View Full Version : My Tours
Bombardier
12-06-04, 09:28
My first tour in the Province was in 1983 at the ripe old age of 18, I was an Artilleryman with 39 Heavy Regt Royal Artillery, our tour was short only a couple of months and consisted of time spent in the Crumlin Road jail, HMP Maze and patrols around the local areas of both prisons. My second tour was for six months with 27 Field Regt RA in the county of Fermanagh (Operation Loren) the purpose of this operation was to protect all the civilian construction workers who were upgrading the PVCP's (Permanent vehicle checkpoints) I worked in the control room for the first month or so however due to an injury sustained by one of the lads I volunteered to take up his post as a team commander which I did until the end of the tour. All went well and no casualties.
My time spent there really opened my eyes to the troubles in Northern Ireland and the whole thing really has had a lasting effect with me.
I'll post some adventures a bit later - need to dredge the memory banks for stuff!
Frisco-Kid
14-06-04, 03:25
Looking forward to reading about your experiences. Andy, being in the Arty there did you ever have any fire missions? If so, what were the circumstances? What were the "lasting effect" that you walked away with? all in your own good time, my friend.
As I believe I mentioned early on somewhere on here, 3 of my grandparents were born in Ireland. They all immigrated in the '20s as young adults. My father's mother was from Dublin, and my mother's parents were from Donegal. Her brother Bob, was born there and they immigrated as a family. My mother was the first-born here. She had a cousin [I don't know how far removed anymore] killed on Bloody Sunday in Derry in 1972. His name was John P. Young. Her mother's maiden name was Young. I only mention this as a matter-of-fact, not to point fingers in any way, shape, or form.
Most Americans are very ignorant of The Troubles, including most Irish Americans. Most of them think of it as very black and white, Catholics vs. Protestants, not knowing how very much more complex it really is. For example, most of them don't know that the British military was originally sent there, and welcomed as, protectors of the Catholics from paramilitary Protestant groups. I'm hoping to get a bit of an education out of this forum.
I am also very interested in hearing what you have to say as my knowledge of the subject is absolutely nil. I don't think we Americans ever got a real handle on the subject and I think most of us have no opinion thats worth expressing.
RW
Bombardier
14-06-04, 07:08
Just a quick one while I get my thoughts togeather about how to best start and deliver the information.
British military was originally sent there, and welcomed as, protectors of the Catholics from paramilitary Protestant groups. I'm hoping to get a bit of an education out of this forum.
You are correct frisco this was exactly the purpose for British troops being sent to N.I however the troubles do go a lot deeper than that and as a result the resentment soon turned against the Forces that were there. I personally felt that my role was to stop both Catholic and Protestant Paramilitaries from blowing each other to pieces and to enable the peace loving people of Ireland, of which there is a majority, to live their lives as we all like to live ours. In Peace. :cool:
Ps . Frisco, No arty in the Province as this is an area weapon and lacks the precision required, we were all sent as Infantrymen (peace keepers)regardless of our main role within the Forces. prior to Mobilisation we would have to conduct weeks of specialist training.
I did the HMP Maze tour in 1988 and went back as an Arms and Explosives search dog handler in Bandit country, ( South Armagh )
Got to say it was the most exacting, stressful, fantastic time of my life.
Hey Andy, you weren't at the Maze in '83 when they all scarpered wre you?
Bombardier
15-06-04, 22:23
Hey Andy, you weren't at the Maze in '83 when they all scarpered wre you?
Hee Hee :) , no buddy I missed that by a few months thank god
It was my Battery, ( I didn't join til 84 ) Apparently they were just doing the handover in the towers when the Prison Officers started screaming at the squaddies to start shooting at the escapees running like headless chickens all over the place. Trouble was, they wre all wearing PO uniforms that they had nicked so no-one got hurt.
