Exercise Iron Hammer - West Germany - 1988
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 6 ต.ค. 2021
- Exercise Iron Hammer took place 1 - 27 November 1988 and was the last Divisional sized Field Training Exercise (FTX) by the British Army in Germany of the Cold War. The exercise was severely challenged by the early onset of the harsh mid European winter.
US Army Germany, 1987-1991, always loved training with the Brits. Outstanding soldiers and true warriors. Would proudly go into battle with them anytime, any place.
British Army,one of a best armies at the world 👍
Interesting that many of the vehicles shown are finally fulfilling their originally intended roles against the enemy they were designed to engage. Great video. Thank you.
I was on that excercise and remember very clearly just how cold it was. My first winter in Germany after leaving training. Hell, it's got me shivering all over again.
The kit (clothing) we Brits were issued in the 80's was very poor indeed and you were always cold in winter.
I had a Bundeswehr sleeping bag that had sleeves and there was a horizontal zip just above knees and it could be worn like a parka, great for going on stag as you were walking round in your sleeping bag.
At least our combats were not made in China back then.
Like in german Bundeswehr, in late 70s early 80s we had the same Uniform for Winter and Summer the only Winterclothing was the Parka and a thin long underpants, during my first exercise we had rain the whole day long everyone was wet to the bones and during night the sky cleared and the temp. dropped to minus degrees, was in a Muddy Foxhole with 15cm water neraly the whole night long except f 1 hour Recon patrol and in the Foxhole i was thinking about using the Sleeping bag as a Parker at first i decided not to do because cleaning equipment after the excercise cost time and is pain in the ass (not even used my own Rifle that night for firefight instead i took the one from the MG gunner ;) ) but after an half hour i took the sleeping bag and used it .
There was no limit on how many layers you wore under the uniform. I wore a total of 9 layers (including combats)
I was training on a brit base in Germany cant remember which one.
We were there for a week during which the Faulkland invasion happened.
We trained drank and fought a lot with you blokes. Lol
We were all together against the Yanks though.
The Royal Canadian Regiment. Queen Victoria's Regiment. Adopted by her in perpetuity. Prince Phillip was our honorary Commander.
Our brother British regiment is your Fore and Afts.
I Digress lol
Brings back awesome memories.
Excellent training. Spared no expense on ex Reforgers.
Was with 4 CMBG. Canadian Infantryman.
Great video!! We (3/66AR, 2AD (fwd)) were in the same area in Sept of '88 for Operation Free Lion. Our weather was quite a bit better..LOL There is nothing like reliving the good old days! *grin I see several comment below about maneuver damage... We actually had a farmer come up to our formation one night and ask us to move to a different field. I believe he mentioned that it had been plowed already and was worth more compensation than the ground our company of Abrams were parked on.
The Scimitar CVRT (time : 0:56) is Belgian Army -4Ch Ch (Chasseurs à cheval ) French speaking Jager Battallion stationed in those days in Arolsen . I was 2 Jagers Te Paard (Jager Battalion à stationed in Lüdenscheid
I was in RAF at time stationed overseas. This was the days when BAOR was over 50,000. When we had a formidable Armed Forces. Not like today.
The thing I recall was three blokes being killed cresting hill in their CVR(T) at night who had been unable to see high tension cables that had somehow come down really low. Their were all electrocuted. Didn't stop the exercise for a minute, not even in their own Squadron. Certainly wouldn't happen like that today.
My God. 33 years ago (as at 2021). All of the participants are now late middle-aged civilians
Not quite, although I am in my twilight years of service now, there are still a few of us of that generation still in uniform. Great memories of these large scale exercises which are sadly a thing of the past. My first was Ex Lionheart in 1984. My old CO Richard Cousens briefing about avoiding blue on blue when the Battalion (2LI) was in the Air Mobile Role.
@@juliangreenwood528 I was 1 GREEN HOWARDS (1972 - 1995). Now aged 70. I remember Lionheart. Stuck in a pig farm with B Echelon processing reservists for most of it. Moving back into I Armd Div Admin area prior to ENDEX gave us an idea of the sheer scale of that exercise. Must have been the largest concentration of British soldiers that ever gathered in one plalce at the same time. Dunkirk in reverse. Happy days!
For Queen and country!
Greetings from Germany!
