REGIMENTAL SUCCESSES

In competition with the rest of the Army, members of the Royal Gibraltar Regiment have achieved considerable success over the last few weeks. RG soldiers have attended a range of Army courses in UK and, without exception, they have acquitted themselves well.

Privates Chris Coombes and Bradley Smith have been awarded the coveted ‘Snipers’ Badge’ having passed the 8 week Sniper course. The first half of the course was spent on the ranges at Pirbright before the students were tested on their fieldcraft in the open country around Brecon in Wales. Of the twenty soldiers who started the course, only twelve were successful.

‘We haven’t actually received our course reports yet but, before I left the course, my instructors told me that I’d done quite well,’ said Bradley. ‘I wanted to gain a specialist skill and there was a lot for me to learn because snipers use their initiative and operate as individuals or in pairs rather than relying on their commanders.’

Chris Coombes had always been interested in skill at arms so ‘It was obvious that I would volunteer for this course.’

The two new snipers can expect to be deployed on an operational tour sometime in the forthcoming months.

Lieutenant Dayan Pozo has just returned from the Junior Officers’ Tactical Awareness Course in Warminster which is attended by junior officers from across the spectrum of the Army. Operating at Brigade level, this classroom-based three-week course teaches its students to evaluate a variety of threats. Lt Pozo was the top student in his syndicate of ten officers but, as he says, his ‘operational experience came in very useful.’

Meanwhile, Lance Corporal Karisanne Garcia earned a Distinction on the Advanced Military Administration Course held at Worthy Down near Winchester. Over thirty clerks attended this course which lasted for three weeks. ‘It was quite demanding,’ said Karisanne, ‘Because here in Gibraltar we do not work on the same IT systems as they work on in UK so I just had to get my head down and work hard.’

It sounds as if all the Regiment’s personnel are prepared to ‘get their heads down and work hard,’ if recent course results are anything to go by.

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