Post by aghart on Jul 3, 2024 16:05:46 GMT
Bournemouth, Poole & District Branch, Royal Tank Regiment Association. July 2024 branch meeting.
24 people sat down with 17 linked via Zoom. Minutes of the June 2024 meeting were looked at with no comments or queries.
Activity during June was substantial and consisted of 2 x D-Day services on Poole Quay and another at Portland. A D-Day themed event at a Care home in Poole where the branch members organised the short D-Day remembrance service. The annual Falklands War memorial service in Poole led by the Poole branch Royal Marines Association. Wreath laying for Tank Corps soldier William Watson on the 105th anniversary of his death.
We attended the Weymouth Armed Forces Day parade, Bournemouth Armed Forces Day flag raising event, and the Budmouth College (Weymouth) Combined Cadet Force (RTR badged) recruitment event. The Chairman & Secretary also popped into see the Leeds branch whilst in Yorkshire on RTRA business for HHQ RTR. Finally, the branch standard was paraded at the funeral of the late Major George Robbins.
Known forthcoming activity is the Taunton Armed Forces Day event where The Chairman, Secretary & Reg Fox will support the Plymouth Branch who will have a tent set up. Members were informed that the vehicle display event on Poole Quay during the evening of Friday 9th August will be veteran Military vehicles. During the day on 9th August, we will be setting up the branch BBQ and call went out for volunteers to help. The branch BBQ will be taking place on Saturday 10th August from noon onwards. Members were also reminded of the VJ Day remembrance service being held in Poole Park on 15th August, the branch standard will present, and a branch wreath will be laid. We will however be overshadowed by Harry O’Dell who will have “two” wreaths to lay. Dave Roberts reminded everyone about the 1 RTR visit to the National Memorial Arboretum on 27th July 2024.
Members were reminded that there is no branch meeting in August and that the guest speaker for September’s meeting will be Lt Col Simon Worth RTR who was until recently CO of the Regiment.
The meeting was then ended, and the guest speakers introduced. Major Benjamin Mitchell of the Canadian Army is 2i/c of what we know as the Armoured Trials & Development Unit (ATDU) at Bovington and WOII Marc Johnson is his Sgt Major. I have worded it like that because ATDU no longer exists as such. All the army trials and development units have come under one roof and are commonly known now as the Army Trials Unit. So, if I mention ATDU again it’s just out of habit. We were informed that the 2i/c is always an exchange officer from the Canadian Armoured Corps, you learn something new every day.
They gave a superb and absorbing presentation on what ATDU “did I mention habit?” are doing right now. They have three main areas’ right now, Ajax, Boxer & CR3. We got as much info as they were able to give as there is still a lot of classified “stuff”. They did say that Ajax is back on track and is now progressing at pace.
Smaller development’s include designing improvements for the Jackal vehicle, these include a windscreen to stop the driver’s hands freezing in winter, devices to warn of vehicle incline to stop rollovers, and adopting the gun stabilization system used by Royal Marines rigid raider craft to allow Jackal’s machine guns to fire accurately on the move.
There was lots more but if you want 100% then turn up on the night or log in via Zoom. You know you want to!
24 people sat down with 17 linked via Zoom. Minutes of the June 2024 meeting were looked at with no comments or queries.
Activity during June was substantial and consisted of 2 x D-Day services on Poole Quay and another at Portland. A D-Day themed event at a Care home in Poole where the branch members organised the short D-Day remembrance service. The annual Falklands War memorial service in Poole led by the Poole branch Royal Marines Association. Wreath laying for Tank Corps soldier William Watson on the 105th anniversary of his death.
We attended the Weymouth Armed Forces Day parade, Bournemouth Armed Forces Day flag raising event, and the Budmouth College (Weymouth) Combined Cadet Force (RTR badged) recruitment event. The Chairman & Secretary also popped into see the Leeds branch whilst in Yorkshire on RTRA business for HHQ RTR. Finally, the branch standard was paraded at the funeral of the late Major George Robbins.
Known forthcoming activity is the Taunton Armed Forces Day event where The Chairman, Secretary & Reg Fox will support the Plymouth Branch who will have a tent set up. Members were informed that the vehicle display event on Poole Quay during the evening of Friday 9th August will be veteran Military vehicles. During the day on 9th August, we will be setting up the branch BBQ and call went out for volunteers to help. The branch BBQ will be taking place on Saturday 10th August from noon onwards. Members were also reminded of the VJ Day remembrance service being held in Poole Park on 15th August, the branch standard will present, and a branch wreath will be laid. We will however be overshadowed by Harry O’Dell who will have “two” wreaths to lay. Dave Roberts reminded everyone about the 1 RTR visit to the National Memorial Arboretum on 27th July 2024.
Members were reminded that there is no branch meeting in August and that the guest speaker for September’s meeting will be Lt Col Simon Worth RTR who was until recently CO of the Regiment.
The meeting was then ended, and the guest speakers introduced. Major Benjamin Mitchell of the Canadian Army is 2i/c of what we know as the Armoured Trials & Development Unit (ATDU) at Bovington and WOII Marc Johnson is his Sgt Major. I have worded it like that because ATDU no longer exists as such. All the army trials and development units have come under one roof and are commonly known now as the Army Trials Unit. So, if I mention ATDU again it’s just out of habit. We were informed that the 2i/c is always an exchange officer from the Canadian Armoured Corps, you learn something new every day.
They gave a superb and absorbing presentation on what ATDU “did I mention habit?” are doing right now. They have three main areas’ right now, Ajax, Boxer & CR3. We got as much info as they were able to give as there is still a lot of classified “stuff”. They did say that Ajax is back on track and is now progressing at pace.
Smaller development’s include designing improvements for the Jackal vehicle, these include a windscreen to stop the driver’s hands freezing in winter, devices to warn of vehicle incline to stop rollovers, and adopting the gun stabilization system used by Royal Marines rigid raider craft to allow Jackal’s machine guns to fire accurately on the move.
There was lots more but if you want 100% then turn up on the night or log in via Zoom. You know you want to!