MilitaryForums.co.uk

neil1955 wrote: Did my first para course in the 70s Abingdon no 1 PTS went out of date refresher Brize Norton 80s APJI course 1990 Brize Norton, German and Yank, as well along the way (I just liked thier badges), I also carried an A41 set (kin eavy bassas) then PRC320 then lots of " GUCCHI kit ", but allways prefered my GPMG .You cant beat a bit of heavy metal 7.62 style.

Same place as me then Neil. Last jump was in Norge in 82, Gardermoen, in hindsight wish I'd broken me frigging leg after what happened to me a few months later!!!

Artist

Could have saved you a few Cold wet sleepless nights both then and since.

neil1955 wrote:Could have saved you a few Cold wet sleepless nights both then and since.

Bang on there!

As to the Wonderful A41.................43 Pounds in weight and the batts weighed about five pounds a go. We once got brassed of with the worst thing in the world.....An officer with a map. So I was asked by the lads to pretend to fall over so's we could get back to barracks. Oh Yer! Woke up in RNH Stonehouse with severe concussion!! The Poxy A41 wacked me on the head as I rolled down Little Miss Tor!!

The barstewards came in to pay me a visit with six EMPTY cans of Tennants lager the next day!!

Artist

Dont get me started on RUPERTs with the colured paper thingy with the wiggly lines,had one come out with my patrol in SOUTH ARMARGH twat had us in the south gaurdi wanted to arrest us but decided not to argue with pintle mounted GPMG.

neil1955 wrote:Dont get me started on RUPERTs with the colured paper thingy with the wiggly lines,had one come out with my patrol in SOUTH ARMARGH twat had us in the south gaurdi wanted to arrest us but decided not to argue with pintle mounted GPMG.

What a small world!

Only time I ever visited the Sourthern part was with another one of them buggers having problems with his coloured paper thingy with the wiggly lines.

Early morning local Gaurdi Plod asked us if we were tourists. Sarky Gett so he was. We'em were only a couple of hundred yards over mind and soon legged it back to the North. "Sir, give me the *&$$^#% map please" sayeth our esteemed Sgt to this ere young befuddled Eijut from the Planet Zog.

Artist

Well PWRR came back from Iraq with medals coming out of there ears and especially with the amount of tours the infantry are doing they are probably more experienced on tour than most marines.

Been on courses i.e Anti tank concentrations with other infantry units and the marines all against each other and evaluated. Where all the marine platoons were told "not to a grade where they will be effective in combat". The LI where there then. That included fitness the lot. On the navex front just look a couple of years back when the RM's accidentally attacked Spain!!!! missed Gib!!!.

I have to agree the RM are good at what they do but most Inf regiments are top of there game. So I think everyone will struggle the marines trying to be army and going on tour and Inf struggling to eat 4 meals a day and chat up all the navy birds.

We had a Rupert at one time who could only navigate by sign posts. One very dark moonless night we had been marching around in circles for ages when Rupert found his signpost, but it was far to dark to read the signs. It was was agreed that one of the lads should shin up the post and read the read the the sign. It was that dark he said he might not be able to read it even when he climb up the post and suggested that it might be best if he had a burn twist of paper. Well the Rupert thought this was a good idea so we made him a a flaming torch to climb up the post with, and lo and behold success he called out the names and the directions, then Rupert's problems really started as we had made the the flaming torch out of his map. We were missing for so long there was even an enquiry when we eventually got back to camp

k,just learning,no more remarks.

Jock wrote: All smiles & no brains,you para think you are gods gift to the british army,only a upper version of a infantry.The R.M have the edge on you lot,do not say but there navy,they serve on land & on sea,what do you lot do jump 2 or 3 times a year.

Anymore shite like that Jock and you'll be doing a para jump minus a parachute, from the momentum of my boot connecting with your arse.

No need for comments like that, but from the general gist of your posts to date you do appear to be abit of a plank.

Wind your neck in or you'll be shown the door.

Doc

Jock wrote: All smiles & no brains,you para think you are gods gift to the british army,only a upper version of a infantry.The R.M have the edge on you lot,do not say but there navy,they serve on land & on sea,what do you lot do jump 2 or 3 times a year.

What a mong. Fair one though, I s'pose we are God's gift to the Army. Never thought of it like that. So why do you think the Marines have 'the edge?' Read it in your latest McNab book, you windowlicker?

This is a polite response, by the way.

Thats ok no damage done.Never read mc nabs books,suggest one to me.Every soldier is worth their weight in gold,no matter what regt they serve. We have the best forces in the world bye 4 now

I left the Devon and Dorset 2 years ago and i can say that maybe only a small percentege will pass the AACC. If it does happen then in my opinion there should be a pre AACC course run internaly by the DnD/RGBWs which RMs oversee, and select which blokes do the full thing.

Why not make another commando unit like someone suggested earlier, lads from any infantry of the line regiments should then if they wanted to be given the chance to go across after doing a aacc selection then the whole thing and join that commando. Trying to turn a complete line regiment into a commando unit is maddness, but what the f@uk would i know.

I said given the chance cus i tried for years to do P-coy only to be told "why, were not an airborn unit, so no" so i left the whole army. Been out 2 years and now as long as i pass the medical i'm off to catterick to try for the paras, it was the only way of going across.

Good on you there Capacity, Devon and Doughnuts, you say
Good luck with the Para but why the farq do you have to go all the way to Catterick, ffs Lympstone`s only down the road mate, and you already know where the good runs are
Never mind jock as an arsewiper, what about jric
You`ll have to try a lot harder than that sonny,
Must say, you spell well for the ACF

harry hackedoff wrote:Good on you there Capacity, Devon and Doughnuts, you say
Good luck with the Para but why the farq do you have to go all the way to Catterick, ffs Lympstone`s only down the road mate, and you already know where the good runs are
Never mind jock as an arsewiper, what about jric
You`ll have to try a lot harder than that sonny,
Must say, you spell well for the ACF

Devon and Doughnut indeed , or, armerd farmers, daft and dozys (that one always made me chuckle) the list is endless and they usually come from the blokes in the battalion itself. No more soon when they become the Rifles.

To be fair it was a good battalion, I.E. good infantry of the line/armoured infantry but to switch to a commando unit in my opinion is a mistake. Some people in the battalion might disagree with me but each to their own.

On the joining the marines quote pal. I could never join the darkside

Does the 1st Special Service Brigade ring a bell? It consisted of Nos 3, 4 and 6 Commandos (all army!), No. 45 (Royal Marine) Commando, plus the French commando. 4th Special Service Bde was of course all RM.

Then there was 6 Airborne Div, ALL para bns of which was made up of county regts such as the Green Howards and the South Lancs.

This entire discussion is a symptom of a gutless govt, cutting corners at the expense of hundreds of years of tradition and scads of troop morale. It shouldn't even be an issue. Why the hell is the Cdo Bde under strength in the first place? Absolute bollocks!!

Anyone who slags the county regts is total dog shyte. They have been the main stay of Britsh prowess for hundreds and hundreds of years. Even going back further than that, who was it that fought off the Vikings and kept them north of the Thames? It was the ordinary farmers/solders, cobbled together in to fighting bodies for King Alfred.