Task Force Helmand

Engineer Group
News Letter
Edition 3 14 April 2011

Commanding Officer’s Foreword

Dear Families & Friends,

‗People First, Insurgent Second‘

It seems like only yesterday that I was writing the foreword for the last Newsletter; another 2
weeks gone and time continues to fly by. I very much hope you are all well, had a great
Inside this issue: (pampered?) Mother‘s Day and are enjoying (surviving?) the school Easter holidays. I have no
doubt that the task you face keeping the children amused is far more challenging than the diffi-
cult task we face here in Central Helmand!

The entire Engineer Group continues to be exceptionally busy; you‘ll get a good feel for that
Regimental 2 from the excellent articles in this latest Newsletter. I was fortunate this week to be able to
Headquarters escape from the Headquarters in Laskah Gar and spend time with all the Squadrons, notably 39
in Nahr-e Saraj District and 31 on one of their many ongoing C-IED patrols. Morale every-
where is high and everyone seems to be relishing the challenges they face on a daily basis.
54 Commando HQ 5
& Support Squadron My trip to Patrol Base 1 with the RSM to see Cpl Hagelburg and his Section was particularly
poignant. During the visit we patrolled down to the small village of Char Coucha in Nahr-e
Saraj to look at the new Afghan Local Police Check Point they had just built. The last time I
was in Char Coucha was during my recce in November when it had just been cleared of insur-
26 Armoured 8 gents and IEDs in a major coalition force operation. Back in November the village was desert-
Engineer Squadron ed; the villagers had simply fled the fighting with whatever personal belongings they could carry.
The only sign of security was a temporary Check Point that had been rapidly established fol-
lowing the fighting; there were no signs of governance and there were absolutely no signs of
31 Armoured 12
Engineer Squadron
(Talisman) Signs of Progress, Schoolchildren in Char Coucha, Nahr-e Saraj District

39 Armoured 15
Engineer Squadron

59 Commando 21
Squadron

A day in the life of 26

…...

Rear Party—RMB 27
Chivenor

Support Commando 28
Sappers in Afghani-
stan—Wrist Bands
 Edition 3 Page 2

Commanding Officer’s Foreword—(continued)

Enabling Progress; Physical Security in Action. PB PASAB, Zumbalay, Nahr-e Saraj Dis-
trict

development. The situation I observed this week was completely different. Families had moved back into their compounds,
farmers were tending their fields and children were happily playing outside their new school. Definite signs of progress and,
for me, a tangible example of why we are here in Afghanistan.

It is about providing security, governance and development oppor-

tunities so the Afghan people have the ability and confidence to
reject the insurgency. Fundamentally, it is about ensuring that the
life offered by the legitimate Government of Afghanistan is more
attractive than that offered by the illegitimate insurgents. ‗People
First, Insurgent Second‘ is a phrase you may have heard and is one
that best summarises this approach. Char Coucha is just one of
many examples of steady progress in Central Helmand. It provides
a really strong sign that we are having a positive effect and offers
genuine hope that, with our help, the people of Afghanistan have a
much brighter future.

Thank you for your articles and please keep them coming; it is real-
ly good to hear and see what you have been up to back there. I
hope you enjoy the Newsletter and, wherever you are and whatev-
er your plans, have a fantastic time during the rest of the Easter
holidays.

CO
‘United We Conquer’

What are they doing down there…?

CP QUASILANG, Lashkar Gar District
See Page 15
 Edition 3 Page 3

RHQ —(continued)

Death by a thousand cuts—WO1(RSM) O’Kane

What a difference two years can make; that is the time it has been since I last deployed to Helmand, then with 16 Air As-
sault Brigade. A number of changes have struck me since my return and not just the daily growth of Camp Bastion. What
has really taken me aback is the progress which has been made in a number of key areas. Firstly the Area of Operations
(AO) we now work in as UK forces has shrunk considerably, to what is a manageable size. Add this to a force lay down
which is now at the correct level for the size of the AO, with no doubt a few minor adjustments in the boundaries to come
yet, but ‗Rome wasn‘t built in a day‘. There is also a noticeable lack of drips (whinges) from the men, about equipment,
helicopters and vehicles. This is real proof of the quantum leap forward which has been made in these areas, especially
with respect to protected mobility, ‗the vehicles we drive around in‘. This all adds up to a more effective force on the
ground in Central Helmand, which on first impressions, is having a clear effect on the insurgents and consequently improv-
ing the life of the local Afghans.

We are now seeing the final stragglers from 16 Air Assault Brigade leave with their heads held high, which is difficult for
some due to the amount of hair they have accrued over the winter. Appearance aside, they have truly worked immensely
hard over the last six months pushing the insurgents back, whilst bringing the Afghan National Security Forces forward,
which is exactly where we need to be going. So after a first class handover from 23 Engineer Regiment (Air Assault) we
have picked up the baton and find ourselves well and truly amongst it. Without missing a heart beat the team are now sup-
porting the ground holding battle groups.

I know I shouldn‘t be surprised by the effort and work ethic of all those involved in the Task Force Helmand Engineer
Group, however, when you bring men and women together from a number of units, both regular and territorial with differ-
ent skill sets, chuck in a ‗Bootneck‘ and a smattering of Royal Artillery ‗model aircraft pilots‘, most people would have had
their doubts about the groups potential effectiveness. I was able to cast those thoughts aside immediately; I am constantly
impressed and at times humbled, by the professionalism, endeavour and most importantly morale across the group, some-
times under extremely testing conditions. From the enthusiasm of Sgt ‗I can talk a lot about tanks‘ Cheetham telling me
about the capabilities of Trojan, to Sapper ‗unpronounceable Fijian name‘ aka Hightower who works tirelessly in the Re-
sources Yard (I am sure he can pick up the ISO containers by hand!). When I was told Hightower played centre, I was glad
to be an armchair rugby supporter these days, because he looks more like an international number 8!

So what have I been up to personally as the Regimental Sergeant Major? I suppose the answer depends on who you ask.
Some may say a bit of quad biking…. I know this is a recurring theme for personnel based in Bastion, but if you could see
the size of the place you would see the necessity to be quad bike trained, and I haven‘t fallen off it yet! In between quad
biking and walking around Bastion, I have managed to get out and see most of the locations with the Commanding Officer.
The trips are always eventful; if it‘s not getting bogged in somewhere, someone will steal an item of the CO‘s kit. So in
between digging out vehicles (thanks 39) and trying to locate the CO‘s stolen items we have had a chance to see what the
men are up to. The majority of the work being conducted by the field squadrons has been force support engineering i.e.
building bases and upgrading routes. Everyone is working flat out, which means long days but short weeks; the time is really
flying by. What is blindingly obvious is that in such a short period of time the sappers have been adding value ‗Ubique‘. Its
the small things they are doing on top of their day/night job that make all the difference. Whether that is SSgt Jones and his
Hesco Taffy Toilet (see the Op HERRICK 14 Facebook page) or Cpl Thompson building a new memorial for 3rd Battalion
The Parachute Regiment, the Task Force Helmand Engineer Group are as 16 Brigade would say ‗smashing it‘. 3 Commando
Brigade RM don‘t have a direct translation, but let‘s say they are ‗hoofing it‘. In reality we are sprinting at times but I be-
lieve we really do have the endurance to sprint all the way to the finish line, even if we do hit a few speed bumps along the
way. All this effort combined with the work delivered by the entire Helmand Task Force is having an effect on the insur-
gents, but it is definitely going to be a case of death by a thousand cuts; we just need to keep cutting.
Page 4 Task Force Helmand Engineer Group

Regimental Headquarters—continued.

Commando Sappers 10 km Run—Supporting Commando Sappers in

Afghanistan—Wrist Bands

On the 10 June 2011 back in good old sunny Chivenor, North Devon a gathering of the old and bold will be forming up
on the start line for a 10Km run. This takes place during the biannual Commando Sapper Reunion, over the weekend of
11/12 June, which is traditionally more about drinking than running! However this year, with the majority of the Com-
mando Engineer Regiment away in Afghanistan, an approach was made by Jeff Kamister to organise an event to raise mon-
ey for the Regiment‘s charities. Over the same weekend members of the Regiment will run a 10Km race in Bastion,
slightly hotter and dustier than Chivenor, so it will be an early start here!