Bombardier
15-06-04, 22:50
Remember the story well mate. I think the most lasting memory I have of my time at the Maze was falling down from the top floor of a sangar coz Id left the hatch open, almost carried on down to the bottom. No lasting injuries though just some bruising. thank god I was in there on my own or that would have been embarassing. :oops:
Ps I was with 34 Seringapatam Heavy Battery, 39 Hvy Regt RA.
i was in 31 Bty, but went to the Maze with 3 Bty. Talk about a chickenshit unit! We were up before breakfast every day picking up litter, even if we had been on patrol til 6 that morning. And we had to run round the wall 50 times before the tour was up or they would leave us behind at endex. (They actually kept up this threat and left one of my guys behind, all because he didn't have the nous to cheat like the rest of us and hide in the old Long Kesh camp and book in 5 circuits at once!)
Bombardier
16-06-04, 15:31
And we had to run round the wall 50 times before the tour was up or they would leave us behind at endex.
Jeeesus and I can see the point and purpose in that NOT!. I dont know sometimes the British Army never ceases to amaze me. :? .
I dont think we had anything like that, infact I recall the feeling that any down time that was available was treated by the senior ranks as a valuable tool for morale and we were allowed to use it as we wished. Of course there was plenty of PT but hey that was standard wherever we were. army;
Did any of you guys carry anything with you for good luck ? In Viet Nam I wore a Saint Joan medal ( have it on today , I've never taken it off since then ) and wore an AK 47 round around my neck that I got out of a AK from a dead guy. Rumor was if you wore that that it was the round ment for you and you would not get shot. Also wore one dog tag around my neck and had another in my boot laces. Not for luck though just to increase the chances of identification
Any one do any time at "Tin City", Sennelager (I think it was)? Playing at snatch squads and low level tactics. I did a little bit just as a eye opener.
I remember flying into Aldegrove for the first time and getting shifted into a hanger to disembark. After that, it just seemed to get worse. I did two emergency tours lasting not more than a week at a time.
We never did any of the patrolling or Long Kesh duties but it was not a place that I enjoyed. Plenty of adreneline on the helo into XMG (and out again) but there was plenty of action for the guys based there.
Bombardier
17-06-04, 18:41
I used to carry a minature Ace of Spades card and still have it, see image
http://www.militaryimages.net/militaryimages_net_files/ace.jpg
Dont know why I carried it?, it just felt good to :roll:
Bombardier
17-06-04, 18:45
Any one do any time at "Tin City", Sennelager
Yep Yep yep!, i did time as squaddie and as Civ Pop (civilian population). What a place. Apparently we were not supposed to have the place to train for N.I, the germans thought we were training for FIBUA.
Funny you should mention this though coz I was looking around for images of Tin City on the Internet the other day, unsuccesfully though :roll:
I used to love the Helo Insertions and Extractions, WHAT A BUZZ!!! :mrgreen:
We carried the ace of spades also but not for luck. We would leave it on enemy dead. I called it the death card.
Bombardier
17-06-04, 19:33
We carried the ace of spades also but not for luck. We would leave it on enemy dead. I called it the death card.
Was there a reason for leaving the Ace of Spades on enemy dead? :cool:
That's right mate, the Germans had forbidden the Brits to train for NI so it was very unsubtly disguised as FIBUA!
I got to chuck rocks at infantry and narrowly avoided getting the sh*t kicked out of me by a snatch squad! I went into a brick later and had the stuff chucked at me. The "civvies" were very good, swearing and all. Good training. I never went up in the helo for insertions tho' - I wasn't needed for that!
Many of the cards had our unit patch on the other side. If it didn't we would leave the card and a unit patch on the dead. We wanted their buddies to know it was us that killed them.
Bombardier
17-06-04, 20:27
Many of the cards had our unit patch on the other side. If it didn't we would leave the card and a unit patch on the dead. We wanted their buddies to know it was us that killed them.
