NEWSLETTER The weeks are rocketing by and we have now arrived at the R and R phase of the tour. So most of the readers of this newsletter which certain members of 49 Battery Intelligence Section feel is rather too clean. will be catching up on the regiment's doings at first hand. The Editorial staff hope you have a pleasant few days and return with some interesting stories which we might publish. We are always short of good material. This vweek I feel it is in order to remind you all of the various tasks performed by the Regiment which help to keep this part of Northern Ireland quiet., 1 will not mention static points further as you must have had your fill of them last week. Patrolling, which is small groups of people moving round the area to report and prevent incidents, is done on foot and by vehicle. Particularly by 94 Battery who can not afford to stand still in the Bogside. Foot patrolling is done in groups of four moving from one relatively secure position to the next., Mobile patrolling is done in pairs of vehicles motoring slowly and never indicating their intentions before they actually taka new course,, Patrols are used to gain information of what is happening in the area. Cordon and search operations are specific tasks used with careful planning to achieve a specific aim. One group of soldiers form a ring round the to be searched, This ensures that people coming out of the area are not wanted for questioning. Another specially trained group go in and search the area, This type of operation is used when a planned arrest is to be made. This week we have produced a TV film with thirty three messages for Fallingbostel That is more than can be put across on Ulster Calling and we hope it will be a success The Padre will no doubt return with a list of people we should interview next time in an attempt to satisfy everyone. With regard to messages the telephone number ."or the Asters Show has been readily available since we arrived. People have tried to get on the show not always with success and it is hoped that this will continue. CONGRATULATIONS A TROOP RIDE ON Lbdr Taffy Evans showed real professionalism when having got wind of a hi-jacked car, his prompt and accurate reporting resulted in the arrest of three armed men in another part of the Regimental area. Well done Taffy. Our search team lead by Lbdr Steve Shaw has been kept pretty busy, even though the "finds" we have had, have only been of interest to our Intelligence Section. No actual arms have yet been located. At the moment it is not that type 'of area. But we must keep at it to show the locals that the Battery dominates and runs the area and nobody else. • Gnr Hatenboer had his photograph taken as part of the public relations exercise the Army runs for local papers, in this particular case for the Chester Observer. With him were the two Dalzll twins, who must be the most photographed pair of soldiers in the Army. So much so that it is hard to get them to speak to us lesser mortals? and they refuse to be photographed with anyone else unless their palms are crossed with silver. But Gnr Jacko Jackson reckons he will be far more photogenic than they, once he gets his new teeth from the dentist. Anyone else with a narcissus complex? We are all looking forward to Christmas and are planning a small celebration party for Christmas to compensate in some small way for being parted from our loved ones. OVER HEARD Two soldiers talking as Lt Gen Sir David House walked passed. MURPHYS GANG (C TROOP NO 1 SECTION) Life in Number One Section (Murphy,s Gang) has been very quite of late. The only thing we have to shout about is the killing of a rat at our favourite checkpoint. It is a laugh a minute with Murphy’s Gang, with non stop jokes from Gnr Steve (Waffler) Stinson and Gnr Terry (Swamp Rat) Hindmarsh. We had a narrow escape from injury on our vehicle checkpoint when a Bedford from 3LI knocked over our sentry box and the language from Gnr Chris (Gabriel) Harding and Gnr Mel (Monkey) Owens was not printable. I must mention here about our spanner boy Lcpl George (Porno) Kershaw (REME), who keeps our bedsprings fully maintained for the 18 hours sleep we do not have every day. On Sunday morning last the Section was involved in a cordon while our search team scoured the bushes. This was a joint effort with B Coy of 5 UDR. These part time soldiers do not like standing around street corners for very long. The cry from them is, "how long will the search team be" or "when will they be finished" or 'if the search team don't hurry up we are going home". But let's be fair to them, they do a very good job here in Northern Ireland. We are always very pleased to see the UDR when they come to relieve us on a checkpoint. E TP FOLLIES Since the last troop report life has-certainly been varied if not exciting. We have now instituted "Flexibility" as our main prop to troop policy. This is due mainly to the experience we had last Friday. Having just completed a patrol we were tasked to carry out a snap search of the area lust behind the Battery location in connection with the shooting of the UDR man in 18 Bty's area. Gnrs Noel Kennedy and Jacko Johnson were over heard during a conversation discussing whether they were looking for a dead body or the bullets that caused the death. QUOTE OF THE WEEK A STATEMENT OF PHILOSOPHY J TROOP NEWS We had a