So if your husband, son or partner is part of 24 Commando Engineer Regiment, then your support for the guys running
out here and the determined Commando Sappers of old running in Chivenor would be hugely appreciated. Sponsorship
of their efforts would be gratefully received and will be support fantastic charities, all the detail of the charities and how to
donate are contained on page 27 of this news letter.

http://www.facebook.com/TFHEngrGp
Page 5 Task Force Helmand Engineer Group

54 Commando Headquarters and Support Squadron

A view from ‘The Far Side’

5 4
April is fast passing us by and the Squadron continues to be fully engaged in a range of tasks, whilst enjoying a
variety of sunshine, sandstorms and rain in the last few weeks (occasionally all at the same time). Support
Troop are now well acquainted with the local area having been out on two of the logistic re-supply convoys
and enjoyed seeing something of the real Helmand. Resources Troop continue with their own private war as
they aim to deprive the rest of the world of 20 foot seagoing containers; they seem to have more in Bastion
than even the logistics Regiment! Their workload is unrelenting and they are now preparing for an upsurge in demand for
engineer materiel over the summer. The team in the Deployed Engineer Workshop are still doing sterling work manufactur-
ing equipment to improve the level of protection in the tactical bases. Working 12 hour shifts so that the workshop is max-
imising its output over a 24 hour period, their contribution this month is particularly noteworthy. Recce Troop have com-
pleted their mandatory in-Theatre training package and are now touting for business. Like a coiled spring they are all rev‘d up
and just need an excuse to join the party, or even someone else‘s party…either by invitation or just gate crashing it! The
Construction Supervision Cell have had a quieter week, but for them this is probably the calm before the storm of construc-
tion work that we suspect is in the offing. Lastly the Light Aid Detachment of REME mechanics, technicians and tradesmen
assisted by RE fitters continue their vital task of repairing and servicing all the vehicles and equipment that the rest of the
Regiment have broken; proof if ever you needed it, that if you think you‘ve made it idiot proof, someone will make a better
idiot. Life in Squadron Headquarters, colloquially known as the puzzle palace, is busy and the coffee pot is always on. The
OC continues to provide a few headaches for the Squadron command team, that he would call a ‗challenge‘ or ‗a really good
idea‘, but his direction is clear; as Vivien Stanshall once commented, "I don't know what I want, but I want it NOW!‖ WO2
Webb and the SSM are in daily competition to empty the signalers ration drawer of biscuits. And the signalers manfully take
it all in their stride.

TFH HQ Insider

Life back in Bastion — The Signalers Lot

I have been here for now for 6 weeks, give or take a few days, and in that time I have been manning the Squadron‘s Op‘s Room
on a daily basis. It is not a bad little job to be fair, and I‘m kept quite busy which makes the days go that bit quicker. We have
started a mini footy league to give us something to look forward too at the weekends, as the word around the camp fire is
we‘re not welcome down the local bazaar for a bevy! Don‘t ask me why, we cant put our finger on it. I think they are a funny
bunch anyway; reminds me of North Devon on a Saturday night in Toko‘s night club, and we all know what goes on there!

We are currently getting ready for Support Troop to deploy and I imagine it will be quite busy in the Ops Room, keeping in
comms with the lads who are deployed and also monitoring their movements on the ground. I cant help thinking it will be like
a scene from Police Academy with 2Lt Lowes as Captain Lassard with his goldfish bowl on the dash board, SSgt Flood as Cap-
tain Harris and LCpl Bradshaw
as Tackleberry, blowing up
The Multiple—what a team!
everything in sight with his
Magnum 64 along with the
rest of the Police Academy
team.

From a personal point of view

the tours‘ going well; the lads
seem in good spirit, the suns
cracking the flags and we have
got the footy on the box what
more do u want (well actually
a bar); even the women are
starting to look tidy-I could
get used to the birka look-or
maybe the heat is getting to
me! Right I‘m off; take it easy
over and out.

Spr Anderson, CIS Troop

 Edition 3 Page 6

Resources Troop do the Biggest Loser

Sunday saw the long awaited second round in the troop‘s biggest loser competition (results below). News of the event is start-
ing to spread with a number of personalities from other departments now taking up the challenge. This week saw Capt Pete
McCloud take the lead after the shock of his
initial first round weigh in. After this weeks
results he was as pleased as punch and imme-
diately went off to order a pair of Speedos
for his forthcoming R&R trip to Spain! Else-
where on the table it was a good week for
Spr ‗Hightower‘ Nayacatabu and Cpl ‗Skivs‘
Skivington who are already shadows of their
former selves. After initial good results
WO2 Lloyd has started to let things slide; he
put this week‘s poor performance down to
the amount of weight training he was doing.
However, this argument did not stand up to
scrutiny when a Jelly Donut was recovered
from his bed locker!

Up at the Regimental Support Group work

goes on in an effort to ‗square away‘ the Re-
The contents of WO2 Arthur Lloyd’s bedside table.
sources Yard. The troop has upped the tem-
po and are firing in loads of overtime. We were even joined by Helmand‘s highest paid LECs (Locally Employed Civilians), the
OC and SSM. They both joined us for a bit of hands on manual labour; unfortunately just as they were about to get their hands
dirty they were called away on some urgent ‗military business‘!

In other news, LCpl ‗Gibbo‘ Gibson was confirmed as the world‘s slowest fork operator, when he was overtaken on the yard
by an asthmatic ant carrying some heavy shopping! Luckily his horse was faster in the Grand National sweepstake scooping him
the $30 first prize with Sgt Pete Boyle‘s horse coming in 2nd ($20) and Mickey Parsons horse finishing 3rd ($15). Half the troop
has now seen the light and become born again Christians after a night of tambourine bashing with the Scandinavian happy clap-
pers in the Danish Coffee House - ‗Halleluiah and Praise the Lord!‘ All in all, a good two weeks with the troop‘s ‗TOA+!
month Pizza Night‘ and Sparky‘s ‗Big Fat Quiz of the Year‘ to look forward to next Saturday night!

The result of the weight in: Capt Pete McCloud was the biggest loser, losing 7.9 Kg to reach 93.9 kg, but his metabolic age is
still 55 years. The oldest man by metabolic age is Sgt Boyle at 105 years and the youngest is LCpl Sam Schofield at 12 year old.

Sgt Sparks, Resources Troop

The 24 Commando ‘Chefs’

Now a month into the tour the chefs from the 24 Commando Engi-
neer Regiment are now well and truly into their routine after a busy
Relief in Place period. Part of a team of some 95 chefs drawn from 18
different units, they saw the numbers fed in Bastion‘s Super Galley
reach a peak of over 5000 a day.
The main highlight of the past month has been LCpl Raj‘Gurung
(Elder) and Pte John Lamont‘s £24,000 food order being refused by
the Forward Feeding Team (their monthly budget is £6,500). Raj will
take some beasting for this one (we always knew he had a soft spot
for chocolate éclairs). WO2 Nick Townley aka ‗Gone Native‘ aka the
‗Galley Recon WO‘ has been outdoing himself by trying to blag the
most kit so far, mainly from Sgt Chris Lyons clothing store (he has
been overheard telling GI‘s to go see his clothing storeman!).
On the other side of his busy catering life Cpl ‗Gubs‘ Gurung aka
Gurung the Younger has spent the best part of his Operational Bonus
already, on ‗Get Massive‘ paraphernalia and is spending all of his free
time in the gym; his answer to why is ―I looked good ripped‖.

All of the Catering Dept continues to provide a valuable service in The ‘Morale Team’: the chefs in PB RAHIM,
Theatre, especially the Forward Feeding Chefs who have received WO2 Townley, LCpl Gurung (the Elder) & Pte
sterling reports from the chain of command above them. Lamont.