Psywar eh?, I can see how that would freak me out if I found one of your cards. I have got to say though that after a while I would get so used to it that it would probably just piss me off after a while?. :roll:
I hit the deck once in a "contact" in NI and came up with a mouthful of four leafed clovers! So I kept one and have had it ever since.
I also used to wear odd socks all the time because when you hear of somebody getting killed they never mention that the victim was wearing them, therefore it must be safe!?!
Frisco-Kid
18-06-04, 03:29
Lucky Charms
I wore a St. Patrick's medal that my grandmother had given me as a boy. I also wore a St. Michael's medal. St. Michael is the Patron Saint of paratroopers and policemen. Just before I left the 101st, I gave St. Mike to an FNG who JUST KNEW that he wasn't going to make it. I told him it worked for me, and it would work for him. He's not on The Wall, so I guess he made it.
LT., alot of us, including me, wore one of our dog tags on one of our boots, also. For the same reason; if you were blown to pieces, they could at least maybe identify your foot and whatever else was attached to it. Some grim thinking, but a real possibility. I've picked up more than my share of body parts.
Calling Cards
Bill and I discussed their use in the 101st in one of the VN threads. I find it interesting that they were used pretty much the whole war. They were already in use when I got to the 101st, and they had been in-country just about a year by then. LT., you were there closer to the end of the war, and they were still being used. I guess about every infantry unit probably used them at one time or another.
My FAVORITE thing to leave with dead bodies though, was a frag grenade with a smoke grenade fuse in it. No 4 second delay.......instant KABOOM! Gave body recovery for Charlie a whole different dimension.
Bill Farnie
18-06-04, 07:24
I wore a Saint Christopher medal that my girlfriend had given me before I left for Nam. The 101st had opened their own in country R&R/stand down base called Eagle Beach. It actually was a part of China Beach on the South China Sea. So anyway, we went there after Hamburger Hill for a stand down and to get replacements and I went swimming and I lost the St. Christopher medal while air mattress surfing. That very day was the last day I got a letter from my girlfriend. About a month later I got a letter from her cousin who told me that my girl had gotten married because she was pregnant. Jody strikes again!!!!
Did kinda get back at her though, in my own mind I guess, when I got home. I dated her cousin (the one who wrote me) and…well you know...
same/same with the dogtags.
Frisco-Kid
19-06-04, 05:01
Was there a set length of time for a tour in N. Ireland? Besides the paras, were there other infantry units there? Was it all Regular Army, or were there any Reserve/National Guard units [or British equivelent]?
Bombardier
19-06-04, 09:07
Was there a set length of time for a tour in N. Ireland? Besides the paras, were there other infantry units there? Was it all Regular Army, or were there any Reserve/National Guard units [or British equivelent]?
Generally as far as I am aware the set tour was 6 months however there were shorter tours called "Emergency tours" these were flexible in length and could be as short as maybe 2 or 3 months. Virtually every Unit from the british Army served there and mostly in an infantry role, however certain specialists continued with their normal duties in N.I. I am not aware of any Territorial units being involved unless of course they were Local Territorial units.
NB. Some British Army units were posted to the Province full time.
I was there as a dog handler full time, free to leave any time I wished or if I felt I was no longer immortal, which as you know happens as you get wiser with age!
P.S. It's my bloody birthday today and I feel ooooooooooold!
Bombardier
19-06-04, 23:34
Many happy returns buddy :mrgreen:
Frisco-Kid
20-06-04, 08:07
Tosh
HAPPY B'DAY! I hope you had a GREAT one. How many fingers old are you?
You didn't have a minimum time to stay before you could request to leave? Did you and the dog come and go as a team, or did the dog stay when you rotated out. Was the dog trained for anything specific; tracker, scout, security, sniff out explosives or booby traps, etc.? What breeds were used?
