PARA FIT

06/09/2025

Today please remember and honour Corporal Mark Wright GC, The 3rd Battalion, The Parachute Regiment, who gave his all for our continued benefit and security in Afghanistan on Wednesday 06th September 2006.

Cpl. Wright had gone to the aid of a wounded colleague who had been seriously injured by a mine. Sadly during the rescue attempt several other mines also exploded. Three others had lost lower limbs and Cpl Wright, himself, sustained fatal injuries. "Despite this horrific situation and the serious injuries he had himself sustained, Corporal Wright continued to command and control the incident. He remained conscious for the majority of the time, continually shouting encouragement to those around him, maintaining morale and calm amongst the many wounded men.

He and his men were forced to wait for five hours before American helicopters could pick them up. Tragically, Cpl Wright succumbed to his injuries on board the helicopter before reaching the Camp Bastion military hospital.

Corporal Mark Wright, GC was 27 years old. He was posthumously awarded the George Cross for an act of "the greatest gallantry and complete disregard for his own safety in striving to save others."

20/08/2025

20th August 2006 - Afghanistan
Corporal Bryan Budd - Victoria Cross 🟩

Citation

25048092 Corporal Bryan James Budd, The Parachute Regiment (killed in action) During July and August 2006 A Company, 3rd Battalion The Parachute Regiment were deployed to occupy once again the District Centre at Sangin.

The company’s location was constantly under sustained attack from a combination of Taliban small arms, rocket-propelled gr***des, mortar and rocket fire. In order to reduce this threat platoons were regularly tasked to conduct security patrols into the urban and rural areas in the vicinity of the District Centre. Given the prevailing enemy activity in the area it was assessed that patrols had a 75 per cent chance of coming into contact with the Taliban—a statistic that was not lost on the men of A Company.

These patrols regularly came under attack and on 27th July Corporal Budd’s section identified and engaged two enemy gunmen on the roof of a building in the centre of Sangin. This provoked a fierce fire-fight in which two of Corporal Budd’s section were hit. One was seriously injured and collapsed in the open ground, where he remained exposed to enemy fire, with rounds striking the ground around him. Realising that he needed to regain the initiative and understanding that the enemy needed to be driven back so that the casualty could be evacuated, Corporal Budd led his section forward and assaulted the building where the enemy fire was heaviest.

He led this attack under fire and personally killed two of the enemy inside the building with gr***de and rifle fire, forcing the remaining fighters to flee across an open field where they were successfully engaged by the rest of his section. This courageous and prompt action proved decisive in breaking the enemy and was undertaken at great personal risk. In inflicting significant losses amongst the enemy and forcing their withdrawal, Corporal Budd’s deliberate action and conspicuous gallantry also allowed the wounded soldier to be evacuated to safety where he subsequently received life-saving treatment.

On 20th August Corporal Budd was leading his section on the right forward flank of a platoon clearance patrol near Sangin District Centre. Another section was advancing with a Land Rover fitted with a .50 calibre heavy machine gun on the patrol’s left flank. Pushing through thick vegetation, Corporal Budd identified a number of enemy fighters 30 metres away to his front. As he had not been seen by these Taliban, Corporal Budd indicated their presence to the rest of his section and used hand signals to prepare his men to launch a hasty attack. He then led his section on a flanking manoeuvre but the enemy engaged the Land Rover on the left flank and the element of surprise Corporal Budd had hoped to achieve was lost as his own section was also spotted.

Recognising the immediate requirement to regain the initiative, Corporal Budd made a conscious decision to assault the enemy and ordered his men to follow him. As they moved forward the section came under a withering fire that quickly wounded two men and incapacitated a further soldier when a bullet struck his body armour. The effectiveness of the enemy’s fire and these losses forced the unwounded members of the section to take cover. However, Corporal Budd continued to assault forward on his own, knowing full well the likely consequences of doing so without the close support of his remaining men. He was wounded but he continued to move forward, firing at the enemy and accounting for a number of them as he rushed their position.

Inspired by Corporal Budd’s example, the rest of the platoon reorganised and pushed forward their attack, killing more of the enemy and eventually forcing their withdrawal. Corporal Budd subsequently died of his wounds and when his body was later recovered it was found surrounded by three dead Taliban. There is no doubt that Corporal Budd first demonstrated conspicuous gallantry in leading the assault on 27th July 2006, an assault which broke the enemy and ultimately saved the life of a wounded member of his section.

What is remarkable is that he did this again on 20th August in the knowledge that the rest of his men had either been struck down by enemy fire or had been forced to go to ground. Throughout his service in Afghanistan Corporal Budd led his section from the front and was always at the point where the action was fiercest. Twice he behaved with the greatest gallantry but his single-handed action on the second occasion and his determination, though wounded, to push on against a superior enemy force stands out as a premeditated act of inspirational leadership and the greatest valour, which cost him his life.

27/06/2025

It's 17 years today since a paratrooper I had the privilege to call a friend was tragically killed in Afghanistan, he was a paratroopers paratrooper, a leader, a dad, a friend and an all round mega bloke.

It is extremely rare to go any military camp and there be a person that nobody has a bad word to say about them, Dan Shirley is that man.

R.I.P Dan you will never be forgotten pal.

EVERY MAN AN EMPEROR

28/05/2025

43 years ago today the men of 2 PARA were fighting in the Battle for Goose Green, R.I.P to those who made the ultimate sacrifice and didn't come home and thoughts are with those who may be still fighting their own personal battles.

