Army Reserve personnel from the Scottish and North Irish Yeomanry (SNIY) took to the lanes and fields of Dumfries and Galloway to develop their mounted and dismounted skills on Exercise WOLF’S STORM.

The British Army say in a news release that the exercise is designed to build upon low level skills in the Light Cavalry role, allowing crews, comprising a Commander, Driver and Gunner to develop confidence in their team, their equipment and Tactics, Techniques and Procedures (TTP’s).

“Initially focused on the individual crew, they then work as a Troop, typically of 3 or 4 crews, and then into a Squadron, which will comprise 4 Troops. This graduated training allows them the freedom to learn, make mistakes and build their confidence before being put to the test.

The intent is to prepare them for their forthcoming deployment with their paired Regular Regiment, the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards, and to ensure they’re able to integrate seamlessly into their role as a formed deployable Squadron, during next month’s Exercise WESSEX STORM.”

The exercise will take place on Salisbury Plain and allows units to perform in-depth training at the Battlegroup level.

Joining the two paired regiments will be the Royal Irish Regiment and together, they will go through a series of phases enabling the units to work through different scenarios. These scenarios are related to potential events they may face during future operations.

You can read more here.

Tom has spent the last 13 years working in the defence industry, specifically military and commercial shipbuilding. His work has taken him around Europe and the Far East, he is currently based in Scotland.
Subscribe
Notify of
guest

47 Comments
oldest
newest
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
geoff
geoff
2 years ago

What are the vehicles? They look like heavily modified Landies?

BB85
BB85
2 years ago
Reply to  geoff

They are jackels

John Hampson
John Hampson
2 years ago
Reply to  BB85

They have been downgunned. Lost their .50 cal.

BobA
BobA
2 years ago
Reply to  John Hampson

There are a number of weapon fits that can go on, the main gunners station is not .50 by default. You normally have a mix of HMG, GMG and or GPMG in a patrol depending on the terrain, mission etc. In the Army Reserve I suspect the training burden would be too high to use all three, so having a single weapon system (GPMG) enables the crews to stay current and competent within the available training.

Daniele Mandelli
Daniele Mandelli
2 years ago
Reply to  John Hampson

Is that for regular regiments or the reserve though?

I was not even sure if the 3 regiments of the Army Reserve even had their own Jackals? Thought they still had Land Rovers and only used Jackals for occasional training exercises with their paired regular regiment, as here.

BB85
BB85
2 years ago

There is an article kicking around somewhere from from the last 12 months with reserve units being issued jackels. The land rovers need scrapped even if they are only using them for basic training. No one will be deployed in them again ever so it’s a waste of time and maintenance.

Daniele Mandelli
Daniele Mandelli
2 years ago
Reply to  BB85

So, if they have them, good stuff.

Nic
Nic
2 years ago
Reply to  BB85

A lot of landrovers have also been replaced with foxhound

BB85
BB85
2 years ago
Reply to  Nic

Makes sense. It would be interesting to know how many MRAPs are still in service and back in Europe vs what was written off, sold or scrapped once we left Iraq and Afghanistan. I think the large surplus of MRAPs was part of the reason the army switched its attention to Ajax rather than Piranha 5 and then back to boxer as they thought they way as well wear out the MRAPs first.

Graham Moore
Graham Moore
2 years ago
Reply to  Nic

I believe Foxhound replaced Snatch. We bought around 400.

Daniele Mandelli
Daniele Mandelli
2 years ago

16AA gave up their Jackals!  😳 

Dern
Dern
2 years ago

Not surprised tbh, (and for that matter I think all non-Cav units gave up their Jackals a while ago), they aren’t exactly the most air-mobile vehicles are they.

(BTW last I checked most infantry battalion retain WIMIK for their Recce Platoons).

Airborne
Airborne
2 years ago

RWIMKS not standard landy’s

Adam Gill
Adam Gill
2 years ago
Reply to  John Hampson

They havnt lost there 50 cal. They either have a GmG on or a 50cal.

DRS
DRS
2 years ago

Anyone can shed light on why they were designed to be open to the elements fully I know they are designed to take ied and be easy to repair but odd you have no cover on top of any kind even just to stop dust coming in from driving in deserts etc

Mark Forsyth
Mark Forsyth
2 years ago
Reply to  DRS

Originally designed for desert ops, and just repurposed. Dash board and other electrics suitably water-proofed, and also as they are Recce, the Mark 1 eyeball needs the ability to see all round.
Will carry a tarpaulin and cam net to use when in a hide location, so they will be covered up when not out patrolling.

