47th Regiment Royal Artillery

47th Regiment Royal Artillery
Active 1947 – present
Allegiance  United Kingdom
Branch  British Army
Role UAV
Size 4 Batteries
Part of Joint Helicopter Command[1]
Garrison/HQ Horne Barracks, Larkhill, Wiltshire
Nickname(s) The Hampshire & Sussex Gunners
Equipment Thales Watchkeeper WK450
Soldier from 21 (Gibraltar 1779–83) Air Assault Battery RA (serving with 16th Air Assault Brigade) raising the Union Flag.

47th Regiment Royal Artillery is a regiment of the Royal Artillery in the British Army. It is equipped with the Thales Watchkeeper WK450. It is located at Horne Barracks, Larkhill in Wiltshire.[2]

History

The regiment was formed in 1947 when 4th Coast Training Regiment Royal Artillery was renamed 47th Coast Training Regiment Royal Artillery.[3] It was reformed as 47th Guided Weapons Regiment Royal Artillery and equipped with the Corporal missile in 1957.[3] In 1965 it was renamed 47th Light Regiment Royal Artillery and equipped with the 105mm Pack Howitzer and then deployed to Aden in 1967.[3] It saw service in Northern Ireland during the Troubles in 1973 and 1975.[3] In 1976 it became 47th Field Regiment Royal Artillery, initially equipped with the 105mm light gun, before moving on to the Abbott gun in 1981.[3] 21 Battery and elements of 43 Battery deployed to the South Atlantic during the Falklands War in 1982.[3] 3 Battery and 31 Battery both took part in the Gulf War in 1991.[3] 21 Battery saw action in Bosnia in 1995 and elements of 31 Battery were deployed to Macedonia and to Kosovo in 1999.[3] Between 2001 and 2014 elements of the Regiment were deployed on Operation Herrick in Helmand Province, Afghanistan.[4]

Current Role

The Regiment is the sole operator of the Thales Watchkeeper WK450 UAS.[5]

Current Batteries

The Regiment currently comprises 3 equipment Batteries and 1 HQ Battery. A fourth equipment Battery is due to be added in 2018:[1]

  • 10 (Assaye) Battery
  • 43 Battery (Lloyd's Company)
  • 74 Battery (The Battle Axe Company)
  • 31 (Headquarters) Battery

Previous Batteries

  • 4 (Sphinx 1742-1993) Battery.[3]
  • 3 Battery
  • 21 (Gibraltar) Battery

References

  1. 1 2 "The Hampshire & Sussex Gunners". Ministry of Defence. Retrieved 5 September 2017.
  2. ↑ "Regular Basing Plan" (PDF). Ministry of Defence (MoD). Retrieved 8 February 2014.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 "47th Regiment Royal Artillery". British Army Units 1945 on. Retrieved 25 April 2014.
  4. ↑ AirForces Monthly. Stamford, Lincolnshire, England: Key Publishing Ltd. November 2014. p. 8.
  5. ↑ Ripley, Tim (March 21, 2018). "UK Watchkeeper fails to achieve full operating capability milestone". Jane's Information Group. British Army sources said its sole Watchkeeper unit, 47 Regiment Royal Artillery based at Larkhill on Salisbury Plain, “continues to train and carry out exercises with Watchkeeper”.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.