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With my selection course in a week; I wanted to get a few queries squared away:

-First - From my relatively limited knowledge, it would appear that a Para Battalion has 6 companies -

1. A Company - Rifle
2. B Company - Rifle
3. C Company - Rifle
4. D Company - with Patrols Platoon, Signals, Assault Engineers & Snipers
5. Support Company - with Mortars, Machine Guns, Anti-tank.
6.HQ Company

This is evidently different to a regular Light Infantry Battalion which has 3x Rifle Companies, HQ Company and a Manoeuvre Support Company.

Is this correct? Please, answers on a postcard from those who have been there, done it and sweated in the t-shirt.

-Secondly; a regular line Battalion rotates around 3 roles: Light, Armoured and Mechanised. With regards to the 3 Para Battalions considering they are continually in the Light/Air Assault role- Do they each rotate around ABTF, NIBAT and Training up to Battle Readiness? Is this a fair assumption? Or is it more complicated?

-Lastly; how does the Platoon Sergeant: Platoon Commander relationship/role work in a Para Battalion? Each Corps and regiment has differing importance and responsibility placed on each role. Is it the typical 'Sgt. gives Lt. a lot of guidance, but ultimately the decision and responsibility lies with the Lt.' (Though only an unwise PC would not take the advice of his Platoon Sgt. seriously). Any light any of those with first hand experience of this relationship can shed on this area would be greatly appreciated.

I accept this may be a very involved and boring post for many. But thanks for reading it, and I am very grateful for any informed replies.

Mike_b

1. First paragraph is correct.
2. One of the battalions was always on spearhead and ready to parachute into action within 24hrs if memory serves me correct. Not sure how it currently works.
3. The platoon sergeant and full screws run the platoon in reality. Most Platoon Commanders will leave them to it on a day to day basis. There's always the odd one who will interfere in everything and can't be fu**ing told though.
Cheers,
ED.

Cheers ED - just the clarification I was looking for.

Mike_b

Pretty sure most of that is correct, although 1 Para never had a D Coy, it was called Comand Company.

Support Coy was made up of the more experienced guy's, there for the Plt Comd generally was a Capt, (Non NI) and the plt Sgt was a C/sgt section comds could be either Sgt's or Cpl's.

The new Officers were thrown in to the Rifle Companies at the mercy of their Plt Sgt's.

Maroon old chap, there was a D Company in 1 Para. I know as I was in it. This came about after Arnhem when I think it was A Company was wiped out to a man. The Company was never renconstructed till the early 70's when a new CO decided to do away with this tradition. Since then D Company has now been reborn so to speak, and I was invited to a lunch at Dover to cemorate this event some years back.

Click on the www listing below for pictures

I apologize Tab, and take back what I said and re-frase, there was no D Coy in 1 Para during the 80's, it was called Comd Coy! This was up until 1992, if it has changed back to D Coy since then, ignore my first posting...

Tab, Maroon,
When I was in 1Para its was B coy that was missing.
They then reformed B coy with all the Btn sportsmen boxing team, footballers, x country team etc.
D coy was a rifle coy then, they then changed it to D Patrol coy. Can't remember the dates. Apart from a stint in depot and TA, I was in 1Para from 60 to 82.

Thanks got 1 after all these years I could not remember just which one of the companies had been lost at Arnhem.