Exercise Exercise Exercise

[secretstacker]

Early 80's at Leeming, one Wednesday evening the Taceval team arrived at the guardroom asking for directions to MT in order to refuel their car, while on their way to Catterick. The Ord Cpl called out the Ord Off to report their presence on base, next thing Ex Ex Ex. Most of the camp drags itself from the NAAFI or the Buffs Lodge bars, and starts to get back into uniform, only to be told to stand down, as it was a false alarm caused by the earlier fuel stop. So back to the bars we troop, only to hear Ex Ex Ex within 30 minutes again, as the Stn Cmdr had decided that as the camp was at readiness the exercise should continue, you couldn't make it up. Happy days.

 

[MAINJAFAD]

For his part the Stn Cdr tannoyed the Station later on the Tuesday highlighting his outrage at what had happened and stating that the Para's would never be allowed on this unit again(a bit late).

Surprised he never heard what happened down the road at West Raynham a few years earlier when exactly the same happend when a Herc loaded with Paras landed on the airfield during a Taceval. When I got there in mid 85, there were still Bloodhound Missiles on the unit with '2 Para' engraved on the Radomes. Most of what I heard about that exercise from the old timers there matches your account of what happened at Marham, though at Raynham, they were chucking thunderflashes at fully bombed up missiles.

Had a Puma land on the site during a maxceval while at West Raynham, though the attacking force were from another Bloodhound unit, hence they were a bit wiser on where they let their fireworks off.

 

[Ex-Bay]

Oh Sh1t

Oh Sh1t

SAC XB's Cooks tour to RAFG in the mid 60s included both Buggen & Wilders. Never being the sharpest knife in the draw (I could never understand what was going on and by the time I did it was too late). Education was a bit sketchy as I recall.

So at something like stupid o'clock the Taceval hooters went off. Grabbed the kit (I'd got this bit well cracked, including a second Gas mask bag for fags and other essentials all clipped to a webbing belt) and off into work.

Being somewhat behind the times has its advantages. I was usually one of the "Vital Points Guards", given a .303 with a pig-sticker bayonet and ordered off to the Telephone Exchange or somewhere else, miles away from any real action. Our chiefy was a decent guy, but he made an error one day. He put me & my mate at the Bunker. Cue the usual chaos.

A figure approached. "Halt - who goes there?. Put your 1250 and pass on the ground and retreat ten paces."
He did. I advanced, holding the rifle in the best military manner I could muster, and inspected the documents. "Advance friend"
As he's walking up the path, he just happened to say, "What would you have done if I'd put up a fight?"
My mate must, by this time have finished his fag, stood up on the concrete lid, pointed his rifle at the bloke, and said "Shot you, Sir".
The visitor was quite surprised for some reason.

It's a good job that I'd gone through this bit of farce. For some obscure reason (I must have upset someone), we two were exactly in the same place the following day. This time it's the CO himself, just getting out of his official car.

Now, I ask you, what does one do?. I recognised him, FFS. Is he going to just pass in or criticise me for not doing the job right?. SO I opted for doing it right and be damned. "Halt - who goes there?. Put your 1250 and pass on the ground and retreat ten paces." The car drove away smoothly to other duties.

He patted his pockets and said "I don't have them".
(Pause for an "Oh Sh1t" moment)
"I'm very sorry Sir, but I am not permitted to let anyone enter without the proper documents" (I could hardly stand up with the nerves)

"I suggest you go and find someone then"

Leaving my mate on the roof doing his thing with the rifle, I retreated to the Bunker and knocked on the door; [panic - no answer]. Opens door to reveal SWO who gives me a nasty look for intruding where not permitted, and explains the problem. A couple of moments later, the car arrives at the rush, gathers up the CO and boogies off onto the distance at speed.

My mate & I swapped over and not long thereafter, the CO arrives again.
The ritual is repeated, but with the right passes and in he goes.

I was sweating for a week whether I was going to be hauled up and screwed or patted on the back. Neither happened, Thank the Lord.

DT_Xtremez_28:

 

[BJW]

What about the Stn Cdr in Germany (Bruggen I think) in the 80s who called an exercise during the Sgts Mess Summer Ball! Not a wise move and not something that was repeated in a hurry. Anyone witness it?

