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Posted
On the postive side, for a moment there I felt a bit like Peter Skellon. :lol:

 

Had you got in you'd have felt like Lewis Collins!

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Posted
Probably, but Ken Connor also suggested disbanding 22 (or at least making it elite light infantry again) and burying the real SF in the green army.

 

However, the role shaping up for them seems to be Recce troops. After the abortion of a certain deployment, 2 Paras Patrols Pl had a composite 21/23 Section who did okay, this has become an ongoing thing, with 21/23 chaps being mobilised to Para Bns on Iraq/Afghanistan tours (which is public domain if you look hard enough).

 

So 21/23 is likely morphing in a Para capbadged Specialist Recce type unit, under the Airborne Forces rather than Director Special Forces (the current one positively hates the TA SAS)

 

what is the story about the RA Formation Recce Btys?

Has 1 Recce Bde gone?

 

WRW

Posted
what is the story about the RA Formation Recce Btys?

Has 1 Recce Bde gone?

 

WRW

 

Nope, 1 Armoured Recce Bde is still a Theatre Troops formation, with the HCR, LD, 1 RTR (NBC Recce), reinforced with QOY and elm RY

Posted

You mean 4/73 (Sphinx) Battery? They're still a Special OPs STA battery, and is aligned with the HAC. In peacetime the HAC reinforces 4/73, in wartime 4/73 forms a 4th STA Squadron for the HAC.

Posted
As opposed to just looking like him of course. :lol:

More like Ross Kemp.

 

 

David

Posted
You mean 4/73 (Sphinx) Battery? They're still a Special OPs STA battery, and is aligned with the HAC. In peacetime the HAC reinforces 4/73, in wartime 4/73 forms a 4th STA Squadron for the HAC.

 

These guys I understand but what about N RHA who have been resurrected as part of 3 RHA as a formation reconnaissance bty?

Posted (edited)

Ahh, minor differences in the OPVs, since each Bty is aligned with a combat regiment/bn, and has the appropriate OPVs for it's FOO Parties etc. In this case they're aligned to the 9/12 L, so use CVR(T) for FOO parties etc.

 

In this case it appears N Bty hasn't got any guns, and might not be getting any, simply having a downsized tac gp of a field Bty (BC and 2x FOOs with their associated teams and an FPC)

Edited by 67th Tigers
Posted
Ahh, minor differences in the OPVs, since each Bty is aligned with a combat regiment/bn, and has the appropriate OPVs for it's FOO Parties etc. In this case they're aligned to the 9/12 L, so use CVR(T) for FOO parties etc.

 

In this case it appears N Bty hasn't got any guns, and might not be getting any, simply having a downsized tac gp of a field Bty (BC and 2x FOOs with their associated teams and an FPC)

 

greatly appreciated

 

WRW

Posted

not so long ago there were some Ambulance trains - have they gone?

WRW

Posted
Chris, I dont know if you have ever looked on the Professionals website (God, how sad am I..) but there are some interesting remarks regarding that sniper weapon Collins is holding. Its clearly a mockup, but they had some difficulty working out what it was based upon.

 

At a guess from your low-res photo, an Anschutz 0.22 target rifle with an extension tube bolted to the front...

Posted
Chris, I dont know if you have ever looked on the Professionals website (God, how sad am I..) but there are some interesting remarks regarding that sniper weapon Collins is holding. Its clearly a mockup, but they had some difficulty working out what it was based upon.

 

I went to the site I believe you refer to but the only 'sniper' weapons discussed was a poor mock-up of an AM-180 (the one with the drum mag on top in the pic I linked to). Any chance of a link to the correct page? As FoF points out - it's some kind of target rifle.

Posted
Ahh, minor differences in the OPVs, since each Bty is aligned with a combat regiment/bn, and has the appropriate OPVs for it's FOO Parties etc. In this case they're aligned to the 9/12 L, so use CVR(T) for FOO parties etc.

 

In this case it appears N Bty hasn't got any guns, and might not be getting any, simply having a downsized tac gp of a field Bty (BC and 2x FOOs with their associated teams and an FPC)

 

 

At bit bigger than that, there are such btys in several regts (and 7 RHA have long had their Avn Tac Bty - unlettered I think) but no guns although they seem to be collecting a bdes PFACs, of wahtever capbadge.