slight mishap last week on the Craigavon Bridge at the vehicle check point; the cars are stopped, checked and searched at random. Every: thing, was going along nicely until it got dark and one checker selected a car for searching. He instructed the driver to turn out all his lights and pull over into the next lane where the searcher was waiting. We have only one Congrats this month and this goes -to Cpl Dave McKay on his recent promotion. Well done Dave. Before I sign off I have been instructed by Cfn Mclnnis that after all the thought he. has put into writing a poem, I must use it in my newsletter. Fours hours to push, Bleeding Hell, Hawkin St, what a hole! Three months to do what a drag, LETTER TO THE EDITOR Obviously the elevation and run out of the barrel was too much for her so I had to do something - I started the engine - the roar of the Greyhound bus, the smell of the diesel fumes and throbbing vibrations just sent her wild, so what next? The 'layers' seat I thought so grabbing the dial sight I thrust her into the seat and prepared for action .......... but that familiar cry of "BAD RAM" came ringing in my ears and I lost all enthusiasm. INTSUM Still, we're doing our best in the city So, be gone surplus breezeblock and dannert! Having been rudely awaken from our hibernation by the little man “PRO” we find that our turn has come to write another article for his Pathetic Magazine. Very little has happened in Echelon during the past few weeks except of course for our "bomb". We were all told to vacate our beds pretty damn quick as a bomb had been put into the cookhouse. It was very hard for the 3rd Light Infantry to get us our little nooks and crannies, but eventually they succeeded. It was all very exciting and the Explosives Expert was sent for to sort the matter out. Gnr (swamp rat) Armstrong requested that he be allowed to go into the kitchen. Fearing for the man's life, Molar refused him permission. Of course "Swamp Rat" was very agitated, but Molar was adamant that he should not go in as "heroics" were not a part of One and half hours later, after the Explosives Expert had fired 5 shots into the sinister looking object, we were all told that the so called bomb was in fact a lunch bag which now contained lead sandwiches and a riddled thermos flask. When all the fuss died down, swamp Rat requested permission to go into the cookhouse. Molar, at this time was red in the face and puffing like a grampus, "What the hell do you want to go into the cookhouse for? the matter has been felix, I know", says Swamp Rat, "I just want to collect the packed lunch that I left behind. ." We have other incidents of course, but being old hands at the game we don’t report them to Tac as they tend to get their knickers in a twist at the slightest sign of aggro. we at Fort George tend to play it cool. For instance did you know that our Chancellor David was attacked by the Apache on his return from the outstations, he had an arrow right through his windscreen. I am also told that we at Fort George are under fire constantly from the border. Luckily the range is so great that the sting is completely taken out of the shot and the rounds just fall over the barricade. In fact to ensure that we are completely safe at Fort George we sleep on board that might of the British Navy the RAME HEAD. We at echelon were very pleased to see Capt Bob Coward arrive safely on the 25th November for two reasons, one it means that we have completed a phase in our tour, and two, it means that we are getting rid of the other one. The boys from echo would like to close this edition of "Fort George Scene” by congratulating Captain Bob and Mrs Marion Coward on becoming Grandparents. "CG AND THE HOLE DIGGERS" The hole outside the Battery block, if you remember, was started last week with the grand opening evening in which four down and out “Micks” pondered over the job. Our leader, Major David Whitworth (henceforth known as 'Spud') spent many hours explaining the layout of the sewage plant to the team. Eventually we got started, the press hammer being operated from morning to night cutting its way through the Irish bog, tearing up the tarmac to find the source of our sewer. After 7 hours digging and shovelling 'Spud” ordered us to stop, STOP? What for? Sorry lads we've been digging in the wrong direction. I was standing the wrong side of the hole ! The instructions said start digging from the left as you come through the front gate!.' The BSM had just cleaned his wheelbarrow, now we have got to fill in the hole. Watch it, here he comes smiling radiantly. BSM 'Spud' said, sorry. I was reading the instructions wrong. Fill it in and start digging here! (Language unprintable - Ed) OK lads, fill it in, and we shall start here. So you see folks, we about turned and started to dig where we finished filling in. The first pictures of the 'Hole' should be out of the dark room very soon, until then bye and we shall leave you with a little joke about our friends. I Because her husband Patrick was out of work, a bograttess (woman who lives in the Bogside) went to a building site to get a job. At first, the personnel officer (a spud like Major David W.) was reluctant to set her on but when she told him how she could dig a hole nine foot square by nine foot deep in under an hour, he said she could start, so long as she dressed as a man. I |