The Blue Hackle

Newsletter of The Highlanders, 4th Battalion The Royal Regiment of Scotland

July 2015
Commanding Officers Introduction

The Memorial Stone being prepared for the move to Catterick

For the first time in 11 years The Highlanders are now officially based back in the UK. It is always
difficult leaving behind a posting after being static for so long and the majority of the Battalion will
look back with a degree of fondness on their time spent in Fallingbostel. With just over half of the
Battalion, and their families, now re-located to Catterick, I genuinely believe that we are lucky
enough to have moved into the ideal location. The camp, although a little tired around the edges,
is more than fit for purpose, the Jocks accommodation is superb and we are close enough to
Scotland to allow us to get home more often, while being far enough away that we maintain a
sense of cohesion throughout the working week. While the move has undoubtedly dominated our
thoughts over the past 3 months, we have maintained a steady drumbeat of other activities such as
the Duke of Rothesays Dirk Competition, three company-level battlefield studies, various sporting
events and, of course, our annual families day at which the Highland Games and Party in the Park
took centre stage. All this means that come 1 September we will be very well set to begin laying
the foundations for what promises to be an exciting training year in 2016. We also very much hope
that being back in the UK allows us to see much more of our wider Battalion family.
Farewell to Fallingbostel Weekend
On the 15 May the Battalion provided a marching contingent, with Pipes and Drums and a Colour
Party, for a parade through the Fallingbostel with the SCOTS DG and 2 CS Bn REME to say
farewell to the town. We then hosted the subsequent Cocktail Party and Beating the Retreat at the
Officers Mess where the Mayor of Fallingbostel presented the Battalion a colourful, modern picture
of the town which now hangs proudly in the COs office.

The Parade forms up under command of OC A Coy, Maj Rob Sandford

The Pipes and Drums lead the Parade through the streets of Bad-Fallingbostel
Highlanders Families Day
The weekend after we said goodbye to our German neighbours we held our own Families Day
centred on the ever popular Highland Games. The games consisted of Tossing the Caber,
throwing the Hammer, the strong man competition, Tug of War and various running events. This
year we invited teams from across 20 AI Bde and the Garrison to come and compete and the
SCOTS DG and 3 RHA duly sent a team each. The competition was fierce, yet good natured, and
to our great relief the Highlanders A team scraped home by the narrowest of margins!

Some worthy opponents in the strong man competition

Lt Buchan leading the way

SSgt Moss pulls the track

Sgt MacDonald on the Heaves

The individual Strong Man event attracted large crowds at the end of the day and was won by Lt
Stu Buchan. As well as the Highland Games the families were entertained with various military
stands, food stalls and a plethora of fun fare type competitions. At night the stands and stalls were
cleared away and the stage was set for the REME rock band that provided the entertainment for
the usual Party in the Park. All in all it was a great day and a wonderful way to sign off our 11
years in Fallingbostel.
Duke of Rothesays Dirk Competition
The Duke of Rothesays Dirk Competition is a military skills competition that tests soldiers from
across the Battalion. This years competition took place on private land just south of Warstein in
Germany and saw 13 teams of 12 soldiers led by a mixture of Pl Comds and Pl Sgts begin with a 2
mile march & shoot before setting off on the 50 Km march. The march incorporating nine military
skills stands including CBRN, battlefield first aid, Regimental history and current affairs.

Recce Pl on patrol led by CSgt Knox

The Recce Pl team set the standard from the start with the quickest 2-miler time and then
maintained their hard work and discipline throughout the march and associated stands to finish the
clear winners. The next step is for them and the D Coy team that finished second to compete in
the Bde patrols competition in Sep and then the Cambrian Patrol later this year.

A short break and Navigation check before the next stand

Battlefield Studies
Conceptual development for all ranks remains an important part of our training. At the end of Jun
OC Sp Coy, Maj Ian Wilson, led the Bdes Battlefield Study to Belgium and France. The 5 day
package followed the advance of Rommel's 7 Panzer Division in May 1940 with specific focus on
hi crossing of the Meuse at Dinant, the subsequent breakout and race to the Maginot Line, the
French collapse and the British counterstroke at Arras. The exercise was superbly supported by
Dr Andrew Stewart and proved to be an excellent opportunity to compare and contrast how we
might have tackled similar challenges today.
On the final day the Bde Comd summed up and then we moved the memorial at Thiepval for a
short act of remembrance. The CO laid a wreath and Piper Vickers played the lament.

