WE’RE READY
Britain’s message to Putin and ISIS as military stage a massive show of high tech force in Oman desert..
tanks, Bulldogs and Trojan armoured vehicles. We were with the Royal Tank Regiment as they carried out a 3am assault on the enemy, played by the Household Cavalry who set up in a formation favoured by Russia’s T72 tanks.
Around eight miles from the camp, platoon commander Niall O’Malley Pearson, 26, gave the order – “Release! Release! Release!” and into combat they went. Lt Pearson said: “When I give that order, it’s like releasing a pack of dogs.” The military outfit will travel 155 miles from Camp Shafa near the capital Muscat, across the desert to a finish point near Duqm Port. Hightech strike brigades, designed to practise 21st Century warfare using latest technology, are also involved. For the first time, drones costing less than £1,000 are being used to scope out enemy lines and look for mines with remote-controlled Trojan vehicles.
One controller Cpl Brett Hodges, 18, said: “Some of the younger lads are much better at it as they’re used to Xbox and PlayStation.”
And in the field hospital at Camp Shafa, doctors are trialling technology that allows specialists in the UK to “reach in” to complex treatments on the front line. Cameras link field surgeons back to UK experts who can see injuries, give advice and even be ‘handson’ from thousands of miles away.
Meanwhile, Armed Forces Minister Mark Lancaster told troops aboard amphibious assault ship HMS Albion that the exercise was “the culmination of what proper militaries can do, the ability to deploy overseas.
“It’s sending a very clear message the UK has a military that is prepared to deploy at scale to support our allies in delivering global security.”