02/04/2024

42 years ago today.

04/01/2024

RIP Major Sadler.

LRDG/SAS veteran Mike Sadler MC MM has made his final trip to the great sand sea in the sky.

Mike died in the early hours of 4th January 2023, aged 103. Originally a navigator with the LRDG he swopped to the SAS where his skills were invaluable, working directly with David Stirling.

He was captured and Gabes in 1943 and was later quoted " I was lucky enough to get away with two other of the party and we walked across the desert 100 miles to Tozour where the French outpost/.../ and when flown on to Tripoli."

He attend parachute training pre D-Day and parachuted into Morvan with 1st SAS under Paddy Mayne.

He saw service in the Western Desert, Italy, France, Belgium, Holland and Germany. He was awarded the MC in 1943 and the MM in 1944.

03/12/2023

Royal Huddleston Burpee Sr, this is the inventor of the famous burpee exercise done the world over. He invented this movement as part of his PHD studies. It was invented in 1930, and still used to this day.

Now you know this was named after a real person.

27/09/2023

Let's get this shared and get Nige Hinkin found 🟥🟦🟩⬛️🪂

07/11/2022

102 years ago today, this is why we wear a poppy.

On November 7th 1920, in strictest secrecy four unidentified British bodies were exhumed from temporary battlefield cemeteries at Ypres, Arras, the Asine and the Somme. None of the soldiers who did the digging were told why. The bodies were taken by field ambulance to GHQ at St-Pol-Sur-Ter Noise. There the bodies were draped with the union flag. Sentries were posted and Brigadier-General Wyatt and a Colonel Gell selected one body at random. A French honour guard was selected, and stood by the coffin overnight. On the morning of the 8th a specially designed coffin made of oak from the grounds of Hampton Court, was brought and the unknown warrior placed inside. On top was placed a crusaders sword and a shield on which was inscribed '( a British Warrior who fell in the GREAT WAR 1914-1918 for king and country'.

On The 9th of November the unknown warrior was taken by horse drawn carriage through guards of honour and the sound of tolling bells and bugle
Calls to the quayside. There it was saluted by Marechal Foche and loaded onto HMS Vernon bound for Dover..... the coffin stood on the deck covered in wreaths and surrounded by the French honour guard. On arrival at Dover the the unknown warrior was greeted with a 19 gun salute, normally only reserved for field marshals. He then travelled by special train to Victoria Station London. He stayed there overnight and on the morning of the 11th of November he was taken to Westminster Abbey. The idea of the unknown warrior was thought of by a Padre called David Railton who had served at the front during the great war and it was the union flag he used as an altar cloth at the front, that had been draped over the coffin. It was his intention that all relatives of the 517,773 combatants whose bodies had not been identified could believe that the unknown warrior could very well be their lost husband, Father, brother or son.... every year on the 11th of November Remember the unknown warrior....At the going down of the sun, and in the morning ,We will remember them ............................

05/07/2022

The Last Brother: The last surviving member of Easy Company portrayed in the book and Steven Spielberg's HBO miniseries 'Band of Brothers' died on July 3.

Bradford Freeman of the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment of the 101st Airborne Division, which fought on D-Day, in the Battle of the Bulge, and liberated concentration camps in N**i Germany, passed away on Monday at the age of 97.

The division, known as the Screaming Eagles, fought its way across France, Holland and Belgium before reaching Austria in the deadliest war in human history.

Freeman, a Caledonia, Miss., native, enlisted in the US Army in 1942, volunteering for paratrooper duty, soon to be assigned as a mortarman in Company E (Easy Company).
Freeman jumped with Easy Company into Normandy, France on D-Day, June 6, 1944, with an 18-pound mortar baseplate strapped to his chest.

He was later honored with the French Legion of Honor, the country’s highest military honor, for his service in the liberation of France.
Sticking with his company throughout, Freeman fought in Operation Market Garden and later formed part of the defense of Bastogne during the Battle of the Bulge.

He was wounded during the attack on Noville on Jan. 14, with shrapnel embedding itself in his knee when a German rocket exploded near him.
It was the last combat Freeman would see, taking three months to recover from the wound.

But Freeman later rejoined his unit and participated in the occupation of Berchtesgaden and Austria.

Freeman returned to Caledonia after the war to get married to his childhood sweetheart and built a home. He raised two daughters and entered college using the GI Bill, going on to work in the postal service for 30 years.

R.I.P

11/06/2022

40 years ago today the men of 3 PARA were fighting in the battle for Mount Longdon. 23 men were killed, Two of the dead – Privates Ian Scrivens and Jason Burt – were only seventeen years old, and Private Neil Grose was killed on his 18th birthday. R.I.P Airborne Warriors.

"What manner of men are these who wear the maroon red beret? They are firstly all volunteers, and are then toughened by hard physical training. As a result they have that infectious optimism and that offensive eagerness which comes from physical well being. They have jumped from the air and by doing so have conquered fear. Their duty lies in the van of the battle: they are proud of this honour and have never failed in any task. They have the highest standards in all things, whether it be skill in battle or smartness in the ex*****on of all peace time duties. They have shown themselves to be as tenacious and determined in defence as they are courageous in attack. They are, in fact, men apart - every man an Emperor."