Military Resettlement, Business, Training & Recruitment
Remains of John Pritchard and Christopher Elphick buried with full military honours at the HAC Cemetery near Arras The remains of two first world war soldiers have been finally laid to rest, almost a century after they were killed in action.
The French foreign minister has said his country’s troops may start pulling out of Mali as early as next month, handing over to an African force.
On Saturday, 12 January, the British Prime Minister, David Cameron, spoke to President François Hollande of France about how the UK can support French military assistance being provided to the Malian government to contain rebel and extremist groups in the north of the country. As a result of this, the UK has offered, at French request, 2 transport aircraft to help quickly transport foreign troops and equipment to the West African country.
Flight 217 of 815 Naval Air Squadron is currently deployed on board the French frigate FLF Surcouf as part of Operation Atalanta, the EU ’s counter-piracy mission off the Horn of Africa. The Lynx was sent ahead by the French warship to find the suspected pirates after the USS Halyburton, operating as part of NATO ’s Operation Ocean Shield , received a distress call from a merchant vessel reporting she was under attack from 6 men armed with rocket-propelled grenades. Boarding teams approach a suspected pirate vessel as Flight 217’s Lynx helicopter hovers above [Picture: Crown Copyright/MOD 2013] Although the MSC Jasmine, sailing 260 miles off the Somali coast, managed to repel the attack themselves, a German EU maritime patrol aircraft was scrambled to track the suspect vessel, which was by then towing another boat with several more men on board.
The new Type 45 destroyer sailed more than 31,000 miles (50,000 kilometres) on security and counter-piracy patrols in the Indian Ocean, Gulf of Oman and the Gulf. HMS Diamond left Portsmouth in June shortly after launching the nation’s Diamond Jubilee celebrations with a ceremonial entry into the naval base .
Royal Marines are further strengthening ties between the militaries of the UK and France as they take part in Exercise Corsican Lion in the Mediterranean.