War dogs were used in Nam. About every large base had security dogs on the perimeter. They were also used by infantry units frequently; either as trackers or scouts. The trackers were used in the obvious way. The scout dogs were usually used on point as an early warning. Personally, I didn't like working with them much. To me, it seemed like they gave frequent false alarms and slowed us down. Also, the handler couldn't carry all of his combat load plus all the stuff for the dog; extra water and rations. Some of us took up the extra. Guys had to carry an extra canteen or food. The dogs required more water than we did. They were more susceptible to heat stroke. Extra weight to a grunt is a big deal.
These dogs were NOT pets. These guys would take your face off if given a chance. The handler was the only one that had any control over them. Once while having a dog on our point, the dog hit a trip wire setting off a frag grenade. It killed the handler and seriously wounded the dog. Even though it had to drag it's hind quarters behind itself, it WOULD NOT let us near the dead handler. We had to shoot the dog to recover his body.
The dog and handler were a team for the handler's tour, or until one or the other were killed. The dogs were never rotated out of Nam. They were there for the duration. The most common breed used were shepards or shepard mix. Labradors were probably the next most common. A Marine told me that he once worked with a giant poodle. Whatever met the size and weight requirements. When the U.S. pulled out, the dogs were turned over to the ARVNs. Hell, some of these dogs were bigger than an ARVN. I wonder how they worked out as a team. I'm guessing not too good. It was a shame that we just abandoned them. They were just a piece of equipment to the military. Come to think of it, so was I.
My dog was an Arms and Explosives search dog (see my gallery for a pic of me and him) As you can see he was a collie of which he was the only one. The Army does not breed dogs but rely on public donation for animals so any breeds can be used as long as they are up to the job! There are (were) 4 types- Guard, Drugs, AES and Tracker in the province. When I left, alas, I had to leave him behind because I was his first handler and he probably had another 6/7 years left, also I couldn't afford the 9k to buy him out!
And I'm not telling you how old I am! :D
For anyone who has not served (or has and wants a reminder!) this link from Britain's Small Wars website is fascinating:
http://www.britains-smallwars.com/ni/Diary2.html
On a general note, this website should (if not already there) be in our websites to take note of! If it's not there, I'll do it now!
Frisco-Kid
03-07-04, 08:35
A fasinating read about a stressful job, Zofo. Although I've done sweeps and have had gunfights in villages, it's not the same as urban street fighting. Sounds like it was somewhat parallel to Nam in that you didn't always know who the combatants were.
While serving there did you get passes into the local towns, or were you taken back to England for a little down time? Could you go out of your barracks area in civilian clothes and go have a beer in a nearby pub? Date local girls? Or, were you a prisoner of the situation? Was it too dangerous of a place for a British soldier to fraternize with the locals?
Was the only hostile contact with the IRA, or were there any confrontations with the Protestant paramilitary groups? Were there any attempts at winning over the hearts and minds of the populace? Try to convince the locals that you were the good guys? Most people forget that British troops were originally sent in to protect the Catholics from Protestant attacks. A very complex, many faceted situation.
Frisco,
It's a funny place and I don't mean Ha Ha,
Most of the province is (or was) divided into either Catholic (republican) or Protestant (Loyalists) areas. It is very hard to explain and I simplify matters so no offence intended to our Irish cousins. I won't delve back to far to avoid the politics but will tell you from a soldiers view.
Right,- the republicans want "the Brits out" and the loyalists are loyal to the Queen and want to remain British. NB I think the loyalists outnumber the Republicans, but I may stand corrected.
On a short tour of the province most soldiers are not allowed leisure time outside SF bases but on the longer ones,as long as you stay in the "right" areas you can almost think it is like Saturday night in England. Stray in the wrong areas and well- you are toast. The lesson is, know your boundaries, and you will never see any trouble.
Again, apologies are forthcoming if any one is offended, but all mistakes are intentional for ease.
I spent a three year tour there and have never met a more friendly, complex, bitter people anywhere.
Lesson is- you can live there all your life, and still not understand what the bloody hell is going on! Anyway, heres to peace.