The Command Team and Piper Vickers at the Thiepval memorial

Following Sp Coys battlefield study of the Somme, B Coy followed in A Coys footsteps and
conducted a battlefield study of Berlin. The study used the historical example of the Battle for
Berlin to raise the Jocks, NCOs and Officers understanding of our new Mech Inf role. The battle
provided good examples of the strengths and weaknesses of armoured units and traditional light
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role infantry, and the Jocks used this to consider how a Mech Inf Battlegroup could potentially have
been employed. The study looked at both German and Soviet experience and also sought to
examine the moral complexities of conventional warfare in a large urban area. It was also a
chance to learn some more about German history and culture with the Jocks enjoying the
opportunity to explore one of Europes most important cities.

Marshall Zhukovs command bunker in the Seelaw Heights. The Company are discussing how the
modern day Mech Inf Bn would approach the problem of seizing the heights.
Milan Rugby Sevens
After a successful XVs season, The Highlanders rugby team switched its attention to the Sevens
season. The team started well with a solid third place finish at the BAG Sevens Tournament
however, the main focus was the Milan Sevens at the beginning of Jun. The tournament is a well
established tournament and is held at Cernusco Rugby Club, located 10km North East of central
Milan. Over 40 teams from across Europe competed, including French, Dutch, Italian and
Romanian plus a team from 1 SCOTS GUARDS!
As expected, our Fijian contingent quickly won the support of the crown, with their usual flair and,
sometimes outlandish, style! The team performed well, easily winning two of our three matches
before narrowly loosing to a local Italian club (and the local referee!). Having qualified for the cup
quarter final we were again narrowly beaten, this time by Warwick University. However, the
SCOTS GUARDS were suffering from a number of injuries thus enabling us to get some more
game time as part of a barbarians team in the plate competition. The team were also fortunate
enough to spend a day exploring many of the fantastic sights Milan has to offer.

Support Company Team Bonding

A warm Wednesday afternoon in early June saw about 80 soldiers from Support Company
converge at the Ralf Schumacher Kart & Bowl complex for an afternoon of Go Cart racing. The
company was in the middle of a hectic period preparing for the move to Bourlon Barracks in
Catterick over the summer and the opportunity to let off steam on the Go Cart track was welcomed
by the troops. There were three 15 minute qualifiers after which the company was divided into
three man teams to battle it out in a 45 minute rally for top honours.
And so began an afternoon of intense, high speed, bone jarring, biff-chit-inducing race driving!
From the skills on show it was obvious which drivers didn't possess licenses, and which drivers
had had regular practice breaking the speed limits back in St. Barbara's Barracks. Thankfully, there
were not many crashes and most drivers made it through the qualifiers unscathed. Impressive
performances saw LCpl Harrop, Hldr Crawford and LCpl Boyle earned the top three starting
positions for their respective teams. Finally, after 45 mins where the lead changed hands
numerous times, Cpl Martin led his team onto the podium to receive their prize for first place. Hldr
McIndoe's team finished in second place while Hldr Carr and his crew came in a close third.

L-R: 2nd Place - Hldr Rinakama, Hldr Chisholm, Hldr McIndoe, 1st Place - Cpl Martin, LCpl Wilson,
Hldr Seru, 3rd Place - Hldr Gasaudrau, Hldr Carr, Hldr Daumeke
Whats next?
August - Summer leave, Pipes & Drums take part in the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo.
September Pipes & Drums take part in the Highland Tattoo. B Coy RAAT on SPTA. SRTT Sect
2IC Course. Omani Coy training team deploys.
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October - SRTT Sect 2IC Course (A Coy to lead), Cambrian Patrol Competition, Freedom of the
Highland Region Parade, Omani Coy STTT, 20X patrols competition.
November Ex WESSEX STORM
December Christmas festivities, Bn leave.
January - Dismounted CT 1 LFTT.