Queen and country 🇬🇧🇩🇪
Excellent video! I was stationed there when this was going on, with D/CO. 3/36 Inf. (Later renamed Delta Sqn. 5/5 CAV, 3rd. Armored Division. U.S. Army.
I'll tell you what, it was a bloody cold exercise, it got down to minus 16c inside our wagon even with the OTT (On Tank Toaster) and little gas stove going! Happy days. Recce troop.
Watching this in 2023, it would make a good training vid for the Orks ! Surprised to see so many SA80s, and just a few SLRs, which we had for a while longer. I did Lionheart and Crusader, and think we still had the SLR , though I had an SMG by then, (bloody thing !) so my recollection may be faulty. A few people are sporting beards on this film. No NBC? I was always amazed at how indulgent the locals were as we dominated their quiet rural and pretty villages.
A very in depth and interesting video... many thanks, Andy 👌💯%!
Sweet joys of squaddie life in BAOR !!!
Good old Paderborn. Happy times. Cheers for the vid.
"Gott schuf in seinem Zorn, Sennelager bei Padderborn."
I was on this exercise back in 1988. Remember the "delightful" weather well.
Move the clock forward to the present day and my Son did an Ex' with 3rd Div. earlier this year.
For what ever reason, he ended up talking one-to-one with the Div. GOC for a fair while.
My son is a Specialist in the US army, staying in the traditional family business just with a "new" employer, the next rank above him at the particular briefing where he "chatted" to a Major General, was a major.
Did a few of these exercises back in the day. Always on a look out for the occaisional SOXMIS vehicles lol.
And the bratty van!
The biggest shock for me, born in Poland, was that NATO was… afraid of the Warsaw Pact.
You could have levelled Eastern Europe in a week.
Not really, even without the nuclear part of the equation.
NATO conventional forces were mainly for the optics of reassurance at the height of the cold war, as any technological advantages would be compensated for by double, triple or even quadruple number of soldiers and equipment available in the Warsaw Pact.
There was this infamous period when the German Bundeswehr would effectively be able to fight for a week or ten days, then run out of ammo - and they had the largest number of tanks and artillery on NATO side. It would always boil down to the nuclear option under the make believe premise that Ivan would turn around once NATO engaged him with tactical nukes - wishful thinking.
I remember that exercise. I rigged up my Land Rover so that the hot air for the window would blow into the back where I was sleeping.
thank you very much🎉
The joys of a cold wash and shave, stripped to the waist in the winter snow.
Good for the vagus nerve!
Yeah but once done and dressed you felt warm as toast
And an egg banjo for breakfast,and mug of tea!bliss!
@@stevenbreach2561 With just the right amount of oily fingerprints on the bread.
@Big Red Hats off to you guys, although we weren't fed by the ACC on exercise (Tank crew got the 4 man compo packs. (One complete exercise of nothing but chicken supreme. Some foul up!) you kept us well fed, round the clock on Op Banner. Also although people complained about the food in camp, I think you all did a good job. We also had the pump up petrol cookers, but it wasn't uncommon to see blue gas bottles in the turret stowage bins.
The good old days when we had a army
Awesome Video 👌
Didn’t know there were soviet and GDR observers. Unimaginable to see some DPRK observers in my countries exercise or sending our officers to theirs
Observers of both sides could always visit the whole of occupied germany, besides certain millitary installations
@@flixri726 Hope I can see the similar de-escalation here too.
I suppose there’s an advantage in their observers seeing what we are capable of. It might send them a message that we are not an easy pushover and deter them from future conflict
Hi, the Observers in this video were officially there for the exercise.
At all other times there were these intelligence gathering teams crossing the Iron Curtain.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Military_liaison_missions
Easy old life 😁 just hang around in woods waiting for something to happen.
Then go out on the piss not as cold as the 60s
Always deep snow every year
The most dangerous thing in the world back then was an officer with a map 😁
I wish we had that kit now!
@@chad6080 Agreed... Just wish we had a lot more of them.
The French still use the MILAN, and I think it's the best Ground to Ground Missile system available in NATO
Thanks!
Many Thanks
Are the OpForce ("Soviet") vehicles the ones with the red "X"?
Ahhh.......the good Ole days.....
Where was Wolfgang and his bratty wagon ?? lol
Nice one, was about to say the same! Good old Wolfgang in his VW bimbling across the ranges. Sometimes down at area Mike!