Frisco,
NB I think the loyalists outnumber the Republicans, but I may stand corrected.
Stray in the wrong areas and well- you are toast. The lesson is, know your boundaries, and you will never see any trouble.
Loyalists outnumbered the Republicans - absolutely. I did 2 emergency tours, v. short & v. isolated but on tour 1 in Lisburn it was like England - out & about - In the late 80's or early 90's the Brits did a 1/2 marathon run in the area, it was that safe. However, the provos using reverse psychology blew up at least one runner (or shot him, memory fails me) because we thought it was THAT safe. In Co. Armargh, no one went anywhere without "gat", a pig (Saxon or wheeled APC) or hideous amounts of firepower. A very dangerous place to be - AKA Bandit Country.
In Co. Armargh, no one went anywhere without "gat", a pig (Saxon or wheeled APC) or hideous amounts of firepower. A very dangerous place to be - AKA Bandit Country.[/quote]
I didn't go anywhere unless it was in a helicopter or on Mark 1 Direct Moulded Sole!
Bombardier
04-07-04, 10:50
I did 2 Emergency tours and we were never allowed out of the camp, not that we ever had the time to go anywhere. The time in between patrols was spent eating,sleeping,cleaning weapons and equipment and attending briefings. When we did get a chance to relax we just had a beer or two in the NAAFI. Dont think I would have wanted to go outside anyway? :roll:
We were just like any other lads of our age, drinking, clubbing etc. We even got to do sea fishing and sightseeing ie Giants Causeway. Again I stress it had to be in the "right" areas otherwise nasty things could happen to you.
Frisco-Kid
08-07-04, 08:50
Jaysus, Tosh! A 3yr. tour? Was that all voluntary? BTW, did you guys get "Combat" or "Hazardous Duty Pay" while serving in N. Ireland? Were you a dog handler the whole time there? How long is an enlistment in the British Army?
What kind of patrols did you go on? Were you out on the streets just to show your presence as peace keepers? Were you looking to make contact, like Search and Destroy? Would a small unit be put out as bait, to be quickly reinforced with a larger unit when contact was made?
Sorry for the barrage of questions. I told you I was going to find this forum interesting.
[quote="Frisco-Kid"]Jaysus, Tosh! A 3yr. tour? Was that all voluntary? BTW, did you guys get "Combat" or "Hazardous Duty Pay" while serving in N. Ireland? Were you a dog handler the whole time there? How long is an enlistment in the British Army?
No such thing as combat pay in the British Army! The only advantage in NI was that with the odd exception you did not have to pay food and accomodation charges because the bunkers we slept in were substandard- generous to a fault eh!
Upon enlistment you could sign up for 3, 6, 9, or 22 years and the more you went for you got slightly more pay.
Dog Handlers are drawn from All Arms, I was in the Royal Artillery originally but fancied a change and when you go to NI as a handler, because of the cost of training you could stay as long as you wanted (within reason)
What kind of patrols did you go on? Were you out on the streets just to show your presence as peace keepers? Were you looking to make contact, like Search and Destroy? Would a small unit be put out as bait, to be quickly reinforced with a larger unit when contact was made?
All different types of patrols. Can't really say more than that because of the ongoing situation. It's all in recent memory and the slightest spark, well- you understand.
But carry on with the questions, it's cheaper than therapy!
Frisco-Kid
09-07-04, 01:30
In Vietnam everybody in-country got paid an additional $65/mo, no matter what your MOS [job] was. Same thing for the sailors if their ship came within so many miles of shore. I'm sure it worked the same way for the fighter and bomber crews that flew sorties out of Thailand and Guam. I think Combat Pay went up to $125 for Desert Storm [Eagledriver?], and I'm guessing it's more now for Iraqi Freedom. Between Jump Pay [$55] and Combat Pay, I was making some serious money :mrgreen: as a PFC just in-country.
Am I to understand that you guys have to pay for you own food and accommodations? How does that work? Is this only when you're deployed to certain places, or all of the time?
