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fougasses,
demigasses and hedgehoppers, on tanks and tank destruction,
on German airborne tactics and weapons, patrol disruption,
message writing and map-reading. One of our members, a Section
Commander, brings his talkie and arranges a comprehensive
programme of films from the Army Kinema Service, and we have
military films on numerous infantry subjects, fortnightly,
throughout the winter - and so Winter Training 1941/42 proceeds
smoothly with excellent attendances at all parades and lectures.
Ammunition is more plentiful and we fire on open range
at two-monthly intervals with an amazingly progressive improvement
in results. On our last shoot, .300, fifteen rounds per
man throughout the platoon, recruits included, we get three
bulls or inners for every four shots fired. Machine-gun
training is also now at a high level and we solve the difficulty
of using the B.A.R. as a light machine gun, even up to Bren
standard. Members provide cups for competition and sweeps
are arranged on the results to create that little additional
interest which makes for a highly enjoyable morning.
Night and day exercises are becoming numerous and we have
week-end stand-to's with interesting schemes arranged. On
one such night exercise, due to a bad recce., the Platoon
Sergeant leading two sections goes knee-deep into filter
beds at the local sewage farm and is noisome to all
senses throughout the week-end. He has not, even yet, lived
that one down. During these week-end musters we find a lot
of talent in the platoon in field cookery, using improvised
field kitchens built from rubble, and we live well if a
little roughly. We take a mental stock of available food
in the area in the event of trouble - having to live on
the country and find enough to feed the district - including
the prize Jersey herd. We find, also, that one of our sergeants
had early training as a butcher. We resolve to live exclusively
on roast chicken for the first week after the balloon goes
up.
Courses are now being arranged by every
formation and at every opportunity and are
so hopelessly overdone that Officers and N.C.Os. have to
be detailed to attend. At one stage we have twenty-two items
of new instructions received by our Officers and N.C.Os.
from courses, without the slightest hope of putting more
than a fraction over to the platoon, due to the time factor
and other commitments.
The platoon attends the Battalion week-end
course and finds out its physical limitations. A route march
there and back, two platoons in attack, night patrols, P.T.,
and winding up with an assault course which would make a
Commando breathe hard. A number of the over-fifties failed
to turn up at work next day.
Our Company Commander resigns and we part
with a very good friend with great regret. We welcome his
successor, well known to us as 2nd i/c since the beginning
of L.D.V., and pledge our fullest support.
(......continues.....)
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