Richard Baillon underwent recruit training as a potential officer in Depot PARA & AB Forces, including P Coy and para training, before being commissioned into The Parachute Regiment in April 1978.
He was posted to 3 PARA in Osnabruck and Tidworth, undertook an operational tour in North Armagh as Keady Base Commander, before being assigned to IJLB Shorncliffe in 1981.
In 1983 he became ADC to GOC SW District on promotion to Captain, before returning to 3 PARA in 1984 as Anti-Tank Pl Comd in Aldershot and as a Coy 2IC during a UN tour in Cyprus. After a further Northern Ireland tour he returned to Osnabruck this time as SO3 G3, HQ 12 Armd Bde in 1987.
On promotion to Major, he was posted as Sp Coy Comd, 1 PARA in Aldershot in 1988, before heading overseas in 1990 as the Airborne desk officer in the Canadian NDHQ Ottawa. On returning to the UK in 1992, he was tasked with moving Phase 1 recruit training from Depot PARA and embedding it in the new ATR Lichfield, a task that took some diplomacy as the CO of the latter had fought tooth and nail to prevent 'Paras' training at Lichfield. In 1994 he was posted as 2IC 2 PARA in Belfast, before becoming an SO2 DS JDSC and subsequently attending JSDC Greenwich in 1997. A stint in DMO MOD followed, before being assigned to HQ LAND as SO2 G3 Ops/Plans in 2000.
He was assigned to HQ AG, DPS(A) Upavon as SO1 Pol & Plans on promotion to Lt Col in 2001, before returning to HQ LAND as SO1 Pers Strat in 2003. He then undertook an operational tour in the US lead CJTF HQ Horn of Africa as Deputy Director J5 in 2005, before being posted as SO1 Joint Plans J5 in the NATO HQ JC Lisbon, in 2006. On return in 2007 he became a DP at AOSB and finally went on loan service as the UK Mentor to the Liberian National Defence HQ in Monrovia in 2010, before retirement the following year.
In 2013 he reenlisted as a Reservist to fulfil the role of Personnel Officer in the new HQ Recruiting Group at Upavon, up until the end of 2018.
Decorations:
GSM clasp NI - 1981
UN Medal Cyprus - 1986
Queen’s Jubilee Medal - 2002
US Joint Services Commendation Medal - 2005
MBE - 2015
Created with information kindly donated by Richard Baillon.
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