NAVY NEWS, JANUARY 2009 25
m the front line
Logistic Regiment sailors, soldiers, logisticians, Helmand province is not well-suited to large is not just about road maps and guards – it
Royal Marines are mechanics, drivers, fighting troops road moves, yet the combat logistical patrols also includes armoured support, international
keeping the supply and medics. undertaken by the regiment can involve huge support, close air support, air surveillance,
routes in Afghanistan And, to get their job done, they numbers of vehicles. artillery, explosive ordnance demolition teams
open. battle through some of the toughest And, of course, there is an ever-present and Special Forces to ensure the stock carried
The unit is working terrain in the world, consisting threat of enemy attack as NATO forces try to makes it to its final destination.
24 hours a day, seven mostly of desert and mountains, as stabilise and rebuild Afghanistan in the face of The supplies that the Commando Logistic
days a week, to well as facing enemy attacks. insurgency. Regiment are delivering to the forward
keep 3 Commando Col Andy Maynard, Commanding Col Maynard added: “Accessing the furthest operating troops of 3 Commando Brigade
Brigade supplied with Officer of the Commando Logistic reaches of Helmand with as many as 150 large are essential for them to continue their work
everything they need. Regiment (CLR), said: “It may be vehicles is not a simple matter of driving along in assisting the Afghanistan Government with
And the regiment did approaching Christmas but we are well-maintained motorways. bringing new security to the country.
not even take a break part of a 24/7 operation keeping the “The combat logistical patrols have to cross And if it were not for the efforts of the
on Christmas Day. wheels of the brigade turning over some of the most arduous and hostile terrain men and women who plan, support, and run
The men and women Christmas and New Year just as at in the world, a far cry from the tarmac roads the patrols, the British battlegroups and the
of the Devon-based Logistic any other time. most of us are used to. campaign to stabilise the region would quickly
its Regiment have been in Helmand province “Our plans are to grab some Christmas “The patrols are huge and impressive feel the pinch.
for more than two months now. food, call home, but otherwise it’s business beasts. It was estimated that to overtake one As Lt Col Steve Crouden, Second-
ay And in that time they have successfully as normal. of our recent patrols would have taken 45 in-Command of the CLR, put it: “With the
om shifted more than 2,000 tonnes of stock and “The planning cycle for our operations is minutes…” tempo of operations as high as they are,
of supplies, completed 11 combat logistical demanding and complex, with painstaking The complex patrols are heavily armed with the effectiveness and welfare of the forward
to patrols covering over 3,000 miles (4,828 efforts taken to keep our men and women as their own force protection troops which are troops would rapidly deteriorate, inhibiting
kilometres), and delivered 680,000 litres of safe as possible and ensure all our operations there specifically to keep the main body of the their effect, the progress to date, and the
nd essential military fuel. are a success, so we don’t even break for patrol safe and on course. overall campaign to bring stability as soon as
do The regiment is made up of a mix of marines, December 25.” The planning and execution of these operations possible.”
0024-025_NN_Jan.indd 224-025_NN_Jan.indd 2 110/12/08 23:25:160/12/08 23:25:16
Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52