Britain prepares tanks for war against Saddam
by Michael Evans
timesonline.co.uk
A powerful armoured brigade of up to 15,000 troops could be sent to the Gulf
BRITAIN is preparing to offer the Americans a substantial fighting unit, based on a reinforced armoured brigade of up to 15,000 troops, as the principal British element for a land war in Iraq if diplomacy fails to disarm Saddam Hussein.
The size of the ground force now being considered, allied with hefty contributions from the Royal Navy and RAF, underlines Tony Blair’s desire for Britain’s Armed Forces to be a big player in any military action against Iraq.
“The Americans could just ask for British special forces which could be provided at short notice but all the contingency planning is about sending a composite armoured force,” one defence source said.
The likely make-up of the British force can be judged on the basis of recent public statements from the Ministry of Defence which has been struggling to find 19,000 troops to train for firefighting duties in the event of a national strike by firefighters.
An analysis by The Times of the MoD’s firefighting contingencies changed dramatically last week when certain units were suddenly taken off the fire-training rota.
This indicates that 7th Armoured Brigade, known as the Desert Rats, is being lined up for Iraq. The brigade, which fought in the 1991 Gulf War, is armed with Challenger 2 tanks.
Eighteen units were taken off firefighting duties last week to allow them to train to raise their high-readiness status.
It was the first sign of overt planning for a possible war in Iraq.
Key elements of 7th Armoured Brigade removed from the firefighting mission included the 1st Battalion The Black Watch, The Royal Scots Dragoon Guards, 32 Engineer Regiment, and 3rd Regiment Royal Horse Artillery.
The 18 units also included elements of 4th Armoured Brigade, such as the 1st Battalion Irish Guards, the clearest signal that the plan is to boost 7th Armoured Brigade with extra firepower from their Warrior armoured vehicles.
Both the 7th and 4th armoured brigades are part of 1st (UK) Armoured Division in Germany. All but three of the 18 units switched from firefighting to military training are part of 1st (UK) Armoured Division, based at Herford.
The Desert Rats are commanded by a brigadier but for an expanded force of between 12,000 and 15,000 troops the MoD would want a general in charge.
In this case, the obvious man would be Major-General Robin Brims who commands 1st (UK) Armoured Division. His headquarters could run the show.
In the 1991 Gulf War, Britain’s land force contribution was also based on 1st (UK) Armoured Division but for Operation Desert Storm both 7th Armoured Brigade and 4th Armoured Brigade were deployed in full strength.
This time the planning seems to be focused on a more modest land force option, although a reinforced brigade is still a significant formation and will require a complex and comprehensive logistic back-up.
A second full armoured brigade to double the ground troop contribution would take much longer to organise and might not meet Washington’s timescale for military action if Saddam Hussein were to renege on any weapons inspection resolution imposed by the United Nations Security Council.
The list of units now freed from firefighting and engaged in training in Germany includes one equipped with Challenger 2 tanks (The Royal Scots Dragoon Guards), three with Warrior armoured fighting vehicles (1st Battalion The Black Watch, 1st Battalion The Royal Regiment of Fusiliers and 1st Battalion Irish Guards), and two with AS90 heavy self-propelled artillery (3rd Regiment Royal Horse Artillery and 26 Regiment Royal Artillery). Another unit, 32 Regiment Royal Artillery, is equipped with the Multiple Launch Rocket System.
The regiment also operates the Phoenix spy plane, a remotely-controlled unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) that takes pictures of the battlefield from 8,000ft and provides target information for the gunners.
The problem for the military planners is that until a political decision is taken about military force, it is not possible to start spending money on key equipment and equipment modifications that will be necessary for a high-intensity conflict in Iraq.
The Challenger 2 tanks of 7th Armoured Brigade will all need to be “desertised”, which will involve buying expensive air filters to keep out the sand. Commercial shipping will also need to be chartered to ferry the tanks to the Gulf.
Other Army units are being considered but all the signals point to an armoured brigade from Germany as the key player, rather than light infantry, such as the Parachute Regiment, whose role in a war in Iraq would be more limited.
Elements of the Army’s new rapid-reaction 16 Air Assault Brigade, based in Colchester, which includes the Paras, have been used effectively in a number of missions including the Nato operation in the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia last year and Afghanistan this year.
However, as a war-fighting formation, the brigade still lacks one vital ingredient: the Longbow Apache attack helicopters that will be the brigade’s principal firepower machines but are not yet in operational service.
An indicator that this brigade might not be involved in any Iraqi mission is that the 3rd Battalion The Parachute Regiment is still earmarked for firefighting duties, having been given Essex as its area of operations.
Apart from an armoured brigade, based around the Desert Rats, any military contribution from Britain would also involve special forces and significant elements of the two other services.
These would be expected to include an aircraft carrier battle group HMS Ark Royal, soon to take part in a Nato exercise in the Mediterranean, is currently in Naples two or three nuclear-powered submarines armed with Tomahawk land-attack cruise missiles, and a full range of RAF bombers, air defence aircraft, and reconnaissance and air refuelling planes.
All three Services will need to spend significant sums of money to buy war stocks of precision missiles and other munitions, but will have to wait until the Treasury gives the green light.
The key players
Three key figures inside the Ministry of Defence are involved in contingency planning for war in Iraq:
Lieutenant-General Sir Anthony Pigott, Deputy Chief of Defence Staff (commitments), has the job of masterminding the “big plan” for a possible major conflict, and is responsible for ensuring that the Services’ present overseas obligations can be juggled to produce a substantial, self-sustaining force for Iraq. General Pigott, who is highly regarded both in the Ministry of Defence and in Downing Street, was Chief of Staff of Nato’s Allied Rapid Reaction Corps (ARRC) in Germany between 1992 and 1994. The ARRC is based around 1st (UK) Armoured Division.
Simon Webb, the Ministry of Defence’s Policy Director and one of the most senior civil servants at the ministry, is another operations veteran. He was responsible for helping to draw up the Government’s contribution to America’s War on Terror after the terrorist attacks on September 11.
Lieutenant-General John Reith, Chief of Joint Operations, based at the Tri-Service Permanent Joint Headquarters at Northwood, northwest London, is responsible for operational missions around the world. A paratrooper, General Reith has extensive experience in planning for operations, including Britain’s involvement in Afghanistan earlier this year. |
