Enemy para troopers fai lto break down FCA’s defence

April 1985

WHILE the rest of the country celebrated Ireland’s Triple Crown victory last Saturday, bitter fighting was taking place in the hills of Wicklow as World War III erupted.

A force of enemy paratroopers were making a determined effort to capture strategic points in and around Dublin but in their way stood infantry mobilised to meet the emergency.

Rifles, machine guns, mortars, artillery and combat vehicles all came into play during a series of hard-fought battles, in which the hazards were increased by fallout from a number of nuclear strikes in the west of England.

There was even a helicopter on hand to ferry casualties away from the fighting. This was the scenario for ‘Operation Springtime’, a major military exercise held last weekend by the Eastern Command of the FCA to test the training and tactical readiness of local volunteer forces.

Like the big rugby match on Saturday, the exercise ended in victory for Ireland when the FCA forces, including Bray’s ‘A’ Company of 21 Battalion FCA first repulsed and then routed the attackers.

Following mobilisation shortly after 6 pm on Saturday, the defenders dug in and awaited the first attack. They had to maintain constant vigilance as they did not know when the first attack would come.

In keeping with Ireland’s neutral stance, the ‘enemy’ was not specified as either NATO or Warsaw Pact, but their part was played by a select band from 20 Battalion.

The first assault came and was repulsed shortly before first light on Sunday morning and during the series of encounters which followed, battlefield obstacles were laid by the engineers. They added a number of demolitions which added an air of realism to the exercise.