Spare a thought today

[ferret15 0]

chears mate i spoke to my hubbie today (first time in five weeks) him and all his men are knackard they have spent the last five weeks in the dessert on ration packs and rationed water (no showering) no bed etc under constant mortar attack he will be there a while yet but hes alive and moaning so alls well i told him of all the messages of suport and he was deeply touched yours and any other pacakges will be very warmly welcomed

[T.F.Student 0]

It most definately was RatSnatcher Thank you very much for that.

[J Darcy 5,871]

I shall post them a couple of books.I hope they got chance to have a little read to try and take their minds off the action for a few moments each day at least. Can someone please tell me exactly what to write on the packages . cheers.

[ferret15 0]

if your wanting to send it to afgan see my post from eairlier there are a coulpe of notes about postage two

[Guest MOLLY]

What is definately not allowed....im not used to travel etc but im thinking aerosols will not be allowed?

Will ciggies, girly mags, boiled sweets?

Any ideas?

MOLL.

[ferret15 0]

dont send

anything that melts is out there drinking water boils in the sun aerosols (pressure) no porn not even soft porn it is baned in afgan and iraq that includes soft porn fhm etc anthing that goes of quickly it can thake weeks to get there

 

and the weight limit is 2kg

[RatSnatcher 0]

It most definately was RatSnatcher Thank you very much for that.

 

 

Here is the first bit he posted.........

 

Some memories from 25 years ago.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

For those that grow not old

 

 

 

 

 

We left Portsmouth late in April 1982 on board the MV Norland, a North Sea ferry that had been converted into a troop ship. It took nearly a month to sail down to the Falklands, stopping off at Sierra Leone for supplies, and Rendezvousing with the rest of the fleet at Ascension Island. Most of us had never heard of the Falklands. I thought they were just north of Scotland. Most thought the politicians would sort it long before any fighting started. The days on the way down were spent training and being briefed about conditions on the Falkland Islands. At Ascension Island we practiced cross loading onto the landing craft that would be used to get us ashore.

21st May 1982 D Day We made our way down the stairwells of the Norland onto the lower decks were we would exit through a door in the side of the ship and onto the landing craft. It was slow going due to the sea swell and the weight of the kit we carried. Once loaded we set off towards Blue beach where we would be landed. I couldn’t see much but could hear the shelling of Fanning head going on in the distance. Eventually the landing craft came onto the beach and the loading ramp went down. Someone shouted “troops out†that was our que to bugger off. None of that hit the beaches stuff though. More of a groan as we stepped off the ramp and up to our crotch in icy cold South Atlantic water. We trudged up the beach, hard work with our bergans weighing more than a 100lbs with our helmets on you could hardly lift your head to see where you was going, standing up straight was impossible. Lucky for us it was an unopposed landing. Once we re-grouped and got our bearing we began the 3-mile tab to Sussex Mountains. The next five days were spent on routine patrols while the beachhead was consolidated. Mostly we waited around, boredom punctuated by air attacks.

26th May 1982

We had already received a warning order telling us to prepare to attack the airfield at Port Darwin and the settlement at Goose Green. While the section commanders were away getting briefed the rest of the platoon spent the morning preparing weapons and equipment. We would only be carrying our fighting order during the advance, so all our bergans and additional kit was packed and centralised so it could be brought forward at a later date. CEFO (Complete Equipment Fighting Order) consisted of a webbing belt 58 pattern, two ammo pouches (four 30 round magazines for SMG + bayonet), two water bottle pouches, one 58 pattern one 44 pattern with tin mug (for brewing up) and between two and three 58-pattern pouches. In these pouches we carried 24 hours rations packed in a small mess tin and as much brew kit as possible, emergency first aid kit, spare socks and foot powder, plus any odds and ends that we thought we might need. We was briefed that only two of the battalion’s eight 81mm mortars would be required. The rest would be brought forward if required. All the mortar ammo was unpacked from the metal boxes they came in, each round had to be checked to ensure the charge system was not damaged and the safety pin was in. It was then stacked in cargo nets ready to be airlifted to the top of Sussex Mountain. During the afternoon the platoon and all the ammo got a lift up the hill in some Navy Sea king helicopters.

Once up the top of the mountain we got busy sorting out the ammo. Each platoon member that wasn’t carry part of the mortar or radio would have to carry 2 rounds of mortar ammo which came packed in green plastic tubes (Greenies), each round weighed 10lbs.The rest would have to be distributed amongst the blokes in the rifle companies, they would have to carry one round a each, that would be on top of the kit they already had to carry. They were already loaded down with extra linked ammo for the general purpose machine guns, 66mm rocket launchers, grenades, ammo for personal weapons and emergency rations ETC, I doubt if many of us would have been carrying less than 70lbs of kit. The rest of the afternoon was spent on briefings checking kit and making sure we new where our RV would be once it got dark. Before last light we got scoff and a brew on, then stood to, as is the practice in the British army.