 

[T93]

Northern Scotland 80s

Northern Scotland 80s

I remember there was some huge nationwide exercise ongoing (involving all Three Services) in the mid 80s (ish!)

A few of us were tasked to support a North Eastern Scottish unit & the only transport that MT could provide for the few of us was One of those NATO Green 55seater buses (how they had the nerve to call them coaches was beyond me!) with the yellow stripes down the sides of the bus.

Anyway, we were bimbling along down this country road en-route to Buchan, when we approached a set of roadworks. The roadworks had all the signs and even the traffic lights. Light changed to Red, we stopped. Then all of a sudden all hell broke loose.
The "road workers" suddenly had masks on brandishing all sorts of weapons, few more emerged from the nearby woodland. The MT lad got a real good mauling, and we were lucky not to receive the same attention...although they did blow out some windows.

The bus was "disabled" and we were stripped of our goods and told to walk away..............

Turns out it was our Hereford friends.
I recall a story I heard about Coningsby, also happened in the 80s.

Big Exercise. Same type fellas manage to gain access to the MGR, whilst apparently the local Bobby is in the Guardroom gaining some details about a fight, or some such thing involving locals/RAF lads in the village. It seems that he received a good kicking/trussing along with all the others.....ALLEGEDLY!

Anyone know if this is true?

 

[theladf]

By the way Bernie SWO died last year.DT_Xtremez_26:[/QUOTE]

Chaka, That's sad news mate:: the bloke was an absolute Legend, how did you find that out?

 

[Tashy_Man]

I remember there was some huge nationwide exercise ongoing (involving all Three Services) in the mid 80s (ish!)

Exercise Brave Defender ? 1985....Was doing my Air Radar mech course at the time, got bussed off to Honington for guard duty.

The good old days when there was money to actually practice being at war....now we just do the war, no practice.

Crack on................DT_Xtremez_06:

 

[theladf]

Exercise Brave Defender ? 1985....Was doing my Air Radar mech course at the time, got bussed off to Honington for guard duty.

The good old days when there was money to actually practice being at war....now we just do the war, no practice.

Crack on................DT_Xtremez_06:

I was on my mech's course at Halton, we got sent to do guard at Bampton Castle. When we were expecting an attack we were told we could be reinforced by some Green Jackets waiting at Brize, when they were called up they got halfway through the gate in their 4 tonners and their boy officer said hello I'm 2nd Lt (whatever) with the Greenjackets were your reinforcements, he seemed rather pleased with himself. However at that moment with the 4 tonners preventing the gate being closed some gentltmen from Hereford sprinted from a ditch across the road, lobbed thunderflashes into each 4 tonner and ran into the base to create havoc. DI staff inform boy officer all his men are dead, return to start point! the top lip started to quiver, I really thought he was going to cry!

 

[T93]

Exercise Brave Defender ? 1985....Was doing my Air Radar mech course at the time, got bussed off to Honington for guard duty.

The good old days when there was money to actually practice being at war....now we just do the war, no practice.

Crack on................DT_Xtremez_06:

********

TM,

Thats the One. I knew it was "Brave Something or other"

I have just read through the posts & someone mentioned an exercise were a JAF opened the hatch and had a weapon thrust in his face...I could have been that JAFAD!! except it happened to me in the late 80s and it wasnt a hatch I opened but a full blown door , and it was an SLR directly in between my eyes...Saying I nearly crapped myself is an understatement!!!

 

[MAINJAFAD]

I remember there was some huge nationwide exercise ongoing (involving all Three Services) in the mid 80s (ish!)

1985, yep that was 'Brave Defender'. One of the most boring exercises I ever did (and the first four day one as well, had only been out of Trade Training 6 weeks). One Attack on my camp during the whole exersice (A drive by shooting (GPMG on a landrover)attack from a backroad that ran along one side of the airfield.

 

[Dave-exfairy]

Not sure if they're still there, but on some hangars at Valley there are/were some markings on the doors saying they'd been visited by them Hereford Hooligans during a large exercise, nobody saw "them" come and nobody saw "them" leave.

 

[burglar]

Was in the COC at Marparts for a couple of years and had the pleasure of waking everyone up at stupid O'Clock many times. I'm up; You're all up!

