EX SWABIAN EAGLE 2005

Hey guys!

My name is Tim, I´m 36 years old and a child of the Cold War.
Growing up in the 1980s I witnessed every single British vehicle rolling through my village.
I forgot to count the countless movements, just to name a few major exercises having started in my location (Salzgitter-Ringelheim, about 30k to the former Eastern German Border) : Crusader 80 (I think this is the first FTX I can remember), Lionheart 84, Eternal Triangle 86, Key Stone 87, Iron Hammer 88 and....Key FLight 89 that was unfortunately the last time for me to see British tracked vehicles near my home ! And I never got my bloody camera out because I didn´t want to miss any tank and wanted to see, hear and smell them as close as possible! But never made one bloody picture!

A few years after the end of the Cold War, my addiction to the British Army was so bad that I started to crack on finding them at SLA, Bergen-Hohne and on the smaller exercises that were still held in 443 areas.
From 1997 on, I started making video and visited every single exercise possible, also in Poland at the DPTA that was the last place where the world was turning.

Now we write the year 2011 and the damned trouth stoke me down with the force of a lightning, that the British Army will leave Germany.
Some units have gone what is a shame: Light Dragoons and 12th Air Defence Regiment Royal Artillery.
One of my favourit units are QDG still being based at Paderborn. They were based at Wolfenbüttel what is only 30 minutes away from me.
I had the luck to visit some of their exercises in Germany,i.e. SWABIAN EAGLE that took place in the Swabian region in Southern Germany.
I will never forget this exercise and could write a book about it!

I would be grateful about finding some guys from QDG here in this forum and want to show you some pictures:





















Maybe anyone remembers my wagon:



I also invite you to take a look on our famous manoeuvre-website where you will find a plenty of shots about this exercise:

http://m136.de/swabian-eagle-2005-galerie-zum-mn-pictures-video

Now have fun and enjoy!

Greetinx, Tim!

Welcome. Some great photos. Best are the ones in the snow. Especially the one with the guy with red hair, no helmet on. It epitmises all what we know about winter excercises in Germany

Well done again.

Alan

Hi Tim

Sehr schöne bilder.alles geschichte
Some very nice photos all history now

Very nice and interesting

Thanks for those, Tim.

Don't those pictures bring it all back though ?

Frozen to the bone with no forseeable chance of getting warm. I was in Ferrets but the suffering was the same !

Excellent Tim - you didn't work for SOXMIS by any chance? (Joke).

Quote :

Frozen to the bone with no forseeable chance of getting warm. I was in Ferrets but the suffering was the same !

Ah you poor soul...You should have been a bleep and had a nice warm box body to work in.

Hey guys,

nice that you like my impressions!
Well, I dont´s know how often I´ve been asked if I work for the Russians because it seems to be hard to unterstand that a German guy is so keen on British Armour...!
But I can´t help, I grew up with it. To my time it was more than usual to have British armour on the road next to all the civil traffic! From the very first time I got in tuch with a tank I got addicted to! I couldn´t be too close, sucked in the exhaust gases and enjoyed every vibration, picked up camnetpieces and rubber pads....I spent all my time outside with the soldiers and everything was ok!
After the end of the Cold War everything has changed so badly. Now you have to make a big effort to see this again and only on those bloody training ranges!
I would give everything for having an exercise in my location again! I still pray every day that QDG will come again to their former area and go on FTX, but the go anywhere rather than going back to the roots...

Now I have everything:mobility, camera, maps, knowledge....but no exercise.

It´s a shame...

Greetinx, Tim

Gordon. wrote:

Quote :

Frozen to the bone with no forseeable chance of getting warm. I was in Ferrets but the suffering was the same !

Ah you poor soul...You should have been a bleep and had a nice warm box body to work in.

Speak for yourself, this bleep and his colleagues spent many a time frozen to death on and in 432's. Bloody techies!

Ah Teabag I forget about you war mongering types at brigade etc.Never mind i`m sure you enjoyed it.

Showing my ignorance again, (privilege of age !).

Those AFVs in the snowstorm, the crew members only seem to be wearing "Combat Kit".

Clearly they aren't wearing the excellent Parka so I imagine they aren't issued any more.

What Cold Weather clothing is available to them these days ?

brum wrote:

Showing my ignorance again, (privilege of age !).

Those AFVs in the snowstorm, the crew members only seem to be wearing "Combat Kit".

Clearly they aren't wearing the excellent Parka so I imagine they aren't issued any more.

What Cold Weather clothing is available to them these days ?

Given the cuts, probably something from Poundland!

brum wrote:

Showing my ignorance again, (privilege of age !).

Those AFVs in the snowstorm, the crew members only seem to be wearing "Combat Kit".

Clearly they aren't wearing the excellent Parka so I imagine they aren't issued any more.

What Cold Weather clothing is available to them these days ?

Beautiful piece of kit, the parka. I was only issued with one for guard duty, but I think they were standard issue for tank crews in Germany.

The current clothing system is based upon layers covering from warm to cold weather. The cold weather clothing is similar to that used in the civlian world consisting of thermal but light weight protection from underwear to fleece and weather proof shell, much better than the old parka ofour days. There is new system about to be issued in the latest DPM multi terrain pattern and taking in the need to make the wearinng of body armour more comfortable.

BobG wrote:

The current clothing system is based upon layers covering from warm to cold weather. The cold weather clothing is similar to that used in the civlian world consisting of thermal but light weight protection from underwear to fleece and weather proof shell, much better than the old parka ofour days. There is new system about to be issued in the latest DPM multi terrain pattern and taking in the need to make the wearinng of body armour more comfortable.

Thanks Bob,

Yes I can see how fleece/Goretex would work, (I use the stuff myself when out walking).

A nice, well-fitting parka would take some beating all the same !