Our objective was only around 10 miles away, in peace time we could TAB that in a couple of hours no problem. But that night we were travelling across country not knowing if there was enemy about. It involved a lot of stopping and starting sweating and freezing. It wasn’t without it’s humorous moments. Every now and then you would hear the muffled curses of one of the blokes in front as he sunk up to his nuts in an icy cold bog. The bloke in front’s shoulders would start bobbing up and down as he tried to stop himself laughing out loud. Or someone would just fall over and lay there like a dead ant. Laughing in the face of adversity. We arrived at Camilla Creek House just before first light.

 

27th May 1982

Recce patrols were sent out to try and find out the enemies strength and locations. Movement was kept to a minimum in case we were spotted, so most of us lay up and froze our nuts off. I remember one of the patrols captured a couple of Argies that were swaning about in a land rover that they had nicked off the locals. One of them had been shot, and was treated by the battalion’s medical officer; the other was treated by the battalion intelligence officer. I remember the CO doing his nut because the BBC world service had announced that we were outside Goose Green ready to mount an attack, nice one BBC.

Our Mortar Fire Controllers (MFCs) had been out to recce the mortar line ready for us to move into after dark. This was a really important job because a lot of the ground was soft and boggy and the mortars would slip under the recoil when fired if not bedded in properly. Late in the afternoon we were given our final briefing and allowed to get a brew and some hot scoff on. Just after last light we got our kit ready and moved out to the mortar line, this was situated next to a small bridge at Camilla Creek. Later that night, as the rifle companies filed past on the way to the start line. We collected all the ammo in. The blokes just whispering what type of round they were handing over HE (high explosive) WP (smoke, White phosperous) or Illum (illumination round) I remember a good mate, Wobbler, came past and I gave him a friendly dig and told him to be careful. I joined the same day a Wobbler; we went through depot and were posted to A coy 2 Para together, a good mate. Mostly the blokes filed past with a grim determination. Things remained quiet for a couple of hours, then it started getting busy as the rifle companies started bumping into enemy positions. The fighting went on through the night and with only two mortars to support the battalion we were kept busy with one fire mission after another. I remember an odd message came over the radio, telling the mortars to keep the noise down. That made us laugh, how do you keep the noise down when you’re firing an 81mm Mortar, we was half deaf and half blind (always keep one eye closed when firing at night) I remember when we got word of the first casualty; a fella called Gaz Bingley had been killed while attacking an Argy trench. I hoped it was duff gen, Bing thing was a good bloke.

 

28th May 1982

As dawn broke there was a danger of the rifle companies getting to far in front and out of range of the mortars. Normally one section would be in action (ready to give fire support) while another moved forward. But only having the one section we had to cease firing and TAB along a track as fast as possible, carrying as much ammo as we could. Before we got called back into action with another fire mission. We had tabbed about two miles when we received a fire mission. Luckily it was in a good spot with solid ground. The Argies had set up there own artillery there and must have left in a hurry because there were artillery shells all over the place. Not so good was that we were on a gentle forward facing slope with the battlefield to our front, great view, but naff all cover. We soon started running low on ammo, so two sections not manning the mortars had to run back to our first mortar line and bring back as much ammo as they could carry. Ammo re-supply was a continuing problem all day with the amount we were going through. The Company Quartermaster Sergeant (CQMS) Frankie Pye had commandeered the land rover that the Argies had pinched off the locals and was running up and down the track dropping mortar ammo for us and small arms ammo for the blokes up front, and then taking the lightly wounded back to the regimental Aid post.

There was also a couple of Royal Marine Scout helicopters picking up casualties and re-supplying ammo. I remember one of them made a drop to us; they were well over loaded, made the landing a bit on the heavy side. There was an air raid warning on, and rumour had it that a couple of Argy Pucarras (ground attack aircraft) had dropped Napalm on B Company. We could see these two aircraft in the distance when they spotted us they came in low and fast, you could see the gun flashes as they strafed the mortar line with rockets and machine gun fire. The rockets went over our heads and landed about 20 metres away; luckily for us we didn’t take any hits. I watched them attack the two Scouts that had re-supplied us earlier. They were about a mile or so away and hovering low with the hills behind them, hoping the Argies didn’t spot them, but they did. One of them managed to get away the other was not so lucky. I was gutted when I saw it explode into a ball of flame. And even worse was that we couldn’t go to help them. I later found out that the pilot had been killed but the crewman had escaped, though his injuries were severe. All we could do to help was send a sitrep over the radio. News that the CO had been seriously wounded was met with disbelief; no one could understand what he was doing at the front attacking trenches. Normally the CO is in Tac HQ directing the battle.

By late afternoon the battalion had cleared Port Darwin and surrounded the settlement of Goose green. We were ordered out of action and told to move forward. By then we had fired so many rounds there were two big piles of empty greenies next to each mortar. The mortars had bedded in so deep that when we dug them out we left two half circles about eighteen inches deep.

