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RAOC Gazette - page 328

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Publication date 1981
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Transcription has only been riding fourteen months did very well coming
twentieth in the Prix Caprilli and managing the show jumping
event until the fifth jump- he made the jump his horse did not
Congratulations are in order to Staff Sergeant Copland ori
his promotion to W 2 and Corporal Moon on his promotion to
Sergeant. We say farewell to Sergeant and Mrs Carlyle who
returns to UK and civilian life, in which we wish them all good
fortune.
The Representative Colonel Commandant completing the final
phase of his MHE Instruction Course under the watchful eye of
his instructor W 2 (SQMS) Whefan. Major Skinner, OC Stores
and Vehicle Depot, looks on.
The big sporting event of October is the Cyprus Walkabout
competition, and this year RAOC Cyprus entered three teams.
The competition is an arduous orienteering exercise of some
sixty miles, held over two days.
The 'A 1 team of Captain Walsh, Staff Sergeant Long and
Sergeant Curtis finished sixteenth out of eighty starters with the
* B* team of W02 Graves, Sergeant Porter and Corporai Moon
finishing twenty first A good effort. Unfortunately, the ' C '
team could not finish as a unit team, but W02 Lewis joined a
composite team and completed the course. Congratulations to
Corporal Stott who completed day one of the course, but was
whisked away from Troodos on arrival to see his son, Adam
who was born whilst Corporal Stott was between checkpoint
one and two. That must be a first!
Still on sports news, the CRAOC, partnered by Lieutenant
Colonel Cardozo 4/7 DG. Officer Commanding Episkopi
Garrison, won the Veterans Doubles in the Cyprus Army Tennis
Championships for the second year. The CRAOCs wife, Kay
Field and Jill Catt (wife of Major Catt) won the ladies doubles
in the same tournament, well done.
RAOC AKROTIRI.
Stores and Vehicle Depot Akrotiri have
seen the presentation this month of Long Service Certificates to
a total of twenty one civilians, this amounts to over five hundred
years loyal service to the forces in Cyprus.
Certificates have also been awarded to twenty members of
the unit for swimming one thousand metres in combat clothing
albeit lightweight combats, the last pair to finish were the
intrepid team from Support Services W02 Avery and Corporal
Sid Bolton, having taken the scenic way, via Egypt! Well
done to everyone who took part.
The brains of Akrotiri has recently been held in our club,
regular readers will remember that this is the annual contest
of wit and intellect between each section of the Depot with the
finalists playing against the finalists from 48 Command Work-
shop. Our team from the Ammunition Depot consisted of:
WOl Hubbard, Staff Sergeant Johnson, Sergeant Gill and
Corporal Douglas, they put up a good fight but alas REME won,
in what proved to be a very good final.
One recent innovation worthy of mention is the broad-
casting of the RAOC v Grapevine' on BFBS Cyprus, This is a
short slot each alternate Monday evening informing RAOC
personnel of recent and any forthcoming event; at the moment
our Angela Rippon is Lance Corporal Jock Dunlop. (Points to
note: there is only one Lance Corporal in S and V Depot!)
the content of the broadcasts so far has proved worthwhile—
apart from the Scottish jokes at the end.
A new sport has been taken up by some members of the
unit, ten pin bowling. At present the team has only played
one game but this was a convincing win over 48 Command
Workshop to some extent making up for the Brains of Akrotiri.
The team consists of W02 Whelan, Sergeant Docherty, Corporals
Allen, Beech, Short (Cap*), Stott and Lance Corporal Dunlop.
One other sporting item that the Corps should be informed
of is Staff Sergeant Stevens a ns equestrian abilities. He has
recently entered the All Island Horse Show and for a person that

SUPPLY DEPOT DHEKEUA.
Corporal Taylor our Clerk has
just passed his RPCl and Bl upgrading courses in UK., H e
has now taken to the road in a four tonne for driver training.
As former Cyprus personnel will know, taxi drivers out here
tend to drive somewhat positively, but surprisingly enough they
do give way to Corporal Taylor, this obviously means something.
Farewells are in order to Corporal Taylor who has moved to the
Stores Depot at Akrotiri although this is nothing to do with his
driving'.
Our two Master Bakers Staff Sergeant Utterson and Sergeant
Jarwood are heavily into education working one month on
and one month off. The month off being spent on EPCfA)!
The Master Butcher, W 2 Swann is now RQMS' for the
local Army Cadets, thus proving butchers make good supply
specialists. Records please note!
The OC Major Collins is Chairman of the Cyprus Free
Fall Club and the Dhekelia Lions Rugby Football Club.
Rumour has it that he is after Chairman of the Chairman's
Club. He also won the Novices Competition in the Joint Services
Parachute Championships held recently which he also organised
—well done!
Our Depot Cat (DC) gave birth to four girls and a boy.
All the girls have been found good homes, the boy has been
taken on unit strength and named KC, Major Ken Collins of
course had nothing to do with naming the cat.
The fishermen of the unit, Staff Sergeant Utterson the
Master Baker and Corporal Billington Butchery NCO. are try-
ing to surpass the miracle of five loaves and two fishes. The
loaves are proving no problem but all those fishes! Well
lads keep trying.
We are pleased to announce the engagement of Mr David
Jenkinson our Armed Services Food Chemist to Miss Catherine
Dernetriou also of the Food Laboratories of ASFC. David
would agree this is the island of love. From all the unit our best
wishes for the future.
Last but by no means least, our forty nine Greek and
Turkish civilians keep the Depot ticking along when we are all
away, playing rugby, gliding, fishing, shooting etc. There are too
many to mention at the time but special congratulations go to
the ten who received their twenty five years service certificates
from the CRAOC, well done all of you and our thanks for
all your help.
British Forces Hong Kong
HEADQUARTERS
THIS month's notes begin with Q Ops
Sergeant Dave Powell in a state of con-
fusion, after being referred to in Pt 1
Orders as a Petty Officer Writer! Wonder-
ing which type of uniform he is now
expected to wear, he says it gives a com-
pletely new meaning to the phrase " Hello
Sailor?".
People who read this column must think that all we do in
Hong Kong is play sport. This assumption is probably com-
pounded by the fact that the G/AQ team won the deck hockey
lunchtime league trophy. The skills of. amongst others, Captain
Geoff Harcourt of Ord Branch, Staff Sergeant Ray Dawson of
Q Qtg and Corporal Mick Shepherd of G Ops/AIICC were
pushed up into top gear and enabled Mick Shepherd to receive the
trophy for the second consecutive year.
This means that,
despite being a naval sport, the deck hockey trophy has never
been won by an RN team.
However, I digress. The subject of sport could not be
further from the minds of the Ord Branch stalwarts. Staff
Sergeant Tony Dales, the Mat Clk. is walking round with his
right arm in a sling nursing two broken fingers after coming
up against a (fairly) immovable object. He's always saying that
he'd give his right arm. to be ambidextrous; for the next couple
of weeks he may get his wish. Major George Ashcroft. the
S02 Ord, looks slightly different these days—gone is his luxurious
moustache. It was thought at first that his upper lip had come
out in sympathy with his forehead but later reports stated that
he is trying to lose excess weight (and reduce drag) in preparation
for the forthcoming BFTs. We'll believe you, Sir!
274
Book number R0250