An Cosantóir

An Cosantóir Dec 2017 / Jan 2018 www.dfmagazine.ie 16 | By SGT KARl ByRNE As tough a week as that was, at the end of it we had to carry out the tradi- tional race/battle run the 'Fan Dance', a 34km march/run, carrying weapon and kit accumulating to approximate- ly 40lbs weight, the last 4km of the race the platoon then had to carry an 18 stone stretcher. This race just proved how high a level of fitness soldiers in the British Army hold themselves to. C pl Rory Behan joined the Defence Forces in November 2004 with the Air Defence Regiment (ADR) in the Curragh Camp. Complet- ing both his recruit training and three-star course in the ADR, "I enjoyed every minute of it, it was a totally new challenge to me". After training, Rory was posted to B Coy, 3 Inf Bn, also in the Curragh Camp. He completed various courses in B Coy including the 84mm Anti- Tank weapon, 7.62mm GPMG SF and 12.7mm HMG. In 2006 he travelled overseas to Liberia with the 96th Inf Bn UNMIL. In 2008 he completed an NCOs course and upon promotion under- went various courses like the Mowag Command Course, Public Order Instructors Course and PTS and PTI courses. Since promotion he has trained five recruit platoons, "it's a great feeling to impart your knowl- edge to the new members of the Defence Forces and watch them learn and grow." In the 2012 Defence Forces re-org, B Coy 3 Inf Bn was established as a stand-alone mobile unit 1 Mech Inf Coy (1 MIC). In 2014 Rory served overseas again with the 45th Inf Gp UNIFIL, and in April 2016 he com- pleted the All Arms Standard Course (AASC) in the NCO Training Wing (NCOTW) of the Military College, DFTC. In April 2017 Rory was selected to undergo the British Army's 12-week Platoon Sergeant Battle Course (PSBC) in the Infantry Battle School in Brecon, Wales. Another 90 students from different British Army units including the Scots Guards, Parachute Regt and the Royal Irish Regt to name a few joined him. "The reception was kind of standoffish but no different to any course here at home. Within days bonds were starting to form and then typical army banter seemed to take hold." The first seven weeks were spent doing tactics, with only two weeks spent in barracks and it was heavily based on the '7 Question Combat Estimate'. "Fitness levels were extremely high, which became apparent when we had to do various fitness tests, including an 8-mile battle run, which if not completed was an automatic fail like the 12 students found out. Other tests included a 2-mile and 3-mile battle run carrying 37lbs Bergan and the SA80 rifle, which is much heavier than the Steyr." Week 3 was a patrolling/offensive week, which wasn't too different from the DF's SOPs, "we easily covered over 100km, constantly advancing into contact, covering that distance had me fatigued by the end of it". Week 4 was a defensive exercise, "extremely tough, digging into trenches for the week, then a 5-mile battle fitness assessment at the end, which included an ammo resupply to mortar positions and then a platoon level assault at the end of the resupply." Week 5 was a FIBUA exercise, assaulting and defending the purpose- built village of Cellini in Sennybridge. Through the week they wore TESS gear, this realised the whole exercise. "As tough a week as that was, at the end of it we had to carry out the traditional race/battle run the 'Fan Dance', a 34km march/run, carrying weapon and kit accumulating to approximately 40lbs weight, the last 4km of the race the platoon then had to carry an 18 stone stretcher. This race just proved how high a level of fitness soldiers in the British Army hold themselves to."

• Cover