Thanks for the answers, and I understand about the "Patrol" questions. Also, I know firsthand the therapeutic value of puting this stuff down in words, and "talking" to other people who have Been There, Done That. Thanks, my friend.
[.
Am I to understand that you guys have to pay for you own food and accommodations? How does that work? Is this only when you're deployed to certain places, or all of the time?
You pay for food and accom generally all the time unless you are in a real shithole. Someone may put me right but it's around 3 pounds a day for food and a little less for accomodation
Frisco-Kid
09-07-04, 02:44
Well, I'm thinking this pretty much sucks :shock: . With us, it's all paid for. If you live in a barracks and have access to a mess hall, it's no charge. If you're at a place that doesn't have military accommodations, they pay you COLA [Cost Of Living Allowance]. If you're married but there is no base housing available, they pay you COLA to live off base. If I recall, single officers and senior NCOs could live off base by choice and collect COLA. Some of the guys here that stayed in longer than me, might recall how this worked and correct me.
Did you ever read my explanation of how to post a picture? Give it a shot, Bud.
Eagledriver
09-07-04, 05:29
In Vietnam everybody in-country got paid an additional $65/mo, no matter what your MOS [job] was. Same thing for the sailors if their ship came within so many miles of shore. I'm sure it worked the same way for the fighter and bomber crews that flew sorties out of Thailand and Guam. I think Combat Pay went up to $125 for Desert Storm [Eagledriver?], and I'm guessing it's more now for Iraqi Freedom. Between Jump Pay [$55] and Combat Pay, I was making some serious money :mrgreen: as a PFC just in-country.
Am I to understand that you guys have to pay for you own food and accommodations? How does that work? Is this only when you're deployed to certain places, or all of the time?
Thanks for the answers, and I understand about the "Patrol" questions. Also, I know firsthand the therapeutic value of puting this stuff down in words, and "talking" to other people who have Been There, Done That. Thanks, my friend.
Rog on the combat pay. Also don't forget for those married- separation pay, Separate rations pay, etc. Pilots and crews get flight pay, combat pay(for combat aircrews).
Eagledriver
09-07-04, 05:33
Well, I'm thinking this pretty much sucks :shock: . With us, it's all paid for. If you live in a barracks and have access to a mess hall, it's no charge. If you're at a place that doesn't have military accommodations, they pay you COLA [Cost Of Living Allowance]. If you're married but there is no base housing available, they pay you COLA to live off base. If I recall, single officers and senior NCOs could live off base by choice and collect COLA. Some of the guys here that stayed in longer than me, might recall how this worked and correct me.
Did you ever read my explanation of how to post a picture? Give it a shot, Bud.
Frisco, it's called basic clothing and housing allowance and it works just about how you called it except that it covers any married soldier above private, not just officers and senior NCO's. However, I'm not sure if it covered single officers and senior NCO's. You could be right about that. I've been married for 36 years so I don't know. How about it, DMZ_LT?
[Did you ever read my explanation of how to post a picture? Give it a shot, Bud.[/quote]
Cheers, got it, will try it when I get more than 5 mins.
Yep , lived off post as a single officer when I came home from Bitnam and got COLA
Eagledriver
09-07-04, 15:03
Cool. I wasn't in the Know about singles living off base being married as long as I have.
[.
You pay for food and accom generally all the time unless you are in a real shithole. Someone may put me right but it's around 3 pounds a day for food and a little less for accomodation
Food now comes in just over three pounds now whilst accommodation is between 3-5 pounds, depending on the quality of the accommodation. Droney, do you remember Block 14 in Celle, that was grade III accommodation yet we still paid @ 2 pounds a day for the privilege!
Frisco-Kid
09-07-04, 18:04
When you're talking food and accommodations are you talking about military facilities; a mess hall and barracks? Or, like say Ireland, would they strike a deal with a property owner for an apartment house, warehouse, or what ever? Same thing with food; would they make arrangements with a civilian facility to feed you? This whole concept of charging you room and board boggles my mind. Especially even if you're at a military installation in the U.K..
