Paras lose jumps - Fake News?

Your weekly dose of defence news, biased opinions and poorly curated content. You’re welcome.

After ex-Army officer - now MP - Ben Obese-Jecty posted on X last week about 2 or 3 Para losing their jumps and Para pay, the entire Armed Forces meme machine was mobilised. Instagram was flooded with some fairly brutal posts, and the MOD went into full flap mode.

Shortly afterwards, a panicked response was published on BFBS: “These claims are incorrect - there are no plans to cut any Parachute Battalion, nor Para pay. The PQ [Parliamentary Question] is clear that we are continuing with current plans for parachuting” they said.

So, it seems on paper that jumps may still be a thing. But it is no secret how increasingly difficult getting on the course is becoming…is the capability already being eroded in everything but name?

Ukrainian defence firm Ukrspecsystems is investing £200m and creating 500 jobs at two facilities in Suffolk that, at full capacity, will be able to churn out 1,000 drones per month.

Ukrspecsystems produces higher-tech autonomous reconnaissance UAS (see gnarly pic above), used primarily for target identification and surveillance - rather than the kamikaze drones that have become synonymous with the Ukrainian front lines.

So (incredibly), the government has confirmed it still plans to reach Full Operational Capacity with AJAX by 2029.

The only massive caveat is that the same government is running a Ministerial Review into the ongoing viability of the programme. If that review says no dice, then the programme is off and we are back at square one.

Just over the Channel, the ever-impressive Poles are showing Europe what an actual commitment to defence looks like. Their tank programme is set to hit 1,100 units by 2030 - more than the UK, Germany, Italy and France combined. They are achieving this through a national effort and a multi-platform approach - prioritising off-the-shelf solutions from proven contractors, rather than getting bogged down in decades-long R&D programmes.

Wake up UK - the clock is ticking.

Big events from the past, covered in brief and probably inaccurately.

During the closing days of the first Gulf War one of the defining moments of the conflict took place. The retreating Iraqi forces were attempting to escape Kuwait and into Iraq down Highway 80 - the six lane motorway connecting the two states.

As the huge mechanised column moved through the night of the 26th February, US forces bombed the front and back of the column, thereby trapping the forces in place. The coalition forces joined the firefight and went on to destroy thousands of vehicles that had essentially become sitting ducks on the motorway.

It remains a controversial decision strategically as there were large question marks over the number of hostages and wounded being transported in the column, as well as whether attacking retreating troops was against various UN Resolutions.

Changing things up? This is where we briefly look at career options from across the civvy world - everything goes here so expect some absolute drivel. Sometimes Forces Assist can help place you, sometimes we can’t. Either way we can offer advice.

Running a big ol’ explainer series on the ‘gram about getting into driving. Which makes sense because we’re a business for drivers. Give us a follow and get involved:

Bored of asking - they’ll love Despatches and we’ll love them.

Cheers,

Team Forces Assist

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