RAOC Gazette - page 294
Image details
| Corps | RAOC |
|---|---|
| Material type | Journals |
| Book page | |
| Chapter head | |
| Chapter key | |
| Chapter number | |
| Full title | RAOC Gazette |
| Page number | |
| Publication date | 1983 |
| Real page | |
| Colour | Yes |
| Grey | No |
| Early date | 1983 |
| Late date | 1983 |
| Transcription |
RAOC REACHES FOR THE SKY A C H A N G E OF DIRECTOR AFTER ten months of intensive training at the Army Air Corps Centre at Middle Wallop; two RAOC Officers received their wings. Captain Ian France and Lieutenant David Turner success- fully completed No. 282 Army Pilots course and have already flown from the nest to operate in BAOR as Gazelle Pilots. Cap- tain France is based with 3 Regiment AAC at Soest, while Lieutenant Turner will be flying out of Detmold with 4 Regiment AAC. OF MUSIC CAPTAIN RODNEY PARKER joined the Wiltshire Regiment as a Junior Bandsman in August 1957. His earlier interests in music were developed as chorister at Bishop Wordsworth School. Salisbury, and as a young cellist at Bournemouth School. He attended the one year pupils course at the Royal Military School of Music in 1958 and returned to the newly formed Duke of Edinburgh's Royal Regiment at Tidworth in 1959. He was soon representing the Battalion at rugby and cricket which still remain his favourite sports. After tours in Malta from 1962/65 and BAOR from 1965/68 he returned as a Sergeant to the Royal Military School of Music for the Student Bandmaster course. In under three years he was appointed Bandmaster of the 2nd Battalion, The Royal Regiment of Fusiliers who were, at that time, stationed in Berlin. In the final year of his course he won five major prizes and he remembers as one of the highlights of his time at Kncller Hall, the School's involvement with the music for the Investiture of the Prince of Wales at Caernarvon. During his time as Bandmaster of 2RRF the Regimental Band travelled to Canada, France, BAOR and carried out successive tours of Northern Ireland. In 1976 he was appointed Bandmaster at The Queens Division Depot where he was responsible for the musical training of the nine Bands of the Division. Lieutenant David Turner and Captain Ian France. PEOPLE WITH PULL THE Braemar Inter-Services Catchweight Tug-of-War Champion- ships are held in September each year during the Braemar Royal Highland Games. Eight teams take part and this years entry was: 26 Fd Regiment RA, current Army Champions; 40 Fd Regiment RA, current UKLF Champions ; RAF St Athan, current RAF Champions; US Navy St Edzell, US Navy Champions; RAF Leuchars, current runners-up RAF; HMS Collingwood, current Navy Champions; MCTC, current runners-up Army; CVD Ashchurch, current SWD Champions. The Competition is on a two four team league basis with the winners of both leagues meeting in a final pull-off. CVD Ashchurch were runners-up in their league being beaten by 40 Fd Regiment RA but beat the RAF and US Navy Cham- pions to gain second place in their league and finished overall fourth place. He was commissioned as a Director of Music in 1977 and joined the Staff at Headquarters, The Prince of Wales Division in Staffordshire to take on the Staff administration of the nine Regimental Bands in the Division. During this period he be- came very involved with hockey and was a member of the win- ning side at the Army Minor Units Cup in 1979. In March 1981 he was appointed as Director of Music to the Royal Army Ordnance Corps Staff Band. Within a month he was with the Band in Berlin for the Corps' Freedom of Spandau and later that year took the Band to Cyprus. In November of that year the Band was heavily involved with the Lord Mayor's Show and Banquet when Captain Parker was surprised to be asked to take port with the Prime Minister! A sad occasion at this time was the Corps' final exercising of the Freedom of Nottingham. In 1982 the Band was in BAOR for the Freedom of Viersen and at Headquarters 1 British Corps. During that summer Captain Parker directed the music for HM The Queens visit to Donnington and. the Band were later deployed at the Royal Tournament. In 1983 the Staff Band provided music for the Freedom of Dulmen and helped celebrate the 10th Anniversary of the Freedom of Bruggen/Bracht. Captain Parker now leaves the Corps at the age of forty two to become Director of Music, Staff Band, Brigade of Gurkhas in Hong Kong after two and a half years enjoyable music making with the Corps. The Ashchurch T u g - o f - W a r T e a m . Private Dillow, Lance Corporal Baughen, Private W e l l s , Lance Corporal Richardson, Corporal W h i t e , Private Stebbings, Major Reid and Private Douglas. — 243 — |
| Book number | R0406 |