Regarding food, the army had the ACC (Army Catering Corps) and no matter where you went, you'd find the cook or cooks with you. You pay for your meals, even when you didn't have them. I always served in barracks so always got to pay for my accommodation. However, there where occasions when the army paid us - Local Overseas Allowance covered you for food and accn at cheaper rates and also when you had to leave barracks - I did a big chemical warfare ex. in Germany on the Luneberg Heath and as I was just monitoring and recording dug in infantry for Porton Down (our chemical defence establishment) the army put me into a rather swish country hotel AND paid for the room and two meals a day (booze we paid for!).
I served with the US Army at a place called Camp Freya in the Fulda Gap and the US soldiers had a better way of arranging their food - they paid for it when they ate it - either by cash or with a chit of some sort. I always assumed that you guys did the same as us?!
Frisco-Kid
09-07-04, 19:47
Zofo, no, not at all. Except as described about the COLA, everything was provided us. The G.I.s you described using money and chits: the one's with the chits were probably stationed there. The one's paying cash could have been TDY [temporary duty] there, and had been given a food allowance. If you remember my story about my stay in Saigon, I was put up in a transient hotel and given chits for meals.
Here in the states, a member of the armed forces could go to any military base, show his ID card to get on said base, as long as he had business there, and eat in their mess hall. If in uniform, he could walk right in and eat. If in civvies, he would show his ID card. I've done it a couple of times.
The guys who lived off post got extra pay for food they had to buy "on the economy" as they called it. Seperate rations, sep rats. If they got the sep rat pay they had to pay for their mess hall meals if I recollect right.
Bloody 'ell, I served in the wrong mob. Our "pads" married folk had to pay rent on their married quarters and had to send the wife shopping for the groceries. Nothing so fancy as a PX (there was a huge one in Bremen which was like going to consumer heaven!!) but we had the NAAFI (Navy, Army, Air Force Institute) which was sort of ok - all our own (Brit brand name) stuff. As a singlie we also had to pay tax or equivalent to that in the UK (rates, then poll tax then council tax!) but so did the pads. Pads found in the cookhouse when not on guard or going on exercise were known as "bean stealers" - they couldn't buy a meal or anything and if caught having lunch or some other meal, they were more often than not reported, charged and fined. There were always plenty of people who would bubble them!!
I must have wasted a few quid over the years paying for three square meals and prefering to eat elsewhere.
Rule no. 1 - If you have money, you never eat in the Cookhouse!
That's for sure - we went to an "Indian" steak house (careful Viking!) in Celle, Germany (the Indians were what we would call "Red" our US friends would call native) and the girl who opened the door asked if we had a reservation! She couldn't understand why we pissed ourselves laughing!
Mmmm German restaurants,- Weiner and Ziegerner Schnitzel mit Pommes!
...oder halbhaenchen (?) mit pommes und paprika von der schnellimbiss.
Drone_pilot
10-07-04, 17:17
war das vom City grill einfach gegenüberliegend die Stadtkirche ?
...oder halbhaenchen (?) mit pommes und paprika von der schnellimbiss.
mit currywurst oder bratwurst und senf tng1;
Bombardier
11-07-04, 01:04
Enjoy a Yager schnitzel myself mit pommes und mayonaise bitte :mrgreen:
Isn't this the Northern Ireland thread?
Ok, I'll have an Ulster fry up and Soda Bread!
Bombardier
11-07-04, 16:35
Yes Yes your right Tosh, come on guys we are off topic a little here, can we get back on track please. If it food you want to discuss drywall has all types of food imaginable. :mrgreen:
Served there in 72/73/75 and 77. Then went back in 78 and did 21+ yrs as a Prison Officer. Yes I am insane. ;)
Was there a set length of time for a tour in N. Ireland? Besides the paras, were there other infantry units there? Was it all Regular Army, or were there any Reserve/National Guard units [or British equivelent]?