Sgt Chris Lyons Catering Team SNCO aka SQMS aka Admin man aka Chief Clerk aka Big Nicks Man, Camp Bastion.
Page 7 Newsletter Title

TFH Engineer Group - This Week’s Page 7 Fella

For all the wives, girlfriends etc. ...We are working on

changing your partners physical profiles, for the bet-
ter. We are having more success with some than oth-
ers. In this case ashame about the brain, there is little
hope there I am afraid.

LCpl Rick ‘Freddie M’ Hornsey

SSgt Meen is busted. We

assume he is looking at work.

2Lt Si Lowes; busted! Real Commandos don’t do

cherry!
 Page 8 Task Force Helmand Engineer Group

26 Armoured Engineer Squadron

OC’s Foreword
The Squadron approaches its first 50 days in theatre this week, always
Cpl Hammond & the OC on Route Blue
an important milestone, by which time we are expected to be steadily
working through our tasks. Still spread over seven locations, all are
extremely busy building roads and bases and I am frequently stopped
by Infantry Company Commanders and Sergeant Majors to be given a
special thank you for the outstanding work that the Sappers in the
Squadron have done. I hope this finds you all enjoying the Easter break
and the sunnier weather in both Hohne and the UK.

Major Webster OC 26 AES

The Rolling Road

The first road building task of Op HERRICK 14 fell to Cpl
Hammond and his section. The road in question, known as
Route Blue had been damaged during the winter months
and required a total upgrade.

Route Blue is a 2km stretch of dirt road that connects one

of the main highways in Helmand with a group of British and
Afghan patrol bases. The task involved complex deliveries
of aggregate, the coordination of large amounts of Afghan
civilian plant equipment as well as military equipment. Cpl
Hammond and is section had the unenviable task of making
sure that all this was in the right place at the right time, in
Civilian grader cutting down to for-
order to get the route completed as quickly as possible.
mation level.
The construction involves the sewing of modern geo-
textiles and layering them with aggregate to make a durable
and weather-proof road surface. This,cannot be done, SSM & Cpl Hammond discussing the progress on Route
however, until the civilian grader has cut the old road sur- Blue
face down to formation level, giving a solid and stable base
for the new road surface to be laid. This was a task made
easier by some amazingly competent Afghan plant opera-
tors, led by their Nepalese site foreman.

Overall the section completed in the region of 100-150

meters of new road per day and finished well ahead of the
predicted build timeline. With Route Blue now complete,
re-supply and coalition movement around the area will
easily last another winter thanks to the joint skills of 26 AES
and the local Afghan workforce.
 Edition 3
Page 9

Messages to loved ones…...

 Hi mate, love you and Snacky a hundred, thousand, million billion xxxx
 Hello darling I love you twice as much as above, kids behave yourself, miss you
loads Kris xxxx
 Hello gorgeous all my love to you. Amy Louise, Richie xxxxx
 MGP TMD I JUST DO XXX
 Santa‘s little helper love and miss you, hello to smelly and Stevie too x x x x x x x
 Hiya Aimee, Ellen & Owen. Fin miso chi mor gymaint fili waitan I weld chi a go-
beitho fod Ellen yn darllen a Owen yn dim ond yn behavio!!!!!!
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
 Hey princess missing u loads hope your well love you baby ur prince xxxxx
 Hi Kirsty, hope the girls not doing your head in too much, Pete xxx
 Hey sweets, Hope all is good, missing you always, love and kisses, Ian xxx
 Hi Baby, missing my sweetness loads & loads xcxc Give my love to babies xxxccc
 Miss you sweetie, say hi to the girls love Gaz xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx1927
 Hi babe love you loads give the kids a hug and a kiss xx801012xx
 Hey you, all my love to you and the Makila Bomb, love from Ben xxxxxx
RSOI Training for Armoured Engineers

 Hey chicken, miss you loads, hope the boys are not driving you up the wall, love
you all xxxxxxxxx
 Hello babe! Hope you, Alex and Aimee are ok? Not forgetting the dog! Love and
miss you like crazy! Andy. Xxxxxx
 Hi Jacqueline, just to say I love and miss you all loads, give my girls a kiss and a
stroke under the chin, and I‘ll see you all soon. Nick
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
 Well I must say I‘m impressed its only taken you a month to crash the new car…I
forgive you xxx
 And lastly to the No1 Frau, because nobody does it better.

What we started with……. Then look what we built!!!!

Page 10 Task Force Helmand Engineer Group

26 Armoured Engineer Squadron ( continued)

Bandibarq Road (BBK) CP 5.3

Cpl Gannon‘s section deployed out to build a 10 man

Afghan National Police checkpoint just outside the
city of Gereshk. The task site was difficult to say the
least. The check point would consist of a road level
sanger, with accommodation and living space in a field
7 meters below the road; not ideal when moving
heavy machinery and tonnes of aggregate around.
This would again, be a joint venture between 26 AES
and local Afghan contractors.

On day one, the ground work was completed to

The Medium Wheel Tractor filling Hesco, again!
ensure a level base upon which to build the CP. Cpl
Gannon and his team then set about making a ramp in
order to move the heavy plant and tipper trucks
down from the road level to the accommodation
level. The following morning, the local Afghan farm-
ers had opened up sluice gates which promptly flood-
ed the site. The solution was to use more aggregate
and stone, build the base of the accommodation high-
er and away from the water level. The section also
cleaned up the irrigation ditches allowing water to
flow unimpeded and reduce the likelihood of the site
flooding again.

After the flooding issue was resolved, it was down to

business with constructing the main structures of
both the road level sanger and the accommodation.
The outer walls made of Hesco were completed
quickly and then it was over to the Carpenter and
Joiner, Sapper Jewell to build the wooden accommo-
dation structures, toilets and showers.

With flooding issues and the frequent delays with the

breakdown of the Afghan civilian excavator, the task
was actually completed in five days - two days ahead
of schedule. A difficult but rewarding build and yet
another completion for Cpl Gannon and his team.

Spr Jewell constructing a sangar roof

The section enjoying tea with the afghan contractors

 Page 11 Task Force Helmand Engineer Group

26 Armoured Engineer Squadron ( continued)

Military and civilian plant work-

ing together at CP 5.3

Day in the Life of a Section Sapper

It was Sunday 3rd April 2011 and it was the final day on Checkpoint 5.3, an Afghan National Army checkpoint built to house 10
Afghan soldiers who provided security on a vital new road. There were 13 men on the task site with the Tp Commander, Lt
Mackintosh manning the radios and SSgt Newbury maintaining
standards and morale. There was also a two man sentry posi-
tion providing security and two Danish Leopard tanks. The task
was plant intensive and included civilian plant operators as well
as Spr Mackie in his non-air conditioned medium wheeled trac-
tor at 35ºC.

We had been at it for 6 days and were very close to completing

the job. Reveille was at 0600hrs and with a quick brush of the
teeth and a tropical muesli breakfast, we were all nearly on the
task site by 0700hrs; that is nearly all as Spr ‗20 minutes notice
to move‘ Thompson was messing about with his Self Loading
Dump Truck. We started moving timber down to the main
compound area to finish off the accommodation, but before we
could start, the area needed to be levelled off with stone. Spr
Jewell then set to, employing his carpentry skills by knocking up
the accommodation. Meanwhile Spr Jordan and I made steps
from the road down to the accommodation area.

Spr Stonestreet at CP 5.3 After a quick lunch break we cracked straight on, hoping desper-
ately that we could finish by last light so we could get back to the
amazing scoff at Main Operating Base (MOB) PRICE and of course get a bit of Facebook action. Everyone who could be spared
was tasked to assist Spr Jewell in bolting together the wooden structure of the accommodation. The final task of putting a
cover from view screen up to allow the Afghan soldiers to move from the road sanger to the accommodation was given to
LCpl Stobbs and Spr Mackie. They improvised, however, SSgt Newbury was less than impressed.

