the tv screens. I could instantly feel my eyes starting to well with the immense pride I felt and I'm sure everyone else did as well. A couple of sore feet later it started to get very hot and bless one of the medics and to take a seat. It was very hot and this was only practise what was it going to be like Saturday?! Only tomorrow would tell.
Everyone will be feeling nervous tonight lets hope we all get some sleep as tomorrow would be the proudest day of our lives.
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Day 3 and 4 of training for Festival of Remembrance

Day 3

Another 8.30 start and it was straight into training down the stairs for the Royal Albert Hall. Everyone at this point are looking pretty good,in the words of the SGT 'no point flogging a dead horse'. Everything going well suddenly we were struck with a dilemma where a VR officer had turned up as part of the university air squadron and one person would be taken from the auxiliaries to be placed next to him. Emma had been pick which left me by myself at the back of the lines. More confusing and of course muster training later we went for lunch and more pasta bake. So much pasta! This week seems to be more about pasta and doughnuts than march and drill!

Faced with the prospect of losing one of us, we all at this point put our absolutely best foot forward as to not be dropped. Luckily a couple of hours later a surprise came in the form of a VRT officer who filled the gap. Even though we had to stay a little longer to practise with him none of us minded as it ment we would now all marching together.

Stood down at 4.30 ready to eat and bull some shoes it was a defiantly a team effort in the lounge. 8 o'clock came and we were all ready to head to the bar for an interesting night ahead.

Day 4

Ah day 4 arrives and everyone's up with slightly sore heads after a very good night thrown by the QCS lads. First things first and the WO gives us a quick brief on the Cenotaph parade as today will be practising for the parade in London. 25 min later and everyone is out on the parade square ready to get their marching heads on. With over 50 of us in the parade is was soon noticed that it would be hard for all of us to keep in step as the QCS weren't quite used to having such small legs marching with them. A few more attempts and we were pretty much sorted, now everyone was getting quite excited knowing where we were all going to be in a couple of days time!

After lunch it was our last inspection for No.1s and more training for the Royal Albert Hall and marching with greatcoats which was a rather interesting task! The 'no point flogging a dead horse' phrase came out again so we were all given an early stack.

Seeing the QCS lads march in front of us today was such a sight. The lads really do work hard and for it, they look the absolute part. To be here this week has made us all feel so proud to be part of the military and part of 606. 

Day 2 of training....

Day 2

So our day started at 8.30 with a quick joke from the FS and another check of who was here, then if was off outside to the parade square for a 'refresh' of marching, shun and turning. As the cold nipped at our fingers I think the majority of us wish we had warn our gloves! It was defiantly good to shake off the cobwebs from basic but I think we impressed the SGT after being told we were the best oggies he had seen in years.

A few rest bites later and we were on the up, literally! To the fire escapes we went on the other side of the parade square to practise coming down the stairs at the Royal Albert Hall. After a few quick 1, 2, steps DOWN! We were all pretty good to go though I'm sure Mandy is hoping for railings when we get there Friday after a slight fumble.

After lunch is was another joke from the FS to keep us all in good spirits and a greatcoat check which of course was a disaster as the tailors at Northolt had now refused to do anything with them. A decision was made that everyone that wasn't sorted would be heading to Halton to be kitted properly which included Emma, Mandy and myself, again. So as we all go on the bus one thought went though all our minds, when do we get off, as a collision on the M40 was about to make our journey that little bit longer. 16.50 arrived and with only 10min to spare, in the nick of time we had arrived to Halton where some very unimpressed civvies awaited to great us. Finally sorted we returned to Northolt with our greatcoats and an unusual new passenger with no trousers??

Dinner miss so it was off to Sainsburys for sarnies and a much needed drink down the bar? I'm sure there was a joke in there some where about Emma's muffin?  

Festival of Remembrance

Updates from our team preparing for the weekend. 

Day 1

Well the big week is here, some of us slightly more exciting than others as Mandy shouts Tigger over at me! 

