An Cosantóir

An Cosantóir November 2017 www.dfmagazine.ie 38 | Audrey doyle HQ Coy, 2 Bde CIS Coy CorporAl I work in the technical Workshops of 2 Brigade CIS Company in Cathal Brugha Bks. I'm from Skerries in north Co Dublin, but I now live in Carlanstown, Kells Co Meath. I am married with two children, a 5-year-old girl and a 15-month-old boy. Before join- ing the Defence Forces I worked in Gateway Computers for about two years, doing customer service, it wasn't something I enjoyed so I decided to join the DF. Enlisting in December 1999, and training with the 5 Inf Bn in Gormanstown Camp as it was known back then. I spent four and half years in the 5 Inf Bn doing a range of different courses, from a Mag SF course to a clerk's course. Along with courses, I was involved in plenty of exercises and the ATCP flood relief back then too. I went overseas for the first time with the 6th Tpt Coy to Kosovo. I thoroughly enjoyed this mis- sion, as it was a change from normal military life at home. In 2003 the Trainee Technician Scheme (TTS) became available so I applied in for it. Being a successful applicant I went to Dundalk Institute of Technology (DKIT) for two years, where I earned a Higher Cer tificate in Electronic En- gineering. The two years af terwards were spent doing my 'City and Guilds' course and exams in the DFTC, which in- cluded subjects such as data-coms, maths and radio-coms. When fully qualified, I was posted to 2 Field CIS Coy in Cathal Brugha Bks, where I've served since now called 2 Bde CIS Coy. Upon my posting, I spent my initial time as an understudy to Cpl Mick Reid and Sgt Phil Curry. I learned so much while and I still work with Phil today. In 2008 I com- pleted my NCOs Course in 2 Brigade Training Centre (BTC) in Cathal Brugha Bks and I was pro- moted in 2011. I went back to Kosovo in 2009 with the 40th Infantry Group, spend- ing my time as a CIS tech in Logs Coy. Getting promoted didn't really change my day-to-day job as such, but it did make me more responsible for the work I was doing. My day-to-day tasking's changes on a daily basis, which means your knowledge base of the CIS Corps needs to be fairly wide. The kind of jobs we get tasked with varies from fixing and fitting of the CIS system, consisting of Sincgars, Harris, Motorolla or Ro- vis radios to the hardware network side of the DF. This would be fixing and fitting switches, routers and ca- bling, which is the backbone of the DF computing net- work. We also maintain the telephony system across the brigade, fleet maintenance of Mowags, LTAVs and any other vehicles fitted with radios within the brigade. While overseas another par t of our taskings is the main- tenance of the Gigasat system, which directly links over- seas units with Ireland, this is an essential system to have because as at times of emergency it may be the only link to home for the overseas unit. At home, we also maintain the rebro stations on the relevant masts across the brigade, which could mean travelling to Athlone or even Finner Camp in Donegal. We also maintain the microwave systems that link barracks to barracks for voice and data. Another tasking that happens from time to time is the par tial as- sistance with 2 Bde CIS Coy Training Section for Regimen- tal Signals Courses. We also have Exercise Viking coming up in Sweden next year, that I will be playing a technical roll in, the preparation for which has already begun. I plan on completing my contract up to my 21-year, up to then I would like to up-skill myself by completing such courses as the Cisco Cer tified Networking Associate (CCNA) course and the Riggers Course. As a parent, I don't plan on going overseas again unless the family-friendly trips were opened up to tech appointments. This job presents great oppor tunities for educational and career purposes and I thoroughly enjoy my job and the people I work with. REPoRt AnD PhotoS By SGt KARl ByRnE

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