During the whole task, we had nearly forgotten we were in a warzone as the locals were all friendly and accepted our presence
in the area. The closest to danger we came was when the civilian excavator operator came hurtling down the hill out of gear
and wiped out LCpl Stobbs who took an excavator bucket to the chest. He had to have a cigarette and a sit down, but he was
alright. This was probably just karma, as earlier in the week LCpl Stobbs had knocked LCpl Carter head first into an empty
Hesco cell. We eventually finished the job, packed away all the equipment and travelled back to MOB PRICE at 0600hrs the
following morning.
Page 12 Task Force Helmand Engineer Group

31 Armoured Engineer Squadron (Talisman)

OC’s Foreword—Follow the Sapper

1 Troop under Lieutenant

Cpl Walker, minus his brew and ‘Bluff’ folder, showing a Buffalo Alex Phipps have just
returned from their se-
cond major route clear-
ance task. Working in
support of the infantry,
their job was to open a
route to enable 39 Ar-
moured Engineer Squad-
ron to build a new Check
Point for the Afghan Na-
tional Police. The overall
effect would be increased
influence over the local
population in that area
whilst decreasing the
insurgents‘ freedom of
manoeuvre.

The operation was pre-

ceded by a joint planning
session where Lieutenant
Phipps and Sgt Mark
Smith were briefed by the
infantry Company Com-
mander. It was important
that they understood the overall plan so they were able to dovetail their actions to ensure unity of purpose.
As we approached the area of operations, the locals showed great interest in our convoy, probably fearful that we were
going to destroy their poppy fields as harvest time is nigh. The Afghan National Police were already in the village centres
holding ‗shuras‘ with the elders to allay their fears and promote the security and stability that a new police check point
would bring to their area. This early engagement paid dividends as the environment and pattern of life around us indicat-
ed a stable and prosperous community who were happy to see us.

The children were following our every move asking for pens, paper and food. Our interactions with them were a mix of
hand gestures and laughter as we each tried to explain ourselves. We have been issued language cards for the local lan-
guage Pashtu, but the dialect and pronunciation proved almost impossible for them to understand us. That said, the chil-
dren did understand ‗wush‘ (camel), ‗halak‘ (child) and ‗laasana porta‘ (hands up) which had them rolling around in fits of
giggles. Some of them were also very proud to show us their school text books; another encouraging sign of progress in
this part of the country.

I was attached to Cpl ‗Geordie‘ Walker‘s section for the duration of the operation along with LCpl Lucas, Sprs Aaron
Beattie, ‗Gilly‘ Gilfillan and ‗Stevey (J-Lo?)‘ Collishaw. We were also joined by an interpreter and an Afghan National
Policeman. As part of this team, my job was to provide protection so they could each perform their tasks unhindered. I
felt humbled in their presence as we climbed over scores of compound walls, irrigation ditches and across open fields of
poppy, marijuana, wheat and grasses. At one point Cpl ‗Geordie‘ Walker decided to cut across a freshly ploughed field
with inevitable consequences. Luckily we had ladders to assist the first two men who were firmly stuck in the sticky
brown mud and I had a camera to capture the moment for you!
The operation took two days from dawn until dusk with the final stretch being completed early on day three. One large
roadside bomb and another suspected device had been destroyed. Not only had we improved our own forces freedom
of movement but we had also opened the route for the locals and provided a safer place for their children to play. The
mantle was then passed to 39 Armoured Engineer Squadron who immediately began to construct a police checkpoint on
the route to increase security and bring stability to this area of central Helmand Province. I was extremely proud of 1
Troop‘s effort and happy to be able to experience first hand, the difficulties of operating in such demanding circumstanc-
es. The old adage ‘Follow the Sapper’ has never been more fitting. Major Sam Stuthridge Officer Commanding
 Page 13 Task Force

Spr Collishaw sporting the searches paint brush

LCpl Lucas gives a helping hand to Geordie Walker and Ginge Cam-
eron after they get stuck

Interacting with the local kids

“which had
them rolling
around in fits
of giggles.”

Spr Gilfillan after a long day at work.

 Page 14 Task Force Helmand Engineer Group

31 Armoured Engineer Squadron (continued..)

Life for 1 Troop in Camp Bastion 3

Life in Camp Bastion 3 -

well where do I start? I
know where - vehicle
21 day checks. These
checks are meant to be
carried out every 21
days, but the lads have
dubbed them ‗21 days
of checks‘, as we do
them every single day. It
is has become a stand-
ing joke amongst the
guys that whenever
anybody asks where
somebody is, their reply
will be ―he‘s doing 21
days of checks on the
wagons‖.

Other than constant

Looky likey—Maj Stuthridge v Spr Addy vehicle checks, life on
Camp Bastion 3 is quite
good, albeit with a lot
of time spent waiting for an operation to come in to take us out of camp. The food is good and we use our spare time for
the lads to go on ‗Op Massive‘ - meaning all the skinny (and some fat) guys walk around with their ‗Maximuscle‘ shakes try-
ing to convince themselves they‘re getting stronger.

I love walking into people‘s bed spaces and seeing all the furniture made from old pallets and scrap wood held together with
second hand rusty nails or cardboard taped together with ‗harry black‘ tape; no wonder people call the British Army ‗the
Borrowers‘.

At the moment we have just finished an operation and some of the guys are now keeping busy learning how to be a gunner
on our remote weapon systems, being taught by the one and only Sgt Mark Josee - our very own SME (subject matter ex-
pert). In the meantime, SSgt Lee Wild is running around doing all his checks in the store with Spr Aaron Beattie, who is
never far behind Staff at any given time. LCpl Dan Holden is often seen running round doing everybody‘s heads in about
comms kit; head-sets this, PRR‘s that, radio batteries the other. You name it, he will be moaning about it. His favourite
(and I have even seen him giving blokes press-ups for this!) is ―You all know this it‘s not an aerial, it‘s an antenna‖ (bore off
signals geek!).

Every now and then you see the Searchers training. They often go to Bastion 1 to practice a bit of searching, or over to
the compound on the RSOI site for a bit of ‗grand nationaling‘ (climbing over walls with ladders). You can spot a searcher a
mile away; they always have a paintbrush attached to their body somewhere. I think they think it makes them look cool.
On ops, some of the non-searchers have been getting stuck in with a bit of searching, like Spr Steve Collishaw who has
been recruited into the paintbrush club.

The full screws are also often seen lazing about, trying to convince us they are busy. Cpl Geordie Walker sorts out the
troop Buffalo stuff, but is never too busy for a brew while carrying his ‗bluff folder‘ to look busy. Cpl Jas Brown is our fleet
manager and does all the paper work behind the scenes to ensure our vehicles stay fully fit and ready to roll out the gate
with the minimum fuss (sometimes there is lots of fuss!).

Without doubt though, the hardest part of living in Camp Bastion is knowing the difference between the OC and Spr Gaz
Addy. Confusing, very confusing! LCpl Adam Todd, 1 Troop, 31 Armoured Engineer Squadron.
 Page 15 Task Force Helmand Engineer Group

39 Armoured Engineer Squadron

Where was the Check Point meant to

be???

OC’s Foreword

Five weeks in and there has been no

let-up to the tasks within both Lash-
kar Gar (LKG) and Nahr-e-Sarraj
(South). It is difficult to summarise
how impressed I have been with the
steady determination and vigour
with which the entire Squadron
have displayed throughout, whatev-
er the tasks may be. We have of
course encountered difficulties along the way – particularly local national interference – but have once again cemented rela-
tionships and made a tangible difference within both Areas of Operation. Our tasks have predominately been construction-
based, focusing on Patrol Base and Check Point establishment for both the Afghan Army and Police, as well as improving living
conditions for our Battle Groups within their Forward Operating Bases. Support to kinetic operations has also continued and
there is a real sense of achievement as we pass our first month deployed on the ground.

One Month In…...

