Brave Shrewsbury soldier Daniel Griffiths is more accustomed to the sweltering heat of Afghanistan after serving in the war-torn country with the Queen’s Dragoon Guards.
However the 23-year-old from Myddle, where his parents Henry and Ellie still live, is now across the Atlantic in Canada training ahead of his deployment to Helmand Province next autumn.
Daniel Griffiths.
The tank driver and his brigade will return next year for their second operational tour of the country after describing the first stint as a ‘very good experience’ where he faced a steep learning curve having not long joined the regiment.
Former Corbet School student Daniel said his position in the tank gave them an advantage so few Afghan rebels would take them on.
“A Scimitar is a very scary thing to look at. I think they saw us coming, know what they are capable of and decided to run,” he said.
“There was not much they could do against us but we were very wary of the threat from IEDs (improvised explosive devices). I was very cautious, but you learn the markers, and the routes where they would put them, and if you were following other vehicles stay in their tracks.
“We did find a couple of IEDs, but really on the most part it was quiet for me on that side of life.”
The trooper and his colleagues are now busy training in sub-zero conditions, at minus eight degrees in some places, ready for the new deployment.
He is currently on his exercise in Canada for a new hybrid initiative to train soldiers for future operations that British forces may encounter. It consists of mixing heavy armour, infantry and artillery assets together whilst working in an environment that puts them against a free-thinking opposition force and insurgents, as well as having civilians in the mix to add to the realism.
In reality it means nights out on the tortuous Canadian prairies living out of their bag with limited wash facilities for days or even weeks at a time – in a similar scenario to their deployment in Afghanistan.
The training finishes this month when he will return to his base in Germany and despite admitting he has more nerves about returning to Afghanistan for a second time, the local lad is also relishing his chance to get back out there.
“There are a lot more nerves about going again. I won’t be in the same tank, but this training makes me more confident that everything will be all right. It has really stepped up a level with lots of extra things added on. And because we have been over and over it everybody knows instinctively what everybody else is doing. It’s also brought everyone together,” he added.
“I’m looking forward to going back again because, well, it’s my job really. Rather than being back in camp in Germany I can get out and do my job to the fullest. Plus I have had so much more training and I know what to expect. I think I will be more prepared for it.”
by David Seadon