Precision Drill

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Dang. Guess I shouldn't have made fun of the guys who twirled batons in school. :lol:
That was frikkin spectacular! :salute:
 
Due to my height I was always the right marker , and there is no way I could do that crap , but who would want to . Thats alot of work in the dress and deportment category , the shining shoes and ironing etc etc
 
Glider, total agreement that was spectacular. The Band even more so, drill, keep step, keep time, and play your instrument without running into the guy in front.

I'm also with lead foot, I hated the spit, shine and paint the rock white stuff:
No combat ready unit ever passed inspection
No inspection ready unit ever passed combat
The side with the simplest uniform wins
 
mikewint said:
I'm also with lead foot, I hated the spit, shine and paint the rock white stuff:
No combat ready unit ever passed inspection
No inspection ready unit ever passed combat
The side with the simplest uniform wins
Click to expand...

That is not the point of precision drill...:rolleyes:

These soldiers would not be wearing or acting like that when in a combat unit. The point is to put on shows and ceremony. What does your logic say about the soldier in his Dress Blues guarding the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and marching precise and to an exact count?

I too used to compete in Drill and Ceremony. Yeap, all that spit, shine and keeping step and all that stuff, didn't make me any less of a soldier...

Also who wears those "Not So Simple Uniforms" in combat anyhow?
 
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Alder, not putting anyone down, believe me I do realize the hours and hours those guys spent in practice and they were absolutely spectacular. Showmanship and ceremony certainly has its place in the scheme of things so maybe two armies: One for show and one for combat.
SF was freedom and a breath of fresh for me, no one cared how we dressed or looked or what weapons or equipment we carried. the only thing that mattered was "get the job done" even rank counted for very little. A 1-0 could hold any rank if he could do the job and bring his team home.
Guess that's why the army has never liked elite troops
 
mikewint said:
Alder, not putting anyone down, believe me I do realize the hours and hours those guys spent in practice and they were absolutely spectacular. Showmanship and ceremony certainly has its place in the scheme of things so maybe two armies: One for show and one for combat.
SF was freedom and a breath of fresh for me, no one cared how we dressed or looked or what weapons or equipment we carried. the only thing that mattered was "get the job done" even rank counted for very little. A 1-0 could hold any rank if he could do the job and bring his team home.
Guess that's why the army has never liked elite troops
Click to expand...

I still don't think you get it...

Sorry, but you say "Two Armies". You are making more out of it. Comparing a Drill Team to the SF or any soldier who is in normal working attire does not make sense. Do you really think that soldiers in the Army dress like that work every day. I sure as hell did not dress like that.

It has nothing to do with "SF" or not, seriously.

I do not understand why you compare that to a Drill Team.
 
I'm saying its not what I'd do, I hated parades with a passion yet I did it and did fairly well for Queens ,Popes and the like, but I would do everything in my power to not be volunteered for that duty drill team duty. as ex AF I guess my excuse is thats why they have Army guys
 
What is/was going through my head was this quote:
"I'd like to have two Armies -- one for display, with lovely guns, tanks, little Soldiers, staffs, distinguished and doddering Generals and deal little regimental officers, who would be deeply concerned over their General's bowel movements or their Colonel's piles; an Army that would be shown for a modest fee on every fairground in the country."
"The other would be the REAL ONE, composed entirely of young enthusiasts in camouflage uniforms, who would not be put on display but from whom impossible efforts would be demanded and to whom all sorts of tricks would be taught. That's the Army in which I should like to fight."
Jean Larteguy
French Commando/Soldier/Journalist author of the New Centurions (the film Lost Command)
 
That was an outstanding performance...great precision!

As far as the side conversation regarding the value of military drill. It is a rich tradition that has it's roots in the days when large armies squared off on the battlefield. Marshalling the troops into position as well as manouvering took co-ordination and a form of precision that's not nessecary these days.

Add to that, the fact that in those days, bright uniforms and adornments were meant to impress and intimidate the opponent.

Nowdays, it's simply Esprit De Corps :)
 
It's also the basis of basic discipline. Drill is a way of getting a body of men (or women) to move in an orderly, soldier-like fashion, precisely, on command. From this (even though most soldiers think it's BS at the time!), stems the discipline required in combat, or any other military task come to that, where the required task, or tasks, will be executed immediately, efficiently, and without question.
The Guards Division (of the British Army) are well known for their ceremonial duties at Buc House, and parades in London, in their scarlet tunics and bearskins, but they are also excellent fighting soldiers - even though the rest of us call them 'Wooden Tops'!!
 
Impressive! I not only watch it but downloaded it to use as an instructional material in our fire corp's next new year's ceremony.
 
One for both MikeWint and Adler (just to settle the argu...er...discussion).

Every year the RAF celebrates Battle of Britain Day (15 Sep) by holding a reception in the Officers' Mess where local dignitaries are wined and dined as a "thank you" for putting up with a couple of thousand airmen on their doorstep. One particular year, it was arranged that the RAF Regiment display squadron, the Queen's Colour Squadron (QCS - which undertakes ceremonial and guard duties for the RAF, including Buck House) would participate as the drill squad for our twilight ceremony. The plan was to have 2 squads of the QCS march from either wing to the front of the Mess, turn to face the audience, there'd be a couple of brief words about the BoB, a sunset flag ceremony with "The Last Post" played by a solitary bugler, and then a Tornado would come in at very low level from behind the crowd and climb vertically with the 'burners plugged in, after which the Regiment would march off all without a single word of command being spoken.

Come the morning of the final practice, only 50% of the QCS turned up for duty. The Station Warrant Officer (aka "God") first went ballistic then went round the station gathering up enough suppliers, cooks, maintenance guys etc to make up the numbers. They practiced all day, with the remnant of the RAF Regiment dispersed through both the squads. That evening, the scratch team of airmen did us proud. Without a word of command, they marched onto the parade, halted and turned, the only sound being the steel toe and heel tips in their boots. The Tonka came it at less than 100 feet, fast and low (and to the huge surprise of the guests) and then climbed away, the glow of the afterburners disappearing into the clouds as the bugler finished the final, haunting note of "The Last Post" - it was spine-tingling. At the end of the parade, again without a word of command, the airmen marched off the parade and did so with sufficient precision that nobody noticed they weren't the real McCoy. The event was a huge success!

So why were only 50% of the RAF Regiment on parade that morning? The absentees were in police custody or locked up in the Station guardhouse. The entire Squadron had been out on the town the night before and got into a fight...amongst themselves! The military's the military, no matter where you put them nor how you dress them!

Cheers,
B-N
 
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Buff, Alder and I are two different individuals and as such have different opinions about a number of issues. To me that is the essence of this forum. I respect his opinions and knowledge as I do for 99.9% of the people on this forum (excepting the occational moron spammer that sneaks in).
Yes, there was indeed a time when troops needed close order drill on the battlefield even into WWI when so many went "over the top" into concentrated machinegun fire.
I went through all that basic training too and hated most of it even though I recognized its value. In Vietnam I was initially assigned to a field hospital unit, again could not wait to get out of there. At the first opportunity I volunteered (yes, totally against military tradition) to go alone (ARVN troops went too) into the mountains to set up medical aid stations.
When I met up with SF troopers I knew I had found my "home" in the Army.
So again Guys that drill team was absolutely fantastic and I recognize the time, effort and energy that went into making it, and for all you UKers, just not my cup of tea
 
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