We where ready and willing to go but it seems that RAF Northolt had other plans. After arriving at the guard room to find out that some of us didn't have accommodation a slight panic set over the camp. Though no doubt in true RAF style it would be sorted.

We started off in the QCS lecture hall for our intial brief with the WO and FS who weren't as scary as you'd might think. Telling us our fire exits where here, here and here We were all told which ceremonies we were doing and when, meal times, training times and of course where the bar was. After everyone was told what they would be doing we all set about organising ourselves for greatcoat and No.1 inspection. Emma and Andrew were given the all clear, few minor things with Mandy's and mine but all in all No.1 were all in tip top shape, it's a shame the same couldn't be said for the greatcoats which nearly all have to be altered! The Taylor's will have fun with these demands I'm sure.

More faffing over it was off to collect keys for rooms and dinner! Pasta bake anyone?


Enjoying every minute of it 

606 Sqn win award for notable success.

The Inspector’s Cup is awarded to the RAuxAF unit which has enjoyed notable success during the past year. This year it is awarded to 606 (Chiltern) Squadron Royal Auxiliary Air Force for two initiatives which have brought great benefit not just to the Sqn but the wider Royal Auxiliary Air Force.

Exercise CHILTERN KITE took place in Apr 11, although previously run for 606 Sqn personnel, this iteration was the largest collective training event run for RAF reservist personnel in many years. With participants from  a number of RAuxAF squadrons taking part the exercise provided a show case of PTVR capability to visitors including senior Air Command personnel, politicians, employers and members of the  Reserves Forces and Cadets Associations from across the UK. The PR result was a secondary objective since this was primarily about offering stimulating and worthwhile training for those taking part. 606 Sqn through its strong connection with its parent station was able to deliver helicopter support which enhanced the exercise still further. As retaining our people becomes the challenge retention positive activities such as this exercise provide a valuable tool in that endeavour.

606 Sqn again showed the capacity to deliver creative outputs this time at extremely short notice in supporting the Royal Windsor Castle Tattoo in 2011. With the participation of personnel from 6 other RAuxAF Sqn’s, OC 606 Sqn took the lead in conceiving, planning and delivering an arena display in the presence of Her Majesty The Queen. The display can still be viewed on You Tube and significantly in 2011 this was the sole RAF arena representation at the Royal Windsor Tattoo.

2012 Review - 606 Sqn RAF Regiment Flight.

For the 606 RAF Regiment Flt, 2012 sees the push towards a live field firing exercise at the infamous Sennybridge Military Training Area, Wales. It brings together the general warfare infantry skills of surviving and operating in a field environment together with the precision firing skills on the L85 A2 Rifle, LSW (Light Support Weapon) and GPMG (General Purpose Machine Gun). Naturally, this type exercise can’t be conducted without the prerequisite training, here is just a flavour of what’s been achieved so far:

The ROFA (Regiment Operational Fitness Assessment), testing both strength and stamina, the assessment consists of:

Day One - A 10km march carrying 35kg in no longer than 1hr 45mins.
Day Two – A speed march of 3.2km whilst carrying 24kg.
Lift a deadweight of 40kg onto the back of a 4 tonne truck.
Carry two full jerry cans each weighing 20kgs over 50m in less than 30 seconds.
Drag a 71kg dummy over 50m in less than 30 seconds.

Seeing a 100% pass rate, it set the year off on the right footing. What better way to blow out the Christmas cobwebs than sticking a bergan on your back and yomping 10km?

OBUA (Operating in Built-up Areas), a theatre-specific environment design to test soldiers’ warfare skills to the max. It requires excellent command and control, fitness, endurance, speed, accuracy, and high team morale to to work in this environment. 606 Regt Flt traveled to RAF Honnington to team up with 2623 RAF Reserve Regiment Squadron to conduct this specialist training. Darting through alleys, crawling through tunnels and climbing onto rooftops is enough for anyone, but add kit, weapons and “enemy” to that, you have one awesome training exercise. Everyone came away feeling the aches and pains but all having fully enjoyed the weekend and learning valuable skills at the same time.