Nic
Nic
2 years ago
Reply to  Mark Forsyth

I wonder if they will change the colour of them through time or will they remain desert cam

Mark Forsyth
Mark Forsyth
2 years ago
Reply to  Nic

Large parts of the vehicle are made up with pre-cut sheets of dynemma, which have a protective plastic coating over them. They look like thick sheets of ply-wood. I don’t think that paint either sticks to this, or it may be that it interacts with the coating degrading it, hence not re-painting. If you search the internet, you will see some of the more recently purchased Jackals are actually Nato Green.

Rogbob
Rogbob
2 years ago
Reply to  DRS

Quite, albeit pk for Iraq/Afghan, they must be miserable in Northern Europe outside of good weather.

Do they even have heaters?

Foxhound seemed a much better platform and coukd easily be adapted with a roof weapons kit plus offered decent protection.

Jackals to me make Snatch and Vixen look safe.

Airborne
Airborne
2 years ago
Reply to  Rogbob

Jackals were a god send, as when you hit an IED or mine you get blown in the air and hopefully land without catching anything on the way up or down. However the issue is for the rear gunner, who has a turret ring, and like the WMIK, can shred your legs on the way out. In the early days of Herrick, the Jackal was a vast improvement on the snatch, and that horrendous piece of shit which we all refused to use, the Vector. Cheers mate.

Rogbob
Rogbob
2 years ago
Reply to  Airborne

And the driver in a Jackal loses their legs due to proximity to the wheel that has probably initiated the IED.

Looks horribly unplesant to be in outside of warm/dry weather.

We had Vixen, literally felt like a coffin.

Foxhound seemed awesome (we were one of the first users) although the brakingg system kept failing, got quite good at filling in accident reports and placating locals we’d crashed into….

Nic
Nic
2 years ago
Reply to  Airborne

Snatch was a big mistake, I often wondered why they did not us the Tavern armoured vehicle or the other Armoured Land Rover used in Northern Ireland.

Rob
Rob
2 years ago

I’m surprised that people don’t find this a problem. The pairing of Regular & Reserve Regiments is fine as long as it is a training measure. However what we see here is that the RSDGs can’t deploy without a Sqn loaned from the Reserves and that the paired Reserve Regt, S&NIY can only deploy a Sqn. That actually means that we don’t have two regiments but one. Someone needs to ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many regular army units can deploy without augmentation from the Army Reserve and how many Army Reserve units can deploy independently? Because… Read more »

Karl
Karl
2 years ago
Reply to  Rob

I think your answer is apart from SF units or Gurkhas, none are up to strength. I understand Gurkha recruitment was up by 400 this year alone to make up for manpower shortages. The time periods in recruitment still put many off, Capita are a joke.

Nic
Nic
2 years ago
Reply to  Karl

They should never have taken the recruitment out of the hands of the Military recruitment Teams.
Its not the first time that the issue of Capita has been mentioned putting people off.

Stephen Smith
Stephen Smith
2 years ago
Reply to  Karl

We used Capita, in my industry. They were similar to a Circus.

Dern
Dern
2 years ago
Reply to  Rob

Reserve units have never been able to deploy fully, we didn’t deploy a single formed Reserve Battalion during the entirety of Afghan last I checked, despite 10 years. It’s too hard to drag everyone away from their jobs to go away for a year. So nothign shocking or surprising there. Could you deploy a full reserve unit? Sure? If you wanted to drive a lot of people away from the reserves because of the impact on their full time jobs. As for how many Regular Units being unable to deploy without, adding a reserve Sqn is a matter of choice,… Read more »

Rob
Rob
2 years ago
Reply to  Dern

Wrong mate. 10 Para, now lost to cuts, from Finchley used to regularly deploy as a Btn Grp Germany. Now the Btn doesn’t exist and 16 AA Bde needs augmentation from 4 Para (Army Reserve) to deploy. That means that 2 & 3 Para are under recruited, that 4 Para can’t deploy as a unit and that the whole force is diminished.