Despite not being located near to any major water fea-
tures we must always be ready to support the Engineer
Group‘s dive team as there are a number of potential
areas throughout Helmand to which salvage or rescue
teams may have to deploy. Capt ‗Nipper‘ Brazier and Cpl
‗Maverick‘ Bartlett donned their gear and spent a couple
of hours doing some ‗arduous training‘ in 54 Squadron‘s
swimming pool, finning about in circles and rescuing each
other from the bottom. Meanwhile, the rest of the
Headquarters were working hard – particularly SSgt Andy
Sprake and LCpl ‗Bish‘ Bishop who were reacting to the
ever-changing demands of our Battle Groups. The boys
in the Deployable Engineer Workshop (DEW) have also
been busy: Sprs Luke Brown, ‗Coops‘ Cooper, ‗Miah Cat‘
Miah and Jamie Dennis have all been designing and build-
ing urgently required stores for those deployed forward.
‗Coops‘‘ set of wooden steps are pretty good – particu-
Tough Diving Training larly considering he‘s a welder.

Last week, the Engineer Group RSM and Padre accompanied the OC and SSM into the LKG AO to visit 9 Troop. The prob-
lems that Lt Hugh ‗Permanent Send‘ Nightingale and his boys had been plagued with over the past week had all but disap-
peared and the building of the Check Point next to the school and mosque was finally underway. New problems had of
course arisen but Cpl ‗Robbo‘ Roberts and LCpl Nige Gray had established good relations with the locals, who now appear
happy with the situation – particularly as a number of them are being employed to fill the walls with earth. Of course, there
was no shortage of volunteers and men of all ages (the youngest being about 6) turned-up to see if they could get hired. We
were only able to pay four of them, but many others watched with avid interest as Sprs ‗Wardy‘ Ward, ‗Jonesy‘ Jones, Jamie
Page 16 Task Force Helmand Engineer Group

39 Armoured Engineer Squadron - continued.

Doran, ‗Wilko‘ Wil-

kinson and Andy
‗The Rev‘ Blower got Stuck during the Check Point Recce—CO was thrilled! See page 1.
to work. It‘s great to
get the locals so
involved; they have
proven hard workers
and have a deter-
mined and spirited
approach once they
get started – plus
they aren‘t weighted-
down by all the kit
that we wear.
Having appeased the
land owner with
compensation for his
loss of real estate,
construction began in
earnest and is now
complete. Once
again, interpreters
have been at a pre-
mium and communi-
cation was achieved
via language cards,
hand signals and lots of laughter.

Further to the South, The 7 Troop boys have been expanding their empire. The ‗cookhouse‘ has grown and now doubles
as a welfare area. Of course the food is still excellent, with Cpl Marlon ‗Ainsley Harriot‘ Johnson now employing two
extra ‗staff‘ – including Spr ‗Sammy G‘ Gurung who whipped-up an outstanding Ghurkha curry for us. Thanks to the num-
ber of welfare packages received, there is a much greater selection of entertainment to enjoy and poker is being enjoyed
well into the early hours by LCpls Sammy ‗Card Shark‘ Stones, ‗Tav‘ Tavender and ‗Brightstar‘ Brightey, as well as Sprs
‗Coxy‘ Cox and Will Armstrong. For those not interested in cards, Spr ‗Doz‘ Cross has created a ‗sunflower growing
game‘, complete with miniature ‗garden‘, in an effort to nurture the tallest plant. SSgt ‗G‘ Gallagher, Cpl ‗Scouse‘ Owens
and their team took the visitors to conduct a reconnaissance of a new Check Point site specifically for the ANP. The
party also took along the CO.
This, rather unfortunately,
seemed to ‗jinx‘ the entire jour-
ney; upon arriving at the Check
Point, the lead vehicle became
stuck and the boys spent hours
attempting to recover it whilst
the rest of the party met with
the ANP commander. With no
luck getting the stricken vehicle
out, assistance was called for
before leaving the SSM and a
few of the boys behind along
with a Troop from the Royal
Tank Regiment. On the way
back to Lashkar Gar, the OC‘s
vehicle then got stuck. After 30
minutes, it was rescued by the
CO‘s vehicle (much to the
amusement of the local chil-
dren) and the team made it back
just before dark. Meanwhile, a
recovery team had been sent
8 Troop ‘beetle racing’ out and, low and behold, they
too got stuck. What began as a
small reconnaissance task became a major operation.
Page 17 Task Force Helmand Engineer Group

One Month In (continued)

It was 8 Troop‘s turn to experience local interference on task this time. Before starting work on a new Check Point up in
Nahr-e-Sarraj (South), Lt Jonny Linares took part in a shura with the Company Commander to gain local consent. Four
men proceeded to present
themselves as the ‗Malik‘, or
9 Tp negotiate with locals. ‗village elder‘, and provision-
ally agreed to the build.
Unfortunately, the real Ma-
lik was out at the time and
when work was due to
commence he arrived on
site and explained that he
was not best pleased. Fol-
lowing another shura, con-
struction was finally ready
to begin a couple of days
later in a slightly different
location. Overnight, how-
ever, the local ‗Myrab‘, or
‗gate keeper‘, decided to
open up the sluice gates and
divert half of the River Hel-
mand into the identified
compound – so when SSgt
‗Tash‘ Jones turned-up, the
site was completely flooded.
Cpl ‗H‘ Hagelburg‘s Section
persevered though and
found an alternative location; it is very austere site with only the bare essentials, but Sprs ‗Cheese‘ Romans, ‗Dark Cloud‘
McLean, ‗Tree Feller‘ Stewart, ‗Mandy Dingle‘ Sharp and Memiki Ledua temporarily made it home. An evening‘s entertain-
ment, as an alternative to the rather boring ‗sunflower game‘, was ‗beetle racing‘.

Whilst the OC and SSM were visit-

8 Tp lads take a break.
ing, they learnt over the radio that
the CO was also coming out to
visit. For fear of him jinxing yet
another trip, the duo planned their
escape and managed to miss him by
a couple of hours – which is just as
well because this time he brought
along a massive thunderstorm which
grounded the majority of aircraft in
Helmand and minimised road moves
due to the resultant dust storm.

The OC attended a conference with

Capt Chris ‗Smartarse‘ Smart and
CO 2 PARA at their headquarters
and witnessed, for the first time, a
joint ISAF and ANA Conference.
The ANA Colonel in charge of the
‗Kandack‘, a Regimental-sized group,
was present along with his 2IC and
it was heartening to see them con-
duct a full summary and back-brief
via radio with their ‗Tolays‘, or
Company Groups, on the ground –
both in Pasto and Dari through two
Page 18 Task Force Helmand Engineer Group

7 Troop’s ‘Sun flower’ game. This might take some time.

39 Armoured Engineer
Squadron - continued.

different interpreters. We had

been expecting a couple of minutes
from each, with the odd ―nothing to
report‖, but our slight cynicism was
met with detailed and very encour-
aging reports – yet another sign of
the great progress which has been
made over the past few months.
The Afghan National Security Forc-
es clearly understand the ground,
the tactics and – most importantly –
the population; it is clear that they,
like us, are determined to rid Hel-
mand of the insurgents and are
slowly but surely taking the lead in
the fight.

Back at Bastion, everyone has con-

tinued to support the Squadron
extremely well and, to let off steam
in the evenings, there is now a high-
ly competitive darts tournament. It
is already clear who has spent far

The Padre offers some assistance from on high

too much time in the pub: WO2

Mark ‗Voice of Doom‘ Brookfield and
SSgt Aaron ‗One Dart‘ Curtis cur-
rently lead the field, hotly pursued by
LCpls Ronnie ‗The King‘ Royle, Sam
‗The Viking‘ Westlake, Markel
‗Bomber‘ Harris, Cpl Mal ‗Luftwaffe‘
Lofthouse, and Spr Alex ‗The Wan-
derer‘ Walker. Trailing behind are
SSgt Andy ‗Accounts‘ Sprake and Spr
Simon ‗Emergency‘ Ward, with Capts
Paul ‗Jackpot‘ Brazier, Matt ‗The Bull‘
Simister and Rich ‗The Power‘ Garth-
waite absolutely nowhere near.

