OC C Sqn - November and December Update

By Major JL Cochrane
15 January 2009

 

First off let me be one of the many to wish you all a Happy New Year! The holidays have now come and gone and we are in the final stretch before we head off on our deployment overseas. A lot has happened since I last provided an update and things are moving faster than it seems possible. A portion of the Squadron has now completed its training on the Leopard 2A6M and is now gearing up for a brief refresher deployment to Fort Bliss Texas/New Mexico; meanwhile the remainder of the Squadron is heading off to Germany to conduct its serial of training with the Leopard 2A6M. By all accounts, and reports, from the crews that just came back prior to Christmas – this is an outstanding tank that will serve us well in theatre. During the fall serial the Colonel Commandant of the Armour Corps, Major-General (Retired) Clive Addy, and the Director of Armour, Colonel Lowell Thomas, visited members of the Squadron while on the live fire range and those conducting refresher training. The visit was a big hit with all members of the Squadron, especially when Major-General Addy decided that he wanted to see just how heavy a 120mm round was compared to that of a 105mm round. It suffices to say that the soldiers of the Squadron had no difficulty in putting the General to work!

 

The Squadron members continue getting themselves prepared administratively for the deployment and are sifting through the medical, dental, and associated paper work that never seems to end with an overseas deployment. A Family Brief and package is still in the works and looking to be scheduled for the first week of March. This will be a short brief of about an hour followed by a question period and snacks. We are in the process of coordinating child care and there will be letters of invitation sent out in early February followed by phone calls to confirm that everyone has received the information. If anyone has any specific questions, please feel free to forward them to me through your loved one and we will do our best to answer them either before the briefing or ensure the answers are included in the Family Brief.

 

Lastly I want to congratulate two individuals who were promoted immediately prior to Christmas:
MCpl Hordyk; and
Cpl Underwood.

 

Well done to you both, this was no doubt a great Christmas present.

 

Perseverance.