Ranges - Annual Combat Marksmanship Test, Moving-Target and Automatic Ranges, and Fireteam Assessment. A series of ranges is aimed at building up soldiers’ shooting ability over a number practices incorporating different positions (prone, kneeling, sitting and standing) and at distances ranging from 100m-400m. The test is just the beginning before progressing on to more challenging moving-target and automatic ranges, conducted Hythe and Lydd, near Folkestone. The weather was fantastic and it made for an ideal range weekend with some great scores to boot. The fireteam assessment weekend at Pirbright was a stark contrast though, the great british weather fulfilled its obligation: “if it ain’t raining, it ain’t training”. Patrolling through streams, assaulting across flooded grassland and firing in horizontal rain, it was uncomfortable at first but fantastic fun and great training value. The flight showed their progression with some great scores, despite the weather.

Field - Observation Posts (OPs) and Fighting in Woods and Forests (FIWAF)
Operating in a field environment is the fundamental building block for all training and it’s vital to keep the skills refreshed. The flight patrolled in on foot, as if carrying the weight wasn't challenging enough, the weather was very hot, ideal for BBQs, which all our friends and family were doing back home. Once establishing a flight harbour location we refreshed ourselves with close-quarter battle lanes, and fire-and-maneuver exercises; afterwhich some time to relax and get a good meal down whilst orders were prepped for the nights activities. Observation posts were the tasking for the night, patrolling out and watching a target for “enemy” activity and reporting back.... without being seen. The following day saw a lesson in the intricacies of fighting in woods and forests. Complex tactics and scrambling through dense shrub, mixed with an enemy threat makes for a very challenging environment. The flight were familiarised with the basics with a view to in-depth practice at Sennybridge.

On to Sennybridge
The flight have had a fantastic year and now eagerly await putting the past months of training into good practice in the vast, challenging hills of Sennybridge Training Area, Wales. 606 Regt Flt teamed up with 2622 Highland Sqn for Exercise Joint Endeavour. The two weeks were split into two parts, the first, a theatre specific field exercise, and the second, a live field firing exercise.

In true form, the exercise commenced with a loaded ‘tab in’, to establish patrol bases where we would operate over the coming days. The flights mounted standing patrols, set up observation posts and conducted vehicle checkpoints (VCPs) throughout day and night. Observing ‘enemy’ activity and gathering intelligence, information was fed back to HQ in real time which made the exercise as real as possible. Intelligence suggested that the enemy were operating from a wood North-West of the patrol base, which is where we would mount our deliberate op; putting into practice the skills we had learnt on the build up. The Flt cleared buildings en-route to the form-up-point, where , after a simulated mortar bombardment, we launched the wood clearance. The wood was wide and dark and it wasn’t long before we had enemy contact. It was hard to keep momentum, rolling up one position after the next and pushing through the dense undergrowth. Having made it the other side.....casualty! (simulated) The main focus was getting the casualty patched up and extracted to a heli pick-up-point, 1 section looked after the casualty, whilst 2 section recced a suitable landing site, 3 section and gun group providing overwatch. After a long stretcher carry the casualty was extracted and we returned to HQ to complete the field exercise. Hard work and really enjoyable, putting our training to the test in a realistic scenario.

On to live field firing! There would be grenades, rifles and machine guns, we spent some time building up our skills on the weapon systems as well as practicing our movement across the ground. Going through live battle lanes as individuals (1), fire teams (4), and section (8) we progressed through the second week. Patrolling over hills, through ditches, bogs and streams, and carrying a full complement of live ammunition, there was plenty of adrenaline flowing when the ‘contacts’ came. The live field firing culminated in a Flight (24+) attack across a steep open valley, the Flight had spent the night out in the woods and tabbed in to launch the clearance.