I did 4 four month tours during the 70's
2nd tour in 73 was to a factory in Londonderry in Bligh's Lane. We were the lucky ones who got the bomb-proof caravans!!!!! On arrival we had to draw bedding etc from stores and take it to our respective "van". At that precise moment a gunman opened fire on us from the roof of a nearby school. We to say the least were startled, until that is our Armourer realised the guy was firing a Thompson Sub Machine gun at us. Well he then proceeded to go to the most open space in the factory and started giving the gunman the fingers. That was enough for the rest of us and we all rushed out and were dancing and giving lewd/rude jestures to the guy. Apparently our Armourer realised that his weapon could not reach us and so decided to show this act of Bravado. The gunman was jumping up and down with rage at the sight of us all laughing. I still laugh to this day about it.
Bombardier
20-02-05, 02:25
Fucking excellent show of True Military Bravado box;
Well done tam, your story warms the cockles of my very big heart :mrgreen:
Excellant story Tam. The interesting thing about a Thompson was that you could throw the bullet farther then you could fire it.
RW
Frisco-Kid
20-02-05, 09:35
Tam, was LMAO getting a mental picture of that little scenario lolb; . Had an E-6 [Staff Sergeant] Platoon Sgt. that carried a Thompson on a couple patrols. I think he traded it from some SF guy. Those guys could get their hands on some pretty cool weapons at times. Anyway, he quit carrying it after the first time he actually had to use it. That .45 round had some great knockdown power, but the guy you were shooting had to be in a phone booth with you uzi, .
Even as RAF, during my 3 year tour, I did time in 'Tin City' had some excellent times as 'Civ Pol' throwing beer cans (after drinking the contents), at about 4am one time we are all dead drunk and they tell us to 'have a go' at the next set of troops passing, it turned into a mini-war. Still carry the marks from that day.... dr;
We had a go at the Thompson when we were NI training (know your enemy) I remember they were hard to fire as you had to aim at the targets feet because by the time you had compensated for the force you were shooting at the head! It certainly took you by surprise.
That 45 caliber round for the Thompson was designed by the US Army to stop drug crazed Morros during the Phillipines fracas after 1898. It was so slow you could watch it go downrange but whatever you hit stayed hit. I carried a 45 cal submachine gun that we called the Greasegun in my aircraft for a while. It had the same rate of fire as a 50 cal - slow.
RW
Bombardier
20-02-05, 14:45
Hey Matzos have you got any decent pics of tin city in your arsenal of photographs ? bou;
Unregistered
22-06-07, 00:44
Hi Bombadier
Do you now Philip Makar from 34 Seringapatam Heavy Battery, 39 Hvy Regt RA, stationed in Paderborn til 1985? Barker & Dempsey Barracks? Softcell, Big Bob, Yorkie, Pedro???
Whats you full name?
Bea (Makar)
beamak(at)blueyonder.co.uk
Bombardier
30-06-07, 09:58
Hi Unregistered
The name Philip Makar doesnt ring any bells but then Ive got a memory like a sieve.
I remember our block at Barker we used it while our block at Dempsey was being renovated and the walks accross in the morning during the bad winters were fecking awful.
Now the names Softcell, Big Bob. yorkie and Pedro defo ring bells.
Im not going to post my full name here, Ill email you.
(Y)
eddiefrench
02-07-07, 14:55
Hee Hee :) , no buddy I missed that by a few months thank god
I don't know anybody who knows anything about the 'other' maze over in Derry (Magilligans point).
I remember the day that the UVF was declared illegal, (and loads of them were arrested as they came in to work at Ebrington next day.)
We were instructed to go in and dis-arm the inmates a Magilligans point. We had mountains of the stuff by morning. Home made guns, knives etc.
Glory days.
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