Bratty, chips mit Mayo.
He was there, I remember getting the currywurst from him and a yellow handbag. Someone said his van, which went places where chieftains and challengers got bogged down, is in an army museum in England.
Yellow handbag 😂
Those in the know know😉
To those that don't know it's a 10 pack of Herforder Pils👍😁
@@Graham658 Happy days - RE 79-90 (Hameln)
Endex called early for us. Remember it being bloody freezing by the end
7:57 MAGNA CARTA 😄
My old did a few of these then I joined in 89 as a recy mech first posting fally.... old man posted to 1 reg aac at Hildesheim yep you guessed it I recovered him
Engines idling as smooth as a forty year old school bus 😅😅😅
Golden times
So awesome!!! It's like Crack!!! We played Twam Yankee Improved today so this is bonus!!!
Was Free Lion going on at this time or had it just ended?
awesome
Challengers always seem to lack ground clearance on soft ground/fields. Not sure the Hydrogas suspension helped. Can anyone confirm this?
@@thecurlew7403 That's awful. hate to think what he looked like when they got him out.
@@thecurlew7403 This sort of thing did happen back in the 1950's. My father was out in Germany from 1956 onwards with the Royal Signals. He told me about an incident when a tank crew slept under their Centurion tank and it sank crushing the crew men.
Hydro gas needed time to warm up, so chances are these tanks are moving out first thing on a very cold morning. Once warm they were fantastic cross country (I’m retired Royal Hussar)
How beatuful it was then.
@3:37 what is the stripy stick used for?
M14 Aiming stake, used to establish a firing line (reference point) when deflection shooting if I recall.
Was this also known as 443 exercise
Another memory from the day, tanks only allowed to move 5 miles a day maximum due to cost of fuel lol
Looks like the best time ever to be in the brit army. Gone to shit now but the blokes are still top notch
Nice
Been there, done that, got the T-shirt and coffee Mug; 11ACR, FULDA Gap.
HOOYAH!!!!!
24:06 Russian observer hands back SA80 Mk1 with a smirk on his face, thinks "what a lovely plastic toy gun......now where's my AK?" British soldier receiving SA80 back, cradles it carefully in case bits of it fall off in front of the Russians.....
Yeah, gras it back and cradles it while whispering to it 'Come here my lovely' 🤣
Catchy name! :) :)
US Army EUCOM 2007 - 2013
Was 1988 a transitional year ?, i`m seeing some units with the L85, but others still using the slr ?.
L....85 innit. They had only gone into service when I was in cadets at school and that was like 86.
They started replacing them as early as 85 but they weren't fully replaced until about 89/90
Support units and artillery kept the SLRs for couple more years
Thankfully, it never got real...
Crazy that many of the weapons in this film are fighting for real in Ukraine. 35 yrs later.
Pretty amazing to see those Soviet troops observing. This must have gone a long way to reducing tensions
, and the HOT in Prepare.!
Exercise Rubber Mallet cake n arse party 🥳
hahahahaah
Poor bastards having to wear 58 pattern webbing😂
no, they're good.
At that time there were still red crosses to represent enemies. Today a white Z.
Who is auch hier wegen Jan Böhmermann?
Area Mike for brattys and half a yellow handbag!
NATO planners always inflated Warsaw pact strengths in order to maintain big defence budgets.
From 2ATAF, returned/separated CONUS Jul. '87... missed all the fun, with the new toys. Queen Elizabeth Barracks is now a converted Russian enclave of thugs.
"Lance tactical nukes": shortly before, Europe threw a hissy-fit about U.S. GLCM/ Pershings...
With the Russkies on the move again (2022) time to reequip and build back up.
Update Jan 2022 - Russian tanks are ready to roll again, threatening an independent European nation.
that last bit in the film where there was an absolute idiot trying to teach a foreign gentleman to use a weapon when it should have been one of the guys. upsets me alot. ossiffers trying to shine when most have not a clue
That "absolute idiot" was West German Bundeswehr showing the "foreign gentleman" from the East German Nationale Volksarmee how to hold the weapon correctly, as it is entirely different from what he is used to and certainly the first time for him. I suppose you just didnt understand what he said...
Tey are nothing compering to east europe.
UK Army was the best....German army noy even helmets