Elements of the Scots Guards are exploring possible UK applications for the Stryker wheeled vehicle, with demonstrations under way as part of the US Army-sponsored combined Network Integration Evaluation (NIE) 16.1, Army Warfighting Assessment (AWA), and ‘Bold Quest 2015.2’ events.<\/p>\n
According to Brigadier General Terry McKenrick, commanding general of the US Army’s Brigade Modernization Command, a company of Scots Guards “came in early for the exercise and went through several weeks of training on our Stryker platform. So they are loaded on Strykers for the exercise.”<\/p>\n
The company is part of the UK’s 12th Armoured Infantry Brigade, which has approximately 270 soldiers participating in the event between the company and brigade headquarters.<\/p>\n
Brigadier Robin Sergeant, the brigade’s commander, said the bulk of the UK contingent was at the AWA “to demonstrate that we are able, as a UK brigade – an organisation of five to seven thousand men and women – are able to fit into a US division”.<\/p>\n
The majority of the brigade is ‘participating’ in the AWA through simulation.<\/p>\n
“We’ve had a long history of working together as allies,” observed Major Hugo Lloyd, chief of staff for 12th Armoured Infantry Brigade. “And this exercise is just another forum in which to further that.”<\/p>\n
Maj Lloyd noted that the United Kingdom had first participated in NIE 15.1 in late 2014 “with a pared down headquarters”, but had returned for the foundational NIE\/AWA with a full headquarters and a company from the 1st Battalion of Scots Guards “operating out in the training area on a US Stryker platform”.<\/p>\n
Asked about potential UK interest in Stryker, Brigadier Sergeant said: “From a UK perspective, at the moment we are in a position in which our land forces have a variety of light forces and heavy forces as well, but what we don’t have is what’s called a medium capability, which is what a vehicle like Stryker represents – somewhere between the heavy end and the light end.”<\/p>\n