So you're the barsteward are you!!DT_Xtremez_25: I presume you were at Marham around 83-84 when the groupy tried to give RAFG a run for it's money exercisewise! Remember the call out a few hours after a 3 dayer had finished? Slept through that one even though the hooter was outside our block (in defence I had only been in bed a couple of hours at best having been kept on servicing jets!) The others who had slept through it had been up playing cards and getting p*ssed more or less straight after endex!
Missed the savaging Marham got by being at LBH at the time though did hear about it out there.
Can remember at Laarbruch getting to work for nights on one Taceval in summer?! When I had to take cover in the coppers sangar at the entrance to XV as a heliborne assault happened (very good to watch!). Both of us were "killed" by gimpie fire from one of the revetments and managed to get out of goon gear as we watched some poor pongo get his ar*se run off carrying alsorts of anti tank rockets etc. Rumour has it they got the shock of their lives when they fired a drill round at a HAS door (first generation) which then rebounded back at them!! Apparently it sounded like a bell inside!!
Happy days indeed!!

 

[Rocket_Ronster]

1) Station exercise mid-80`s. The infamous " Air Wade Warning Wed, form a Wing of steel Awound the Armowy "

2) TACEVAL during that bit of blowing that Michael Fish thought wasn`t a hurricane. We had to rather briskly fuel a sqn of Timmys with a 100 tons of fuel apiece and point them into the wind. Then as the wind speed increased, they had to bring fully loaded bowsers plus drags and park them in front (acrossways) to disrupt the airflow over the wings.
ENDEX came 4 days early when we had a giraffe re-design an engine intake, and the movers found that there hanger was being re-located elsewhere. (Namely corrugated iron sheeting the size of double deckers being blown across the flight line, apron and runway at 100mph.)

 

[Fairynuff31]

I was at that secret Norfolk base in the 80's and remember well the famous Para Incident. I also remember that they initially tried to land within a certain specially cordened (heavily guarded) storage area.
I should imagine that they would have had a bit of a shock when the people on the inside fired back with real rounds!

I remember that they maruaded around the station looking for 'links, birds and scran', which at the time seemed like a foreign language - being Pongo speak and all. They ripped the door off the JR's Mess of its hinges looking for 'scran', 'links' they got from everyone they came into contact with and as for 'birds', Marham at the time only had a few WRAF's and they were all married. I think that they chinned one WRAF when they refused to believe that there was no WRAF Block!

The Stn Cdr at the time seemed to love exercises and did indeed call a no-notice bash about tea time, this being after a 3 dayer. He was called O'Brien and was nicknamed Zero Brain by even those in high positions around him.

The SMO called one 3 dayer off half way through when he found that the lads were not getting fed. Seems we had spend the entire Exercise budget and the cupboard was bare. Mate of mine had had a bag of crisps and a can of fizz in 3 days, when the Doc appeared.

I also remember, at the end of a particularly bad exercise - targets missed, jets 'lost', people not remembering how much 4by2 to use to clean out the barrel of an SLR, when Staish came on the tannoy to announce that the station had suffered a direct nuke strike and that it was end-ex! No donought that day and made you think a bit.......DT_Xtremez_42:

His comeupance came when he mustered the Guard of Honour to recieve Her Maj, when she drove herself from Sandringham to open the new Families Club, or Mother and Toddlers Facility (not sure which). I was on that GoH and remember have Liz be escorted up and down. Us in best blue, sharp as you like, and her in head scarf and riding jacket. Her face was a picture. He didnt last long after that.

 

[Goatherdingsplitter]

DT_Xtremez_42:

1) Station exercise mid-80`s. The infamous " Air Wade Warning Wed, form a Wing of steel Awound the Armowy "

2) TACEVAL during that bit of blowing that Michael Fish thought wasn`t a hurricane. We had to rather briskly fuel a sqn of Timmys with a 100 tons of fuel apiece and point them into the wind. Then as the wind speed increased, they had to bring fully loaded bowsers plus drags and park them in front (acrossways) to disrupt the airflow over the wings.
ENDEX came 4 days early when we had a giraffe re-design an engine intake, and the movers found that there hanger was being re-located elsewhere. (Namely corrugated iron sheeting the size of double deckers being blown across the flight line, apron and runway at 100mph.)