Ours thanks must go to the Squad-

ron families back home who have
sent mail and best wishes; every sin-
gle package received is very much
appreciated. We look forward to
receiving as many as you‘re willing to
send!
Page 19 Task Force Helmand Engineer Group

Support to Kinetic Operations

On 22 Apr 11 SSgt Gurung Meen (the Military Plant Foreman) and I had the pleasure being attached to X Company, 2 PARA
to provide them engineer reconnaissance and close support. Our main effort was to route and potential permanent Check
Point in the vicinity of Washiran Village an area which had previously been un-contested and considered by the insurgency a
bit of a safe haven. ―I reckon we will be on the ground 10 minutes before we get smashed‖, ―Pack light because we will be
going in fighting‖ and ―How many barmines have you got because we will have to EMOE our way in‖ are just some of the
comments I heard from the personnel of the recently re-formed X Company during the battle prep for the operation. So
imagine my relief when we landed
at ‗death o‘clock‘ that not even
9 Tp negotiate with locals. the sparrows were farting. The
occupation of our new home
went without hindrance and dis-
appointingly without me having to
bring into play the 2 Barmines I
had nearly given myself a hernia
carrying. Our new abode for the
foreseeable future was an occu-
pied compound. After compen-
sating the current occupants and
kindly asking them to leave for
their own safety, the lads of 2
PARA deployed numerous weap-
on platforms and ‗Check Point
LEWE‘ was online. It wasn‘t long
before the insurgency thought
they would let us know they
were nearby with the first of
many volleys of inaccurate fire
flying over our new residence.

The next few days at Check Point

LEWE were eventful for all with
their main effort being to Find, Feel, Understand and Influence the local population whilst disrupting the insurgents. To that
end we as engineers spent our days helping to upgrade the force protection and amenities within the Check Point; I became
known as ‗Hacksaw‘ Jim Dugan in the days that followed, felling a few trees to clear our arcs. After numerous clearance
patrols by X Company, air despatch resupplies and shuras, the decision was made to conduct the route recce. This was
done in 2 phases: Phase 1
involved a recce through
CO leads dismounted route recce
farmers‘ fields to ascertain
the suitability for a new
road to resupply the
Check Point; Phase 2 in-
volved some SSgt Meen
deploying with 2 PARA‘s
Sgt Daz Chambers and his
multiple during the hours
of darkness. The team
managed to successfully
sneak in and recce the
remainder of the route
without any intervention
from the insurgents.

Thanks to the hard work

and support from X Com-
pany, we achieved our aim
and completed the re-
quired tasks – just in time
to return to Camp Bastion
for tea and medals.
Page 20 Task Force Helmand Engineer Group

39 Armoured Engineer Squadron - continued.

7 Troop Poker Night

It’s a draw!
Page 21 Task Force Helmand Engineer Group

59 Commando Squadron RE

OC’s Foreword
What can I say; work continues! It‘s now been 3 weeks since the Squadron has tak-
en over in theatre and we are coming to the end of the tasks set up by our prede-
cessors. Finally we are now masters of our own destiny! In terms of plaudits ob-
tained from external agencies 1 and 3 Tp are currently leading the way with Condor
close behind. In Condor‘s case this is mainly due to their original task rightly being
contracted out and the time lag in reconnoitring, obtaining authorisation and re-
sourcing the next. Most of the work at present involves supporting 3 Para and now
45 Commando on their operations, or completing infrastructure upgrades to their
numerous bases and helicopter landing sites. This is likely to continue for much of
the tour with the infrastructure in theatre either having suffered badly over the win-
ter months or simply through everyday wear-and-tear.

Morale continues to be high throughout the Squadron, as the SSM and I evidenced first hand from a thoroughly enjoyable
visit to 1 Tp. Only able to spend a day with the Tp we both witnessed their high professional standards, impressive work
rate and desire to ‗make a difference‘. The fact that the Officer Commanding C Coy 3 Para, was thoroughly impressed with
their attitude and standards speaks volumes. Clearly there is a significant difference between Airborne and Commando
engineers after all!

Finally, of note is that orders have been given for ‗Op Massive‘ to be conducted throughout the Squadron as the SSM and I
have decided that as a collective we are physically smaller than 59 Commando Squadron‘s of the past. We are both clearly
leading from the front, although most people may never realise this, and even the Squadron 2IC has engaged fully under the
watchful guidance of our resident PT expert, the Quartermaster. However, the 2IC‘s technique is not the normal one; he is
the only person to go on a diet not knowing either his start or his target weight! I‘m sure it won‘t be long before doughnuts
and chocolate éclairs reappear on his menu! ‗Squadron!‘ Maj Rich Williams—OC 59 Cdo Sqn RE.

Another week in SHQ paradise

We are now into the 5th week of the tour
and the time is still flying for most of us. Who is this fine young man
Myself and the OC are in the fortunate posi- celebrating in true patriotic
tion of being able to get out and visit the style?
Troops regularly which helps us break up
the monotony of Ops Room life in Camp
Bastion but more importantly it enables us
to get little luxuries out to the lads and fill
our bergans with Gatorade (out of date),
English cigarettes, as opposed to Afgan ciga-
rettes at $5 for 200 (avoid CDT when you
get back lads if you‘re on them), and as
much mail as the helicopters will let us car-
ry.

Unfortunately for some, 2IC Mike Burton

and QM Mick Lovatt to name a couple
(couple being the appropriate word), the
closest they will get to a helicopter for the
next 6 months is being kept awake at night
as they fly over their air conditioned tents.
The strain is beginning to tell on the 2IC
now, he‘s even made a ‗wet‘ for the Ops
room recently; although a route card was
required for him to find the kettle. Next
Page 22 Task Force Helmand Engineer Group

59 Commando Squadron RE
time Sir, wait for that white thing to get hot before putting the water into the cups!

The gym continues to be well used with noticeable cliques forming into training partners, Jordan and Peter Andre (QM &
2IC) are still arguing through an hour of thrashing a night, Sgt Matty ‗Mr Motivator‘ Needham is getting Cpl ‗I will pass the
Commando Cse‘ Harrison fit (destroying him more like), while myself and the boss have well and truly embraced Op MAS-
SIVE, although for me its more like Op wait around for 15 minutes while the OC gets ready? To be fair we spend more
time whingeing about aches and pains than lifting weights but we do have a combined age of 237.

Competition is rife in the Ops Room, the talk of the SHQ at the moment is who has the most flies on their fly traps be-
tween Spr ‗Stag on‘ Leak and Matty Needham, what I know and they both don‘t is that in the evenings H Harrison swats flies
and puts them on Matty‘s trap and Leaky is doing the same for his trap when no one‘s looking; is that cheating or just in-
tense rivalry? You two should get out more, sorry you can‘t can you; unlucky lads.

Until next time thanks to everyone back home for all your support, please keep the parcels and mail coming as they really
do make a huge difference to the morale of everyone.

WO2 (SSM) Mick Jarwood

The Story So Far—The Fighting First

1 Tp—The Team Right, I was asked to write a news-

letter for all you people at home,
but I warned Dinger (1 Troop
SSgt) that it would be uncut and I
would tell it how it is, to which he
replied ‗that‘s exactly what I‘m
after‘. So here it is Dinger, wallop!

P.S I‘ve already had my yearly

report so you can‘t change it now!

Where did it all start?…..In true

Squadron fashion they had a film
crew waiting for us when we left
Chivenor, which was good be-
cause I thought it a perfect oppor-
tunity to show the tattoo on my
arse to the world via the BBC
news. However the Sergeant Ma-
jor had already read my mind and
told me not to start mooning as it
wasn't the BBC news, it was a documentary for a choir series but it didn‘t stop us all doing our best to get on camera.

Next stop Brize Norton! It pains me to say that for once in my life the RAF got us to Bastion without any dramas or delay.
I know what your all thinking back home…I bet your thinking that they always get us home on time and that we tell you
they got us home late so we can go boozing for two days without you knowing and just blame the R.A.F.

