Exercise Cambrian Patrol
Encyclopedia
Exercise Cambrian Patrol is an annual patrolling
competition that takes place throughout the Cambrian Mountains
of mid-Wales
. An internationally recognized military exercise, previous participants have included numerous Europe
an states, in addition to Commonwealth
countries and the United States
.
Cambrian Patrol was first set up more than 40 years ago, by a group of Welsh Territorial Army soldiers who designed the training event to feature long distance marching over the Cambrian Mountains and which culminated in a shooting match on the Sennybridge
training area. Since then, the exercise has been rigorously updated to meet the challenges faced by modern soldiers.
In 2006 the event which ran from 27 October to 5 November 2006, attracted 95 teams from the British Army
(regular and territorial) and Royal Air Force
. Foreign army teams from Pakistan
, Canada
, Lithuania
, Latvia
, Denmark
, India
, France
and the Czech Republic
also took part. A total of 64 teams completed the exercise.
The competition consists of teams of 8 men carrying up to 60 Lbs each across some of the most unforgiving terrain. There have been account of teams trudging through bog land up to their waist for 48 hours only to cover 60 km. It's a test of leadership, self discipline, courage and determination. The exercise usually starts with teams arriving at a Rendezvous before having their equipment checked to make sure they have everything required. Missing equipment will be replaced by dead weight and will mean points will be deducted. From there the team leader will be taken to orders while the rest of the team set up a quick hide, start their battle prep and prepare to receive orders i.e. prepare a model of the ground which will be covered during the patrol.
Patrolling
Patrolling is a military tactic. Small groups or individual units are deployed from a larger formation to achieve a specific objective and then return. The tactic of patrolling may be applied to ground troops, armoured units, naval units, and combat aircraft...
competition that takes place throughout the Cambrian Mountains
Cambrian Mountains
The Cambrian Mountains are a series of mountain ranges in Wales, reaching from, and including, the South Wales mountains of the Brecon Beacons, north Carmarthenshire and Ceredigion, the Black Mountains of eastern Wales, to Snowdonia in North Wales...
of mid-Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
. An internationally recognized military exercise, previous participants have included numerous Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an states, in addition to Commonwealth
Commonwealth of Nations
The Commonwealth of Nations, normally referred to as the Commonwealth and formerly known as the British Commonwealth, is an intergovernmental organisation of fifty-four independent member states...
countries and the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
Cambrian Patrol was first set up more than 40 years ago, by a group of Welsh Territorial Army soldiers who designed the training event to feature long distance marching over the Cambrian Mountains and which culminated in a shooting match on the Sennybridge
Sennybridge
Sennybridge is a village in Powys, Mid Wales, situated some from Cardiff and from Swansea. It lies west of Brecon on the A40 trunk road to Llandovery, at the point where the River Senni flows into the Usk...
training area. Since then, the exercise has been rigorously updated to meet the challenges faced by modern soldiers.
In 2006 the event which ran from 27 October to 5 November 2006, attracted 95 teams from the British Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
(regular and territorial) and Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
. Foreign army teams from Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, Lithuania
Lithuania
Lithuania , officially the Republic of Lithuania is a country in Northern Europe, the biggest of the three Baltic states. It is situated along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea, whereby to the west lie Sweden and Denmark...
, Latvia
Latvia
Latvia , officially the Republic of Latvia , is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by Estonia , to the south by Lithuania , to the east by the Russian Federation , to the southeast by Belarus and shares maritime borders to the west with Sweden...
, Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
and the Czech Republic
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
also took part. A total of 64 teams completed the exercise.
The competition consists of teams of 8 men carrying up to 60 Lbs each across some of the most unforgiving terrain. There have been account of teams trudging through bog land up to their waist for 48 hours only to cover 60 km. It's a test of leadership, self discipline, courage and determination. The exercise usually starts with teams arriving at a Rendezvous before having their equipment checked to make sure they have everything required. Missing equipment will be replaced by dead weight and will mean points will be deducted. From there the team leader will be taken to orders while the rest of the team set up a quick hide, start their battle prep and prepare to receive orders i.e. prepare a model of the ground which will be covered during the patrol.
Military Skills
The exercise is a test of military skills including:- Firing of personal weapons
- ObstacleObstacleAn obstacle is an object, thing, action or situation that causes an obstruction. There are, therefore, different types of obstacles, which can be physical, economic, biopsychosocial, cultural, political, technological or even military.-Physical barriers:As physical obstacles, we can enumerate all...
crossing - First AidFirst aidFirst aid is the provision of initial care for an illness or injury. It is usually performed by non-expert, but trained personnel to a sick or injured person until definitive medical treatment can be accessed. Certain self-limiting illnesses or minor injuries may not require further medical care...
and CasualtyCasualty (person)A casualty is a person who is the victim of an accident, injury, or trauma. The word casualties is most often used by the news media to describe deaths and injuries resulting from wars or disasters...
Evacuation (casevacCASEVACCasualty evacuation, also known as CASEVAC or by the callsign Dustoff, is a military term for the emergency patient evacuation of casualties from a combat zone. Casevac can be done by both ground and air...
) procedures - Recognition of aircraftAircraftAn aircraft is a vehicle that is able to fly by gaining support from the air, or, in general, the atmosphere of a planet. An aircraft counters the force of gravity by using either static lift or by using the dynamic lift of an airfoil, or in a few cases the downward thrust from jet engines.Although...
, vehicles and equipment - Artillery target indication
- Patrol Techniques
- HelicopterHelicopterA helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which lift and thrust are supplied by one or more engine-driven rotors. This allows the helicopter to take off and land vertically, to hover, and to fly forwards, backwards, and laterally...
drills - MediaNews mediaThe news media are those elements of the mass media that focus on delivering news to the general public or a target public.These include print media , broadcast news , and more recently the Internet .-Etymology:A medium is a carrier of something...
handling - CommunicationCommunicationCommunication is the activity of conveying meaningful information. Communication requires a sender, a message, and an intended recipient, although the receiver need not be present or aware of the sender's intent to communicate at the time of communication; thus communication can occur across vast...
s skills - Handling prisoners of war
- Tactical River/Stream crossing
- Ambush/AntiAmbush Drills
- Recce Techniques
- Tunnel Crossing
- Navigation Skills
Slogan
Competing Teams
- 4th Rapid deployment brigade - Czech republic
- Cambridge UOTC
- Charlie Tigercompany 11th InfBn AASLT GGJ (1993 and 2009)
- Rawalpindi Corps - Pakistan ArmyPakistan ArmyThe Pakistan Army is the branch of the Pakistani Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. The Pakistan Army came into existence after the Partition of India and the resulting independence of Pakistan in 1947. It is currently headed by General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani. The Pakistan...
, 1 Gold medal (2010)