#BritishArmyLogistics
UNITS | THE SUSTAINER
29 Regiment The Royal Logistic Corps SOUTH CERNEY CO: Lt Col J Symons • Adjt: Capt J Broad • RSM: WO1 A Burrell This quarter initially saw the Regiment return to a routine far more familiar in contrast to the remote working from earlier in 2020. Whilst staying compliant with the current COVID-19 guidelines, the Regt saw 59 Squadron deliver a Collective Training (CT1) exercise in Caerwent, 55 HQ Squadron deploy to Grantham to test their vehicle fleet and the Training Wing deploy to Brecon, delivering the Army Leadership Development Programme to develop future leaders. All this activity was conducted balancing the needs of the Army with risk to life - no easy feat. The Joint Air Mounting Centre (JAMC) has also continued to deliver round the clock support for Defence deployments, processing personnel and equipment through the sterile environment. Between Oct 20 and Jan 21, they completed 152 tasks with 3,193 personnel being processed alongside 148,767kg of baggage, 143,762kg of freight and 15 vehicles, all whilst operating on reduced manning in order to adhere to social distancing guidelines. Support to ABF This winter has seen the continued spread of COVID-19 across the UK, with the introduction of stricter restrictions and multiple national lockdowns. This affected how the Regt was able to engage with each other and the local community. Several of the Regt’s soldiers decided to organise charitable events during October and November in order to maintain community engagement and support charities close to the Regt’s heart. Cycling seemed to be the flavour of the season as the Regt saw two charity events both in support of ABF - The Soldiers’ Charity. In October, Sgt Andrew Featherstone of 59 Sqn succeeded in the herculean effort of 24 hours of continuous cycling, raising a total of £390. The fundraising continued into November, where 69 Sqn,
spearheaded by Sgt Anil Prasad and LCpl Neeraj Gurung, set out on completing a cumulative effort of cycling 1,944km on static bikes, outside of Cirencester Tesco. This was done over three to seven hour shifts to ensure only four cyclists were present at one time, maintaining COVID-19 social distancing regulations. The event was a huge success with 69 Sqn raising over £1,600 - a huge thank you to the local community for their support and generosity. Christmas post In preparation for the Christmas surge, 24 Postal Courier Operators were detached to British Forces Post Office, Northolt. This was to ensure all those deployed on operations received their parcels and mail prior to Christmas Day, with an impressive 230,000 items being processed prior to their stand down. Concurrently, the Regimental Welfare Team created 41 individual Christmas parcels for the soldiers
8 Providing support to BFPO, Northolt during the Christmas post surge
8 JAMC staff continue to deliver support to Defence deployments
who were deployed over the festive period. Parcels were received in Belize, Kenya, Iraq, Afghanistan, The Falkland Islands and many more theatres across the globe. Operation RESCRIPT Like almost all regiments across the Corps and wider Army; 29 Regiment has been, and will continue to be, committed in the fight against COVID-19. The Regt continues to hold its commitment working in quarantine facilities for personnel deploying overseas, as well as assisting in the operation of detaching drivers to assist the NHS across the UK. In conjunction to this, 100 soldiers, fronted by 59 Sqn Squadron Headquarters and the Regt’s own Regimental Headquarters, stand-by on readiness to deploy in support of the Vaccination Task Forces to support the NHS. Closing comments In addition to JAMC operations and support to exercises and operations around the globe, Operation RESCRIPT will be the focus for 29 Regiment in the coming months. The Regt is also looking forward to its deployments on Exercise WARFIGHTER, operational commitments across the globe and conducting Adventurous Training and battlefield studies where possible.
www.royallogisticcorps.co.uk • Facebook: The Royal Logistic Corps • Twitter: @UKArmyLogistics
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