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Our Military Affiliations

NEWS FROM 101 REGIMENT RE

Lt Col R B Hawkins MBE, the CO of 101 Regiment RE has written to say that “The last twelve months
have, yet again, been extremely busy for the Regiment. 2014 saw the end of the Regiment’s
contribution to Operation HERRICK in southern Afghanistan. Nevertheless, the break from overseas
operational deployments has been short-lived. We currently have a number of soldiers from the
Regiment deployed in Iraq to train local security forces in their fight against ISIS; follow on forces
from the Regiment are scheduled to deploy soon. Naturally, our focus has been on preparing our
personnel and setting the right conditions for the families left behind. In the context of a much less
dangerous task compared to our work in Afghanistan, the uncertainty surrounding the deployment
has been difficult to adjust to after the routine cycle of planned six month tours over the last decade.
As the Regiment transitions away from operations in Afghanistan towards what we term
‘Contingency’, our training is shifting subtly towards ‘Defence Engagement’ and the ability to prevent
future conflicts through capacity building i.e. giving other nations the tools to maintain their own
security. The success of the Improvised Explosive Device in Iraq and Afghanistan has been observed
by many and the ability to combat these ubiquitous weapons is a skill that is in high demand.
Consequently, we currently have training teams in Pakistan and personnel due to deploy to Nepal
within the year.
In the UK, the regiment continue to provide Military Aid to Civil Police and have supported the live
rendering safe of two large WW2 bombs, in Bermondsey and Wembley, within the last six months.

These pictures are of the two WW2 bombs discovered in London during the last six months, which were dealt with by 101 Regiment RE
© Crown Copyright and by kind permission of MOD
Our Army Reserve elements continue to grow in confidence and capability. We have made some
slight changes to the structure of the Regiment’s reserve component. 221 Field Squadron
(headquartered in Catford) have opened new detachments in Victoria and Bexleyheath whilst 579
Field Squadron (headquartered in Tunbridge Wells) have taken command of the detachment in
Rochester to add to their existing detachment in Reigate.
This year marks the 75th anniversary of Royal Engineers Bomb Disposal, where a
series of events will commemorate an important part of Royal Engineers history.
From the very first Royal Engineer Bomb Disposal teams formed to protect our

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