Tabbing along the track towards Goose Green we came across the battalions medics, who were busy treating a long line of our injured mates. We stopped for a while to find out what was happening one of the medics told me that my mate Wobbler was amongst the wounded, he’d been shot through the stomach. He said he should be OK but couldn’t talk because he had been given something for the pain and was out of it. As we moved along the track we came across a couple more blokes in sleeping bags, thinking they were waiting to be cas-evaced. I went over to see if they were OK. It turned out the sleeping bags were make shift body bags. One was a mate that I had served in A company with, seeing him laid there sickened me. Now, when I see an old boy on parade at Remembrance Sunday, stood with tears streaming down his face. I know why.

We carried on along the track until we came to a fold in the ground, a good spot to set the mortars up. The Argies must have thought so to, because they’d bugged out and left their 120mm mortars behind. I took a patrol out to clear the perimeter and make sure we weren’t going to get any surprises, by the time we got back it was starting to get dark, so we got a brew on quick. By then it had been 48 hours since we left Sussex Mountains, we only carried emergency rations to last 24 hours, so we made do with hot tea, garibaldi and oatmeal biscuits. There was no more fighting that night, but it was a battle against the elements, we made a make shift windbreak out of the empty ammo boxes for the120mm mortars that the Argies had left behind. That helped keep the gale force winds out, but with only a poncho to keep the wind off it was a cold night.

 

29th May 1982

Next day the remaining six of the battalions mortars were due to be brought forward. Plus more artillery and troop re-enforcements, if the Argies wanted to fight they would get one. Unbeknown to us two Argentine warrant officers had been sent into Goose Green to explain to the Argentinean commanding officer what the situation was. A demonstration of firepower had been arranged using all eight of the battalion’s mortars plus additional air and artillery support. But in the end it was not required. The Argentine commander decided to surrender. We made our way into the settlement of Goose Green and was greeted by the 100 odd inhabitants. We went into the community hall where we were given tea; I remember some of the kids handing out sweets and the inhabitants were in a jubilant mood. Exhaustion must have caught up on me, because I just sat staring, like I was on the outside looking in. Weird that.

 

 

Apparently Dire straits have re released Brothers in arms and the proceeds will be going to the soldiers that were wounded in the falklands

[ferret15 0]

thats good not a lot is done for our vetrans i read somewere cant rember where that a quarter of our homless are vetrans and its even higher in the states

[mistwalker 0]

Just saw this thread - sorry I missed it yesterday.

One of my best mates was my section commander in the Scots Guards. The first time he gave us a fieldcraft lesson (way back in 1989 - chr!st I feel old!) he emptied a pile of fawn coloured folders onto the ground and said

"Any of you who want to learn this by the book - there's the books, read them. Anyone who wants to stay alive when the sh!t hits the fan listen in. In 1982, I was 20 yrs old. We were preparing for a nice wee Trooping the Colour in a few weeks, bit of shiny stuff, face on the telly etc. we were called to a Battalion muster parade and told to ditch our shiny gear and get the green kit out for a trip to the South Atlantic. On the night of 13th/ 14th June we assaulted Mount Tumbledown. Helmets were removed before the attack and our beige berets were worn with blackened capstars. That night, I took life and I lost mates. We fought with bayonets fixed, never thinking we'd have to use them - we did! We fought hand-to-hand and we won the last battle of the Falklands Conflict. Not text book stuff, no glory like the movies. It wasn't nice and it stays with you for life. But I know what worked - listen to me and you'll stay alive."

Talk about undivided attention!

That man grew to be my mentor, made me the man I am today and more. I'm proud to call him my friend and without too much detail, I owe him my life.

Here's to those friends that he and others lost then and in all the conflicts before and since.

[ferret15 0]

[RatSnatcher 0]

Glad you made it Mistwalker

here a little link to a video and some pics of the Paras that were there

 

http://video.google.co.uk/videoplay?docid=...627403135627726

Edited June 16, 2007 by RatSnatcher

[Guest Rabbiteer]

raise a glass indeed ... the only sorrow i have is that there will never be a rememberence or a memorial for all the service men who have lost their lives in iraq as it is seen as a peace keeping mission and not a war .... if the poloticians spent a day with any front line troops out there they would soon realise that they are indeed in a war zone ............

 

Very true.

[reynardhunter 3]

Its 25 years today, since the falklands war ended, and an invaded corner of Great Britain was liberated. Spare a thought for the men of the parachute regiments, the welsh guards, the sailors on the Galahad, and Sheffield, and all the others, including col H .Jones VC, and Sgt Ian McKay VC, who laid down their lives, and gave the ultimate sacrifice in defence of queen and country. Give peace and solace to their families, and our gratitude , for their sacrifice. Men of bravery, selflessness, and honour......rest in peace.

Yes and theyd be still here if they didnt try to take what wasnt theirs in the first place, but then its hardly the first time is it

[ChrisJones 7,975]

In a bid to make this a bit more upbeat, I'm posting that Harry Patch, the last known surviving British veteran of the World War I trenches, is 109 today! Happy Birthday Harry!

 

I, for one, will be raising a glass to the extended health of this veteran as well as in memory of those lads that died in the South Atlantic.

 

Lest we forget.

[Guest JDF]

i read this week that mark knopfler has re-released brothers in arms with the profits going to the falklands veterans charity or something,nice gesture.