Dern
Dern
2 years ago
Reply to  Rob

Oh, remind me of when the last operation in Germany was? We aren’t talking about a swanny across the channel for a piss up during the days of BAOR, but over a year spent on PDT and then OPS.
Please demonstrate that 16 AA bde “NEEDS” 4 Para to deploy? They seem pretty capable of deploying without their reserves if they have a mind for it.
I guess because it’s in the Brigade ORBAT you could make that argument, but this is the difference between a “nice to have,” and a “is vital to deploy.”

BobA
BobA
2 years ago
Reply to  Dern

I think people are getting confused by the A2020 concept which saw LR infantry and cavalry units lose their third manoeuvre sub unit. The paired reserve unit was supposed to deploy the 3rd sub unit for major deployments. However, by 2015 everyone realised it wasn’t realistic – so the third sub unit was reinstated (as was a separate guns Pl for Sp Coy) – but it was done by creating the specialised infantry Bns (which are about 250 strong) and moving the liability to the remaining light units. Pairing has continued and paired reserve units tend to supply individual augmentees… Read more »

Dern
Dern
2 years ago
Reply to  BobA

I mean that concept was dropped so quietly and so long ago that I’m pretty sure it was never implimented, at least I’ve never served with a unit that had anything less than 3 manuver coy’s+1 support coy.
I wouldn’t necessarily characterise the creation of SpecInf as a bad thing btw.

Wasn’t too waffly at all, pretty good summary of the state of affairs actually.

BobA
BobA
2 years ago
Reply to  Dern

So you’re right, my last Bn still had 3 Rifle Coys, but there were only 2 x Rifle Pls in each plus a Guns Sect (called a Pl, but definitely a section.)

I commanded the Sp Coy which had Atk, Mor, Sniper, Recce and Asslt Pnr Pl (no guns Pl at the time).

I wasn’t being negative about Spec Inf concept, merely meant that they hadn’t increased the establishment again – they moved it around.

Last edited 2 years ago by BobA
Airborne
Airborne
2 years ago
Reply to  Rob

That was many moons ago prior to Afghan. 10 PARA was binned in 99 which was yet another descision the head sheds should be ashamed of, but a 2 week exercise to BAOR isn’t a 12 month plus comitment to HERRICK. We had many lads coming across to us from the reserves and at least 4 PARA is still well recruited due to the reputation the Regiment has. But across the board, the reserve situation is dire. The other strength 4 PARA has is a good number of ex regulars who still want to keep their hand in, and it… Read more »

Dern
Dern
2 years ago
Reply to  Airborne

IMO the entire reserve idea needs to be rethought. We’ve established the idea of formed units of Reserves, either at sub-unit, or, heaven forbid, unit level, being deployed overseas for long periods of time is not realistic. Peoples careers rarely can support that. So the answer to me is: find roles within the UK the Reserves can do that require short term commitments and free up Regulars to do the long overseas stuff. MACA seems like the obvious tasking to me, de-couple Reserves from Regular units, institute a “Linkedin” style system by which individual reservists can volunteer to fill gaps… Read more »

Daniele Mandelli
Daniele Mandelli
2 years ago
Reply to  Dern

One of the “reforms” did establish such a role for the 14 Infantry Battalions. They were also to undertake a “Civil Contingency Reaction Force” role, which I thought was a great idea using them locally in their recruitment area.

I think the whole idea died away quietly.

Dern
Dern
2 years ago

I think that idea is fundamentally at odds with what became the stated objective of intigrating the reserves into the regular army. I’m hoping now that it’s been proven that that doesn’t work something like CCRF will prevail.
Especially if we are hoping to forward deploy a much less “domestic” regular army, I feel like the slakc on the MACA/Civil Contigency/Op Tempora front will have to be taken up by reserves to some degree.

Rogbob
Rogbob
2 years ago

CCRF died because it was a solution looking for a problem. The police were adamant that they’d never tolerate the Army doing anything they should be, whilst what you do see occasionally as MACA (floods etc) can be drawn from regular and reserve forces without needing standing or trained pers as CCRF was.

The other issue was CCRF by definition had to deploy outside the area they lived in, so that made it an admin and logs pita.

The whole thing never made any sense, but it did give some extra MTDs to units for a few years.

Dern
Dern
2 years ago
Reply to  Rogbob

Given the amount of MACA the armed forces have been providing in recent years I’d argue that it may have been ahead of it’s time.
Anyway, align Reserves to Regional HQ’s. Delink the entire thing from the Regulars, and presto, you have a CCRF equivilent formed from the Reserves that is Regionally aligned.