Machine guns firing tracer in from the hillside, we launched. Pushing up the hill, we assaulted the first position, the grenade thundered around the hills and was followed by a huge rate of automatic fire. “Position clear”, we moved on to the next.... and the next, it took a couple of hours to clear the whole valley. Last position taken, we sustained a simulated casualty. Already exhausted from the assaults we extracted the casualty back over the ground we had just cleared. The exercise was called to a halt, what an awesome sense of achievement, a year+ in the build up, and we achieved live field firing.

We all worked hard and were pouring with sweat by the end but it was absolutely brilliant and could not have been done without the hard work of the regular, full-time and support staff training and supporting us throughout. Thank you!

General Service Respirator Training

As part of the roll out of the new General Service Respirator RAF Reservists from 606 (Chiltern) Squadron have been undergoing conversion training.


As part of the training there is a requirement to test the equipment and the skills and drills of the individuals in a CS environment.


Below are a couple of pictures of some squadron members preparing for the respirator test facility after their weekend of fitting, teaching and testing.

Once in the CS environment staff will practise the decontamination, drinking and canister change drills.

One member of the Regiment Flight, Lance Corporal Calleja from Didcot missed the recent awards ceremony due to his civilian work commitments.  The opportunity was taken to present him with his Queens Diamond Jubilee Medal.

Ex ALTCAR CHALLENGE

On the weekend of 5^th/6^th May, a team of 4 girls and 4 boys from 606 Sqn participated in the Altcar Challenge, at Altcar Army training camp near Liverpool. The girls’ team comprised of myself – Kat Bryer –, Amy Witwicki and Lucy Roper from Ops Flight and Jemma Holmes from Supply Section.

Although we had prepared for the weekend with extra training sessions, we were all still
nervous about what to expect on the day!

After the long trip to Liverpool, we were quickly ushered to the assault course to be given a safety brief. It was with excitement and a little trepidation that we viewed the challenging obstacles,
as we were given a demonstration by an expert who made it look easy – even scaling the 9 ft wall unassisted!

Amy – who was nominated team leader – then went to a meeting to get the instructions for the
following day.

Later on that evening in the bar, we studied the brief for each challenge and had a think
about how we were going to tackle them. We saw that there were unfamiliar
weapons to strip down and so Lucy and I spent some time with Cpl ‘Taff’ Townsend,
learning how to strip down an AK47 with the help of a picture and a few
drawings, while I scribbled notes and worked it through in my head. Sgt Hobbs
did the same thing with Jemma and Amy on the General Purpose Machine Gun or ‘Jimpy’.

The day itself was a fantastic experience. After the first few challenges – kit check
and pistol shoot – our nerves had settled and we knew we were in for a great
day. Thanks to Taff’s fabulous coaching the AK47 training paid off for me and we
whizzed through that challenge.

There were many different stands ranging from kinaesthetic skills, such as the weapon
handling and grenade stalk, to real life scenarios, such as how to handle
police abusing a civilian, Vehicle Check Points and the Battlefield First Aid
stand. Amy and Jemma had beautiful orange hands for the rest of the day after
this challenge thanks to their first aid skills and the fake blood!

And then there was the assault course..... This could have been said to be Lucy’s
nemesis and it is fair to say that some of the obstacles had been playing on
her mind. Of course it was typical that our slot was right at the end of the
day, so she had a long time to think about it. However, we all completed the
course and Lucy overcame her fear of the cargo net. It was such an exciting and
exhilarating thing to do!

As a team we gelled very well and there was no friction at any point. This was commented on by
several people.

Everyone in the team put in maximal effort and so we knew that by the end we would be happy
with the result, as we could not have tried harder.

We cannot thank Sgt Hobbs and Cpl Townsend enough for all their fantastic support and training. They can be quoted as saying that they ‘felt like proud Dads,’ as our team came marching down to the stand that they ran – the March and Shoot.

Altogether it was one of the best weekends I have experienced since joining 606 Sqn and one
on which I really felt I learned a lot. I can’t wait to be involved next year and know that next time round we will have a much better idea of what to expect. Overall we were third out of the girls teams, but the 606Sqn boys came away with first prize for the battlefield first aid so a really great achievement for 606!