Posted
I didn't realise they had dial sights for back-up - just direct fire sights. It makes a lot of sense though.

 

As an aside, there have been a few posts on arrse to the effect that AS90 units no longer train traditional survey (one regiment had had a quote from the manufacturer to have its theodolites* recalibrated and had decided not to go ahead - this was several years ago now).

 

*or survey instruments of some kind - I think the manufacturer was Leica.

 

Fd regts have basically never used theodolites in the history of the RA. The exception (sort of) was when the first gyroscopic orienter appeared in the '60s, this had a theodolite head. Proper theos were only used by RA (and RE) Surveyors. Regts only ever used directors (or aiming circles for those that can't cope with long words) and UK never used a Leica one! These primary purpose of these was to orient the guns' dial sights. More exotic units have used theos and other survey exotica. Lance actually used a theo as its dial sight (it was mounted onto the missile body (obviously removed before launch). Since, according to arrse, directors are no longer taught a deduction is that dial sights are no longer used and anyone who is going to shoot has APS (or equivalent in AS90 and MLRS).

Posted
Thanks Nigel. What is an MVMD? Also could the lack of additional purchases be down to intended purchase of LIMAWS(G) ?

 

Muzzle Velocity Measuring Device. Possibly, perhaps the third lt regt gets it. L118 is planned to remain in service until 2023, so stands a good chance of clocking up 50 yrs service.

Posted

The bracket for the dial sights has gone, the emergency procedure involves firing off the quadrant and a compass.

 

However, 14 still teaches (or taught a couple of years back) dial sights first.

Posted
Regts only ever used directors (or aiming circles for those that can't cope with long words) and UK never used a Leica one!

 

Hi Nigel. I'm not sure what a 'director' is, but this was one of the posts I was referring to over on arrse:

 

We still have most of 'our' Total Stations in the stores (45 -50 TC/T 1100 from Div Svy 5 Regt RA) it only costs £300 to have them calibrated at Leica therefore we dont need to buy any new kit. ASP are using these over the Director at the moment, to save time and gain extra accuracy.

 

Within the STA disciplines we will still need an optical instrument, therefore it would give us a very limited 'back up' if trained, nowhere near as the 50 odd Surveyors from the axed Div Svy Tp.

 

We still have ppDGPS (LAGERS) sitting on the shelves which would enable a large number of SCP to be put out before we are jammed.

 

I don't think we take NAVWAR as seriously as we should, and also the STA community has a greater need for Svy than the CS world, therefore needs addressing.

 

It's probably the arrse thread you're referring to in your own post.

http://www.arrse.co.uk/cpgn2/Forums/viewto...19/start=0.html

Posted

No. A 'total station' combines a sighting head of some type with a range finder of some type and performs at least polar coordinate calculations. Could be expensive and high precision or cheaper and less precision. The former would be used as a survey instrument, the latter for target acquisition by observers, however, I don't think UK has used Leica's version of the latter. Entirely understandable that 5 Regt have the proper survey version. You could use them as a director (as you can any theo) but gun dial sights are incapable of the same degree of precision (ie 1 mil not 0.1 of a mil).

 

If you want more on what directors look like and how they are used see my Laying and Orienting the Guns page http://members.tripod.com/~nigelef/fc_laying.htm

Posted
The other sniper weapon is a bit of a puzzle to me, as I dont recall it being in the series. Nice work FOF on putting a name to it though. :)

 

If FoF had had access to better photos he I doubt he'd have tentatively ID'd it as an Anschutz. It appears to be a fullbore target rifle of some kind:

 

http://www.greenspot.info/TheProfessionals...lerLongArm.html

  • 2 months later...
Posted

Royal Artillery

 

MLRS Rgt - RHQ and Holding Bty, Regular Bty, Training Bty, 2/3 TA Btys

Rapier Rgt - as above

HVM Rgt - as above with 2 Regular Btys

 

105 MM Rgts (*4) RHQ and H, 3 Regular Btys, TA bty

 

155 MM Rgts (*6) as above but 2 Reg and 2 TA

Posted
Of sourse what will be interesting is the new HE shell if and when it reaches Afg.

Any details on how it differs from the old one?

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