Andy a
Andy a
2 years ago
Reply to  Dern

National guard works well for cousins

Rogbob
Rogbob
2 years ago
Reply to  Dern

Oh, there was no shortage of MACA even then, but CCRF was a step up from that, and just not needed as you could generate MACA taskings from any units, reg or reservr (as TA did all the time to vary training experiences as often getting out to anplace and doing stuff in the real world was far more challenging than again to X training area for serials Y and Z) plus anything more “aggressive” or even “assertive” was police territory and they were absolutely not interested, indeed, adamantly against it (I recall one Chief Super after CVRTs were at… Read more »

Rogbob
Rogbob
2 years ago
Reply to  Dern

The problem is the MoD wanted US National Guardsman commitment and capability but as ever, on the cheap and absolutely without any political issues. Reservists can and will deploy, many did of course, but allowing for training standard and “life commitments at that time” its going to be a 1:2 ratio, so a Bn could generate say a Coy. This was done iirc in Iraq albeit mixed effects as an OC went a bit “medal hunting off the reservation” (althiugh to be fair, my Afghan regular CO did also… and if you talk to those at Cimoc house about PWRR… Read more »

Dern
Dern
2 years ago
Reply to  Rogbob

I sincerely doubt the UK wanted a seperate military sturcture subordinated to the constituent members of the realm rather than Westminster. 🙂 Reservists can, and will deploy but as individual replacments and at a VERY max effort at a sub-unit level as you say. While I don’t begurde the army the attempt, we didn’t know it wouldn’t work until it was tried, we’ve shown that even with a 10 year lead up we can’t generate a single reserve battalion to deploy, so the idea needs to be re-examined to see how we can best use our reservists. As I’ve said… Read more »

Rogbob
Rogbob
2 years ago
Reply to  Dern

Constituent members of realm? I’m not talking NG as in states having use of them, but the NG as a credible deployable combat capable force from part timers. Actually, I and many others said back in 2010 that without fundamental changes in Reservist Ts&Cs and the relationship between the MoD and employers, then the “Army Reserve” was nothing but changing the name. Indeed, I partly left because it was obvious it was a mere PR exercise – to my disapointment, I was right (I’d genuinely love to have been wrong). As with anything, if you dont change the inputs to… Read more »

Dern
Dern
2 years ago
Reply to  Rogbob

I strongly disagree about having needed a Regular Army during this period, if anything the last 8 years have been extremely busy for the army, and look to be busier still. I also disagree that a Combat Capable AR at unit level is feasible, we’ve failed to achieve it since WW2. It’s at a cultural level in the UK and demanding more training time (more time away from jobs) for deployments which already will drag them away for a year (when you factor in PDT) won’t change that. Also pretty sure there was a golden handshake for Reservists signing on.… Read more »

Last edited 2 years ago by Dern
Rogbob
Rogbob
2 years ago
Reply to  Dern

The Refular Army is doing very little of value. It only discovered the Eastern Europe “requirement” as Afghan ended as a desperate bid to keep relevance. Its a make work busyness, which is fair enough as all services, indeed, organisations, do it, but lets not pretend there is really important stuff going on. As COS Land said to me (and others) complaining of overstretch in 2004 (or 05, I forget), “if we dont keep ourselves busy, we wont exist”. Yours is a pretty insulting view of the reserves tbh that doesnt fit the reality. In 2003 98% of those mobilised… Read more »

Andy a
Andy a
2 years ago
Reply to  Dern

It’s funny because other countries manage reserves/national guard and do it well. Cousins Switzerland Finland israel . I think it’s symptom of a lack of respect by many in U.K. for forces and life that goes with it.

Airborne
Airborne
2 years ago
Reply to  Rob

Mate most regular units deploy with either an extra Company strength from someone else for ops, back filled with individual volunteers from the reserves. When I was an SPSI it opened my eyes to the situation with the reserves, in where no sub unit can deploy as a fully manned unit, without either getting volunteers from other Battalion/unit sub units or another reserve Regiment entirely. Very shit state of affairs. The whole concept of regular units being at 75% strength and being back filled from a paired unit does seem to have been quietly dropped as an SOP but does… Read more »