Same time at a secret Oxfordshire Airbase, we had to get some rather tired and emotional (****ed) aircrew out of the Zob's Mess to taxi two Pumas into WASF hangar to escape the storm. Cue absolute pandemonium as everything thas wasn't lashed down got drastically re-arranged in the hangar, because the aircrew did not comprehend the idea of "coasting into the hangar" because we had no towing kit! The Andovers had to weather the storm and with gust locks blown out, beat themselves to a pulp.DT_Xtremez_42:

 

[Black Cat]

I was there they used helo's and landed inside the wire on both 27 & 617 sqn, didn't get in HAS 46 which was one I was in::/:

 

[theladf]

I was at that secret Norfolk base in the 80's and remember well the famous Para Incident. I also remember that they initially tried to land within a certain specially cordened (heavily guarded) storage area.
I should imagine that they would have had a bit of a shock when the people on the inside fired back with real rounds!

I remember that they maruaded around the station looking for 'links, birds and scran', which at the time seemed like a foreign language - being Pongo speak and all. They ripped the door off the JR's Mess of its hinges looking for 'scran', 'links' they got from everyone they came into contact with and as for 'birds', Marham at the time only had a few WRAF's and they were all married. I think that they chinned one WRAF when they refused to believe that there was no WRAF Block!

The Stn Cdr at the time seemed to love exercises and did indeed call a no-notice bash about tea time, this being after a 3 dayer. He was called O'Brien and was nicknamed Zero Brain by even those in high positions around him.

The SMO called one 3 dayer off half way through when he found that the lads were not getting fed. Seems we had spend the entire Exercise budget and the cupboard was bare. Mate of mine had had a bag of crisps and a can of fizz in 3 days, when the Doc appeared.

I also remember, at the end of a particularly bad exercise - targets missed, jets 'lost', people not remembering how much 4by2 to use to clean out the barrel of an SLR, when Staish came on the tannoy to announce that the station had suffered a direct nuke strike and that it was end-ex! No donought that day and made you think a bit.......DT_Xtremez_42:

His comeupance came when he mustered the Guard of Honour to recieve Her Maj, when she drove herself from Sandringham to open the new Families Club, or Mother and Toddlers Facility (not sure which). I was on that GoH and remember have Liz be escorted up and down. Us in best blue, sharp as you like, and her in head scarf and riding jacket. Her face was a picture. He didnt last long after that.

I do recall the dog handlers and others inside the storage area being commended for restraint even when the Para's attemted to scale the fence.

 

[Studley dangerfcuk]

1993 up at the Hunter base. LAC Studley's second week and a taceval is called.
One of the "umpires" calls the shift cpl and me out of the T-bar to sort a cable fault into the Tower.

Now being a bit green it didnt strike me as odd when the umpire actually cut through a multi-core cable for the radio room. What did seem odd was why the Cpl put the Chf Tech on his @rse. I learned a few choice phrases over the next 3ish hours putting it back together.

Studley DT_Xtremez_28:

 

[Teh Wal]

Not sure if they're still there, but on some hangars at Valley there are/were some markings on the doors saying they'd been visited by them Hereford Hooligans during a large exercise, nobody saw "them" come and nobody saw "them" leave.

Yup, that was back in about '83 or '84 and the doors (certainly ours, joint 22 sqn/SARTU) were spray painted with 23 Saturday and Sunday (who are the weekend warrior version of the usual Hooligans)... bearing in mind that the hangar is only 70 yards from the inpenetrable fence (3 strands of normal wire, not even barbed wire!) on the beach it was no hard feat DT_Xtremez_30:.

 

[Ex-Bay]

Yatesbury in 1964 was a quiet little backwater where the term Taceval had not penetrated to those of use from more sedate units (In my case Upavon, HQTC). But we had to do our share of guard duties, armed with a copper's baton (or something longer). Occasionally we'd warned that "someone from CIB" would attempt illegal entry. We were warned to look for oddities on the 1250 such as Name: J. Christ, or Height 17 ft.

We manage to get most of them. Our team was responsible for breaking one bloke's wrist with an unauthorised baton (22 inches of 1.5" round hardwood). The telling-off was quite mild, really.

It was a really good summer that year. . . . .