Soldiers from 4 MERCIAN have returned home from Uganda, after helping prepare hundreds of African troops for their next assignment in war torn Somalia. The 4 MERCIAN team, which is part of The Mercian Regiments Army Reserve battalion, consisted of 25 soldiers who spent three weeks drilling almost 1,600 Ugandan troops at a base one and a half hours drive from Kampala, the capital of the country. They were involved in the final stages of a ten week-long training programme for the troops that has also involved soldiers from other nations. The African officers were drilled in military planning, while two infantry battalions were tested on their response to everything from a shopping centre suicide blast to crowd demonstrations. It is the fifth time in three years that 4 MERCIAN soldiers have gone to Uganda to train troops for UN peacekeeping duties in Africa. Sergeant Alex Perryman, joined the Army Reserve in 2002, and has since been on three tours of duty in Afghanistan. He said: They were very willing and eager to learn. Their kit is nowhere near what we have, but they were no rookies. They were battled hardened having recently completed a two year long African Nations deployment to South Sudan and the Central African Republic. “They were learning slightly different techniques because the demands of Somalia will not be the same as they have just experienced. Lieutenant Colonel Chris Carter, Commanding Officer of 4 MERCIAN, added: We were testing their ability to provide a proportionate response to a wide range of different threats. These troops were not untrained conscripts. They were operationally experienced soldiers. 4 MERCIAN HQ is in Wolverhampton with other centres located across the heart of England. For further information on 4 MERCIAN including how to join, visit army.mod.uk/infantry/regiments/25991.aspx.
Posted on: Sun, 11 Jan 2015 09:00:00 +0000
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