Airborne Forces celebrates 70th anniversary 28 July 2010
Airborne Forces celebrates 70th anniversary - gallery
- The day started with 20 Aston Martin cars being driven by current and veteran members of the Airborne Forces from Merville Barracks to the Castle forecourt in Colchester. (54.90kb)
- Captain Antony Feltham-White, Padre of The 2nd Battalion, The Parachute Regiment leads a dedication ceremony of the 'gate guardian' to Merville Barracks. (48.34kb)
- There was a fantastic parachute display by The Parachute Regiment Display Team - 'The Red Devils'. (15.67kb)
- Soldiers from 3 PARA take part in a tug of war. (56.14kb)
- The crowd enjoy a fly past by a Spitfire. (12.93kb)
- Pam Holmes, mother-in-law of Corporal Rupert Frere, 16 Air Assault Head Quarters, gets a chance to handle an SA80 A2 rifle. (27.25kb)
- Commander in Chief, Land Forces, General Sir Peter Wall KCB CBE ADC, takes a salute from Airborne veteran standard bearers. (43.78kb)
- Commander in Chief, Land Forces, General Sir Peter Wall KCB CBE ADC, inspects and talks to troops from 16 Air Assault Brigade. (26.67kb)
- Sergeant Mark Wright, Path Finders, shows 7-year old Ben Hunt the weaponry on the Coyote. (30.80kb)
- Sergeant Gav Hannay from 13 Air Assault Regiment, Royal Logistic Corps, shows 4-year old Josh Wardal the Browning 50 calibre machine gun. (27.73kb)
Colchester celebrated the 70th anniversary of the Airborne Forces this weekend as members of the public attended an open day.
A number of entertaining events marked the occasion - 20 Aston Martin cars drove current and veteran Airborne Forces to the Colchester barracks, an Apache helicopter flew past, The Red Devils gave a parachute display, and a military band played a Beating Retreat Ceremony.
The traditional birthday of the Airborne Forces is recognised as 22 June 1940, when Sir Winston Churchill signed a memorandum calling for a force of 5,000 paratroopers.
Today, the Colchester-based 16 Air Assault Brigade is the modern embodiment of the original Airborne Forces with two battalions of paratroopers as well as airborne engineer, signal, medical, logistic and artillery units. The Brigade also has 3 helicopter regiments.
The Commander of 16 Air Assault Brigade, Brigadier James Chiswell MC, said: "Today's 7,000 soldiers of 16 Air Assault Brigade are the direct descendants of Churchill's vision; an airborne capability which goes well beyond paratroops and includes Air Assault forces deliverable by helicopter or aircraft and supported by the formidable Apache attack helicopter."
Brigadier Chiswell also said that as well as celebrating the anniversary, the weekend's events provided an "airborne get together before the Brigade deploys to Afghanistan for the fourth time. It is an opportunity to celebrate in a genuine family atmosphere and wish luck to those who are deploying."