Paratroopers from 3 PARA descend following a drop by a French Air Force C130 aircraft during Exercise Joint Warrior, 2012.

Paratroopers from 3 PARA descend following a drop by a French Air Force C130 aircraft during Exercise Joint Warrior.

Soldiers from 16 Air Assault Brigade were training to maintain their role as the British Army’s Rapid Reaction Force. More than 1600 troops took part in Exercise Joint Warrior in southwest Scotland.

The training helped to maintain the skills necessary for the Airborne Task Force (ABTF) role, which requires the Colchester-based 16 Air Assault Brigade to be ready to deploy anywhere in the world at five days notice.

During the exercise, the area of West Freugh airfield represented part of an area disputed by two fictional nations named Pastonia and Dragonia, which was divided by economic and ethnic factors. The scenario presented complex challenges for the international community requiring NATO to send a rapid intervention force to the area to create the conditions for a United Nations peacekeeping force to take control.

The UK’s ABTF used a combination of parachute, air assault, and tactical air landings to rapidly insert the troops into the disputed area. Once inserted the ABTF, based around the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, 5th Battalion The Royal Regiment of Scotland (5 SCOTS) Battle Group, continued to defend the airfield.

The Battle Group also developed the airfield into a base from which several air assault operations could be launched to defeat the enemy force, create stable conditions for the population, and potentially evacuate UK civilians.