To the lads‘ disappointment we arrived at Camp Bastion to RAIN, so for all the lads that were oiling up on the plane ready
for op tanning they were all properly disappointed. For those who forgot their gortex, no names mentioned DEV (3 section
2ic), got soaked, however he did came back with a perfect reply to the new lads, that ‗he didn‘t need gortex because his skin
was water proof‘.

The training package we received was excellent and got us ready for the up coming months that lay ahead. For some of the
new lads this was the reality check that they needed and helped them understand why we had been training so hard back
home.
Page 23 Task Force Helmand Engineer Group

59 Commando Squadron RE

The Story So Far– a bit more …..

With all the last minute training done it was time to get chucked in the deep end and get sent out to one of the FOB‘s to
start grafting, we weren‘t disappointed. Within 25 minutes of us being there, 3 explosive teams were straight out on an OP
with the Para Reg. ‗Til‘ Tilak (1 section commander) didn‘t even have time to sharpen his Kukri knife on the off chance that
he could nick a goat and make curry for the boys, (good old Ghurkha always thinking of the troops bellies)

You would have thought we would have been given a bit of time to settle in, but not a chance. Our BGE (Battle Group
Engineer), Capt Siemieniuch, who does the planning, doesn‘t think along the same lines, he got us straight out on task. How
can I explain our first task….. imagine having your brand new house built and then someone saying knock it down, move it
50m to the left, now build it again because the view is better. Well that‘s what we did, and just to make it interesting all the
tools and machinery that we
needed, we couldn't have!!
Capt Siemieniuch did us over Cpl Thompson & helpful advice
with replacements for the
tools saying ‗one thing you
can have lads is 2000 sandbags
that need filling and lift-
ing‘ (Thank you Squadron).
That pretty much sums up
our 1st task, but in true 1
Troop spirit we cracked on,
smashed it (sometimes doing
22 hour days) so we could get
it finished on time and safely.

After a week of proper graft,

all the lads were tired and
sunburnt, accept Sapper (Long
Nose) Appleton who actually
looks black now we finished
the task. From there we went
to the Estonian FOB to have a
shower and shave and some
proper food, not to say that
what the boys and I had rus-
tled up out of the ration packs
wasn‘t nice, but it was a much
needed rest. It was at the Estonian camp that we found the troops real strength, it wasn‘t our vast wealth of general
knowledge (although I‘ve realised that Sapper Madge is the font of all knowledge, he‘s like Google if you ask him a question
he knows the answer, hence why we‘ve nicked named him Jeeves), it was Volley Ball. When I say we could actually stick a
team into the Olympics and win, its not an understatement. We looked dreamy at times smashing, spiking all over the gaff,
but less of that, you lot at home will start to think we‘re on holiday. Holiday it isn‘t I promise you!

We then lost our troop Sgt, Al (Roland Rat) Barr as he had to go and work in Kabul, where he‘s staying in a hotel with
swimming pool, massage parlour and sauna. So when he gets home and starts saying how hard he‘s had it, kick him in the
nuts because he‘s lying! The grafting is being done by the boys and since our dad, SSgt ‗Dinger Bell‘, has tipped up, his whip
just keeps cracking and jobs keep getting done.

Well that‘s pretty much it so far, just a few more things to make you aware of; Capt Crowther (our boss) looks like he‘s
been in a POW (Prisoner of War) camp for 6 months. He is all skin and bones, bless him it must be the stress. Mind you
the hair cut the medic gave him didn‘t help. Good job dad ‗Dinger‘ was there to rescue him. But we‘ve got him in the gym,
and on the protein because we‘re good like that.

Well everyone in the troop sends their love and kisses back home to family and friends, missing you all. We will all be back
safe and sound soon enough before you know it, driving you mad. But that doesn‘t mean you can spend all our savings and
op bonuses LADIES ha ha. LOVE ONE TROOP
LCpl Tony (Puniest Bod in the FOB) Wilsher and LCpl Dev (Peehead) Devenish, 1 Troop.
 Edition 3 Page 24

Condor Troop— The Ups and the Downs.

Moving gate posts in body This weekend has been a better end to what has
armour & helmets in 30 been a fast, furious and in some cases very stressful
degrees, nice! first month on OP HERRICK 14.

Cpl Cofax is not the only bloke in Condor Troop

to be losing his hair. Troopy Robinson, Cpl Walton
and Spr Ellaway have also been loosing their hair
and a bit of weight, not because of the heat but due
to lack of Equipment Care! At least they have man-
aged to get the ECM back, which is more than can
be said for the week of sleepless nights they have
had.

LCpl Dellay our REME Legend, finally managed to

escape the cruel grips of his store and leave camp
for a day trip out to Patrol Base SILAB. This is
where most of the Troop has been located for
much of the past month.

Even though it‘s only been a month of us being

away, there have already been many classic quotes
of the Tour so far. We won‘t name names but let‘s
see if you can guess the culprits for yourselves
anyway.

‗‘Any chance we can dem up a FOB??? How much

explosives would that take to achieve???‘‘

‗‘This Tour lads we are on the verge of something

very special‘‘. ‗‘Boss my Pistol is not zeroed to me!‘‘

‗‘I personally wouldn‘t want to Command anyone

else than you bunch of men!‘‘

‗‘You are all very special men.‘‘ . ‗‘I

brought my Goretex in case there was
some plumbing to be done!‘‘ Cpl Ganesh & LCpl Deepak Rai

There will be plenty more classics to

come in the next few months.

It hasn‘t been all Hescotastic in fact for a

couple of us it has been any thing but.
Spr (E)mo-bray and I have been on a
couple of deliberate operations, one
including a Helicopter Assault! We man-
aged to get off more explosives in two
operations than the whole of 9 Parachute
Squadron RE managed to do in their
seven month tour.

Well I better end it there while I am still

ahead. All that is left to be said is the lads
are working hard and ‗‘living the dream‘‘
at the same time which is a hard balance
to achieve! Everyone one says hello to
back home and the main message back
seems to be that we are ok and are look-
ing forward to R&R.

Cpl Cofax, Condor Tp

 Edition 3 Page 25

Three Troop—
3 Tp— Check Point Chiron, the buildCheck
concludes Point CHIRON, the build concludes..

Well it‘s been nearly three weeks and the

Cpl Yak shows the results of his HESCO night-
bulk of the Troop has departed back to the
mare
main Patrol Base to prepare for the next task.
The hard-core remain to complete the snag-
ging tasks the others found too hard!! Of
particular note are the two remaining mem-
bers of 2 ‗ally‘ section which make up the SAS
(Scotty and Stealth – Spr Matthew Scott and
LCpl Tom Sowerby) who have been the main
scaffold monkeys, constructing the tall watch-
towers and earthing the metalwork. The build
has dragged on mainly due to the no-show of
the aggregate to complete the walls. The
Troop has been kept busy by making the
camp a little more comfortable for the infan-
try by constructing a pull up bar, table tennis
table and chess board with bottle top pieces
courtesy of Spr Michael, ‗The Professor‘
‗Harry‘ Ramsden and Spr Gaz Perrin.

Get back girls, Capt Vernon smashes

another 100 heaves
The plant has been working extremely hard these last few weeks and
both Spr Ash Jasper and Spr Karl ‗Creepy‘ Crawley have racked up
some long hours in the cab ably assisted by our Jack of all trades and
master of none, fitter, carpenter, panel beater, plumber Spr Colin
‗Happy Days‘ Mercer. However the sheer level of HESCO we have
filled has started to affect the mental stability of some of the Troop.
Cpl ‗Yakerdy Yak don‘t talk back‘ Angbuhang when sleeping the oth-
er night awoke in a nightmare imagining that his mosquito dome net
was actually some HESCO, and that he was about to be suffocated
to death so he promptly ripped his way out, waking the Troop with
his panic!

Everyone that has visited our new camp has been very impressed
and we are very proud of it, although we are looking forward to
returning to a larger Patrol Base to re-cock for new tasks and hope-
fully some explosive assault breaching!

