9th-12th-Lancers - Year 2002 - Page 0021
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| Regiment | 9th/12th Lancers |
|---|---|
| Year | 2002 |
| Transcription |
REGIMENTAL JOURNAL OF THE 9TH/12TH ROYAL LANCERS (PRINCE OF WALES’S) l9 Admin Troop with the somewhat fond memories of OMAN and the well- publicised Ex SAIF SAREEA (Who’s got the Wally Bin Laden Cup?) still lingering in the backs of our minds, the start of the year proved to be as cold and busy as ever. Having become the experts in CSS, the Famous Three continued to provide the admin support for the LATF (Lead Armoured Task Force) Sqn and with the possibility of the Sqn deploying at the drop of a beret, the Troop was not fazed for one moment and continued with the already high standards achieved from working under the old regime. After receiving his Commanding Officers commendation for his outstanding services to the Regiment above his normal duties, Q and the Bedouin Boys (Q Gorman, Cpl Parrott and LCpl Whitby) prepared for the Squadron Technical Firing period in Feb. On hearing that he would be cooking all the burgers LCpl (VESNA) Whitby was replaced with LCpl (Is he Osama) Orr- Munro who proved to be the Master Chef of Hohne ranges. The following months consisted of the preparation of equipment for the deployment to BATUS, Canada, and to Orm’s delight the addition to the Troop of Tpr (AC/DC, never knew he was into heavy rock) Billings. On deployment to BATUS, one of the many tasks for Admin Troop was to set up OPFOR village’s North & South to provide the Triumphant Troops with all the niceties and support they required. Q Gorman returned early to prepare for his handover of SQMS and to take over the arduous role of RQMS (Boots & Socks) leaving his trusted sidekick Cpl Parrott to step in as Q. In June the Sqn returned on mass back to RD. Once again it was filnny to discover that when P010 is mentioned in a word associa- tion game B Sqn seems to follow, SQMS Troop and volunteers from B ran the Polo Tournament to a very high standard and all those involved thoroughly enjoyed themselves. With September came the much anticipated Ex STILLETO LANCER. This was the wives club exercise and in addition to the admin support the Troop provided Tpr (Kate Adie) Billings to record the video footage, a job that he seemed particularly well suited to. In addition the Squadron deployed to the Elm feature on Ex RAMPAGING LANCER for a tough 5 day infantry style exercise, all went well apart from LCpl (Dom) Cona meeting up with beings from the other side (He’s never been the same since). Moving swiftly in to October and the initial preparations for the forth coming BOSNIA tour the Admin department was sad to finally say good bye to probably the oldest piece of Sqn property that in the guise of SSgt Gorman who sadly left mighty B and will be sorely missed however the Regiment has gained a great RQMS (A). His enormous boots were filled via Canada by SQMS Dave (does this job come with valium) Clarke, fresh from HQ Sqn. To end the year Cpl Parrott as one of the Boxing coaches proved again that B Sqn are a mighty force to be reckoned with on and off the battlefield by winning the prestigious PETO Cup. The New Year saw Cpl (Delboy) Parrott on his way to SHQ with three stripes on his sheepskin coat, well-done Polly. So where did that leave the Troop? Well, LCpl (Dom) Cona was still around and Cpl (Ginge I never saw your car Q) Farren slipped in to denners take over from Polly. Tpr (Sweaty) Billings left to be a clerk and after a number of false starts with the Bosnia ORBAT, the Troop eventually gained LCpl (Sal) Salih, LCpl (George Roper) Cooling, Tpr (Cookie) Cook and Tpr (Stumpy) Cholerton. The newly formed Troop was soon christened by Bosnia Trg, Pre Bosnia firing period and OPFOR for 7 Armoured Brigade. We will soon be leaving for Bosnia, which we are sure, will be a happy and successful tour. DC/PP B Sqn Fitter Section Squadron’s Fitter Section has spent most of 2002 centralised within the LAD to provide the BATUS OPFOR with REME support. The Fitter Section reformed in early November 2002 with both some old and new faces. We said goodbye to Tiffy Hall who had a long walk to his new unit in the same camp, 3RHA! As is normal these days we had a busy program ahead of us with support being provided by Cpl Carter for the recruit firing and also preparing for the Regimental ECI. Alongside all of this we provide players for the LADs successful football team and socialisers for the various ‘silly season’ filnctions. After handing over the reins of the LATF commitment to A Sqn and enjoying a well-earned Christmas Leave, we hit the ground running for yet another “busy period”. Along with a filll MEI schedule and repairing and preparing the Squadron’s equipment for the pre Bosnia Firing Period we also managed to fit in a week for the Bosnia Training Package in Sennelager. Just when we thought we might be allowed to finally prepare equipment for the Balkans, along came the inevitable fastball of providing OPFOR for 7 Armd Bde, who may or may not be deploying to sunnier climes. Currently we are all looking forward to the Balkans tour and hopefiJlly settling down to six months of “normality”. Sgt /ngram rWow G/bbo / Know yoLWe /USI passed your crew commanders course, however are you rea//y sure th/s can be c/assed as a fire nos/tron?” |
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