British and American soldiers participate in joint training exercise

Bomb disposal experts are working together in order to improve upon the way they operate together in the future, it has been revealed.

A key training exercise involved British troops searching a road for IEDs, calling in American engineers to deal with what they found.

Commenting on the developments, 192nd ORD’s Captain Whitney Lee said: “We have opened up to each other to show how we operate, demonstrate our kit and share trade secrets. We have a stronger disposal capability, but the British have better search skills and they are parachute-trained. For them to be able to jump in and clear an area for our forces to follow through is a great pairing.
“The combination of our two capabilities makes for a much stronger team, which is what this exercise is all about."

The exercise was held in Fort Bragg, North Carolina and its objective was to develop the ability of 16 Air Assault Brigade and the US Army’s 82nd Airborne Division – which both serve as their respective armies rapid reaction forces – to deploy as a joint force in response to international crises.

Soldiers from 33 Engr Regt (EOD) worked with the American 192nd Ordnance Battalion (Explosive Ordnance Battalion).

It was followed by a simulated mission, which involved 2,100 British and American troops working together in an exercise, which saw soldiers and their equipment parachuted into a troubled region to work side-by-side to restore stability.

Sergeant Richard Gardiner, said: "It's been a really good experience for the guys and the relationship with the Americans has worked really well. We’re sharing our skills and drills and learning about and from each other.

“We have a broader range of skills than our American counterparts. They don’t have the specialist search teams that we do, they are more focussed on disposal.

"Also, we can parachute in and start work on the drop zone, which is something they aren’t trained to do.”