Sprs Ash Jasper and Daz Lambert enjoy a quick game of chess.
Page 26 Task Force Helmand Engineer Group

A Life in the Day of ……...

SO3 Plans Capt Flash Von Schnitzel Gordon.

At around 0730 I wake up after everyone else

in the tent, primarily because I am not a
morning person and my David Hasselhoff
bedspread is just so comfortable. I then pro-
ceed to parade around the tent and ablution
area in uncomfortably small pants that for
some reason unbeknown to me get some
odds looks and comments. I will brush my
teeth, not forgetting to use my teeth whiten-
er before shaving.....my entire body. Before
getting dressed I will brush my hair 40 times,
no more no less. This is done with my prized
possession which is a limited edition horse
hair brush which I keep in an special collec-
tors box.

All of the Engr SO3s (Captains) will sit to-

gether for breakfast. I will always have sau-
sage and bread, its the nearest thing I can get
to my beloved Bratwurst. If I eat anything
more than my 300 calorie allowance I have to stand in front of a mirror and feel ashamed of myself, I don‘t ever want to go
back to being a size 8 ever again.

In true Germanic fashion I don‘t believe in a sense of

humour so will suppress any morale that breaks out in
the headquarters. I also conduct regular heated argu-
ments I mean discussions with Matt (SO3 J3) and Rach
(SO3 Infra J3) which I always win because I am hairless,
tanned, aerodynamic and efficient like my sports trim VW
Passat which is most definitely not an old mans car!!

Of an evening I will watch David Hasselhoff's influential

concert that instigated the fall of the Berlin wall, what a
hero. Watching him gets me revved up to thrash myself
in the gym whilst wearing extremely tight fitting lycra. In
the gym I work alone because a mirror is all the motiva-
tion I need whilst working out to european techno music.

After the gym I go for a shower, once again put on a pair

of pants designed for 9-11 year olds and then snuggle up
with my David Hasselhoff duvet. Guten Nacht.
SSgt Flood 54 Sqn tells LCpl Bradshaw to calm down as we
have not even left camp yet.
TFH HQ Insider
 Edition 3 Page 27

The Rear Party—The Choir

The Choir has been very busy. Last Tuesday we turned up for practice only to be told we had our first performance in 20
minutes! (I wondered why Gareth was
wearing that ridiculous outfit). We were
Some of ladies of RMB Chivenor and Gareth
driven to a hangar on camp and we were
Malone wondering which ‗lucky‘ bunch were going
to hear us sing – well it was only the whole
of rear party, no pressure there then?! I
later heard there were intensions of heck-
ling at our efforts but as we started to sing
the reaction was shocked silence. After
our full repertoire of 3 songs (Guns and
Roses - Sweet child of mine; Dionne War-
wick - Say a little prayer and Feel My Love
recently covered by Adele) there were
calls for more. Needless to say we didn‘t
have any more songs so we had to repeat
Say a Little Prayer. I‘ve also since heard
that one of our audience was actually
brought to tears – no wonder you left him
behind! Also heard that someone had a
nosebleed, don‘t know what that means?!

Thursday was the planned performance at

the Barnstaple Pannier Market. This time
the pupils of South Mead and Caen Primary
Schools joined us. The people of Barnstaple turned out in their masses along with friends and family from Chivenor. The
crowd seemed to like us and showed their support. On this occasion half the choir itself was brought to tears as the children
sang their own song.

Being part of the choir has certainly helped to keep us busy here at home. Unless anything else has passed me by, the only
other goings on over here are that Braunton Car park has been resurfaced and Haagen-Dazs is on special in Tescos. Oh
yeah, there was a ‗Choir‘ night out in the Sergeants Mess but you probably don‘t want to hear about that......lol.

‗Til next time, JES

What have we been missing in RMBC?

So, what have you missed since you left sunny Britain? Yes, believe it or not it has been sunny, all of us here are aiming to be
better tanned than you on your return, the competition is on! Little people are getting bigger and generally noisier. Some
adults may be shrinking. Meals have been cooked and eaten, grass has been mown and drinks may have been drunk. In the TV
department the 'Go Compare' man whom we all know and love is starting a singing career, he has released an album. Big
Brother after their 'last' season is coming back to our screens, oh joy. Preparations for the upcoming wedding has been all
over the TV, from what dress Kate will wear to how she'll wear her hair. In the news there has been a lot of earthquakes and
tsunami's across Japan and lots more problems caused from their nuclear plant failing. Yet again more spending cuts have been
made.

The ladies at Chivenor have been doing you proud in the newly made choir. They've already featured in the papers and soon
to be on TV with Gareth Malone Choirmaster. Performances so far have been to the Rear Party and also in the Panniers Mar-
ket, Barnstaple, with several hundred attending. Rehearsals will continue over the next few months and I'm sure a lot more
performances will take place; its giving the ladies something to focus on and the chance to make new friends while their love
ones are away.

Keep your post coming our way as it keeps us happy too. We're thinking of you all everyday and are very proud of the work
you are doing. Keep smiling and stay safe.

N Ramsden, Chivenor Wife

 SUPPORTING COMMANDO SAPPERS IN
AFGHANISTAN WRISTBANDS

WHERE IS YOUR MONEY GOING?

The income generated from the COMMANDO SAPPER wristbands will be split be-
tween 3 distinct areas. They are as follows:

Regimental Welfare. This will allow us to support needy causes within the Regi-
ment that cover a myriad of outlets; from injured soldiers, family activities and any ven-
ture which improves the welfare of our soldiers. 50% of all charitable income generat-
ed will go to regimental welfare.

Army Benevolent Fund (ABF):The Soldier’s Charity. ABF, The Soldier‘s Charity
is designed to support soldiers, former soldiers and their families in times of need.
Over the past 2 years ABF has seen a 30% rise in people seeking there help and expect
this to increase with the continuing operations in Afghanistan. 25% of all charitable in-
come generated will go to the ABF.

Children’s Hospice South West. The Children‘s Hospice South West is located in
Fremington, literally on the Regiment‘s doorstep. The Hospice provides care for the
children with an illness, which means they will not meet adulthood. The Hospice pro-
vides expert care, not only for the children but also for their parents and siblings, allow-
ing them to cope with these extremely difficult circumstances. 25% of all charitable in-
come generated will go to the Children‘s Hospice South West.

To order Supporting Commando Sapper wrist bands. Please contact WO2 Ray
Glass either by phone on 01271 85 7824 or by post with a SAE to WO2 Glass, ROpsP
RSM, RMB Chivenor, Barnstaple, Devon, EX31 4AZ, or just send a donation by cheque
or postal order payable to Central Bank 24 Commando Engineer Regiment.
 TASK FORCE Something from the Editor….
HELMAND
ENGINEER GROUP
Thanks for the articles submitted by those back in UK. It is al-
ways good to hear how life is going back home. Please keep
Editor:
sending the articles.
546151 Capt Brad Hardwick
54 Cdo HQ & Sp Sqn
TFH Engr Gp
BFPO 792 Charity wrist bands. We have had repeated request for Support
Commando Sappers in Afghanistan wrist bands. For info please
E-maill bch5951@gmail.com see page 27. All support is greatly appreciated, so please dig
deep.

Facebook Page. We now have an open Facebook presence at

http://www.facebook.com/TFHEngrGp
See more photos and
comments on TFH
Engr Gp at Ed.

http:// Notices
www.facebo
ok.com/
17th April 11. HERRICK 14 Families Day—Cpls Club, RMB Chivenor
TFHEngrGp 29th Aril 11. Royal Wedding Families Day—Cpls Club, RMB Chivenor

Notice: Missing Child

A small 12 year old boy who
answers to the name of Mat-
thew is missing. This mischie-
vous child was last scene in
the area of Lashkar Gar, Hel-
mand. If approached he will
tell you how important he is
and will boast of his intelli-
gence. Should you find him,
please do as every other
adult does and just humour
him. Then please ensure he
is returned to his mother,
Mrs Teeling. Contact details
available from the Adjutant
TFH Engr Gp.

TFH HQ Insider