SAS L1A1 (but not really)

[Peter Laidler]

The Scouts certainly earned their keep in NI didn't they.... Mind you, I think as general work horses they were totally flogged to death by the time they were pensioned off. Like the single and twin pioneer 'taxis' in Malaya. I remember exactly where I was when NI all kicked off. I was in Oz, sat on my bed on a Sunday afternoon, writing a letter home when one of the diggers walked up the outside corridor, came in and told me that the paddies had started rioting in NI. I remember saying to him that it was probably IRA inspired/fomented and it'd all be over by Xmas............ Never been more wrong!

Maybe......, just maybe, someone will write the whole warts an' all story of the whole saga. Miami showband, central laundry, Welch Guards int breakthrough......... Nope, maybe not. Just best left unsaid

[Flying10uk]

Gil, do you remember a GPMG getting snatched in Northern Ireland which, if memory serves me correctly, I seem to remember seeing on news reports from the late 1980s period? I seem to remember from what was said on the news that it caused a "hell of stink" at the time but that the army recovered it fairly quickly.

[browningautorifle]

Long time since I saw a Bell Sioux. Last one was way out in the bush, I was lead scout for the rifle company...step through the bushes into a clearing and here's this chopper and two man crew. A Lance Sgt and Lance Cpl. flying it. They conflabbed with the OC and then it cranked up and rattled off into the distance...not sure how long until I saw the Gazelles.

[tankhunter]

Finally, a respected Armourer breaks cover and gives the official reason for these short rifles, cheers Mike!

I hear you were involved with the early classified Humber pig / Sarsons pickled onion trials, hope I haven't got you into bother with the Official secrets act!

No probs John, The real Official secret was. The trials were abandoned, due to the Pigs ignoring the Onions. & Much preferring truffles!........

---------- Post added at 12:48 AM ---------- Previous post was at 12:41 AM ----------

Pete, TBH. I cant say for certain why the bayonets were not utilised. I can only assume that they were stolen off the Rifles in a Crowd control situation. Where it was potentially easy for a member of the public. To grasp the bayonet area round the handle area & flash Hider, & press the catch.

But I 'suspect' that the real reason was. They were deemed 'Too Aggressive' when carried fixed. & thought it might upset those poor little rioting paddies?....

Gil: Yes in the very early deployment years, of British Troops in NI. Tea & Sarnies were welcomed by the Lads. But........when later, ground glass & other 'Nasty Stuff' was included in them. but as You Know, The Practice was stopped by Orders issued from above!.......

[Gil Boyd]

Gil, do you remember a GPMG getting snatched in Northern Ireland which, if memory serves me correctly, I seem to remember seeing on news reports from the late 1980s period? I seem to remember from what was said on the news that it caused a "hell of stink" at the time but that the army recovered it fairly quickly.

So many weapons stolen over the years to remember which Regiment lost what oops sorry Lost/Stolen correction

[mrclark303]

I can remember a very brief camera sweep of an IRA arms cache being decommissioned on the news, a wood stocked L1A1 was among the AK's, Armalites and M60's etc

[Bruce_in_Oz]

The only "funny" I ever saw, (and fired) was an L2A1, that had been around the block with someone and came back with a flash-hider from an M-60 attached to a slightly shortened barrel.

It had modified late-pattern L1A1 hand-guards held on with stainless-steel hose clamps, instead of the C2 type bipod / hand-guard rig. L2A1 dust-cover and sight retained. L1A1 trigger housing and components.

Looked nasty, shot fine.

Do not know of its "heritage", but doubt it was an "official" mod, even for the "interesting chaps" from Western Australia.

There was also alleged to be an L1A1 issued to a rather "gung-ho" Oz Infantry company commander (Major), which was bog-standard, but had a set of hand-guards with brass plates attached to them. On these plates were engraved the words: "Happiness is a warm barrel and a high body count." I suspect there may have been a set of "issue" hand-guards available, come "tech inspection" time.

[CINDERS]

I do not think the paddies had it all their own way in a book I have Stalk and Kill a certain IRA member was fleeing the scene of a shoot out with the British army at night and found his way into the cross hairs of a sniper whom latched on to him as he disappeared into a door way. The sniper fired as the perp disappeard into the shadows so could not claim a kill.
During daylight a patrol went out and went to the doorway where there was a nice 7.62 hole in the center of it, they had to push their way in as on the otherside dead as a trout was the IRA member with a nice old exit hole in the middle of his chest.

The sniper could only fathom what must have happened and it went like this, as he got into the door and closed it behind him he had leant against the door thinking Phew! he had escaped when the round came through the door and did the deed on him.
But they had IRA snipers that were just as good as the Brits that are mentioned in the book but it was a one way street as they could not match the training of the British snipers and often ended up holding onto the short end of the rod.

Heres one to show snipers are not with out feeling from the same book;

The were set up in an urban training environment with poppers goodies and baddies to which the snipers had x time to take out the threats anyway one sniper shot a lady pushing a pram so the CGI shouted out "Thats just great for the relations here the child will grow up hating us and wanting to kill us."
No sooner had those words left his mouth another shot rang out going straight through the pram...................total silence ensued!

Sorry for the highjack but the mention of paddies & Ireland brought those stories back into my head.......

[Peter Laidler]

The snatch GPMG saga was the late 80's and was taken from one of the Jockistan regiments during a village sweep in bandit country. Some women ran off with it plus he belt hanging from it but the stumbling block was that the engagement rules did not allow the patrol to open fire on the women due to the fact that simply running off with a gun isn't a killing offence. So they had to let them escape. But not for long. One of them had already surrounded and sliced the face of one of the others too. Reinforcements were quickly on scene and the village TOTALLY locked down and sealed. A couple of Para Reg search teams came in - I think that they called then chaos squads - very quick plus dogs and after a while it was found. Much more to it than that but there you go...... Gil, you'll remember this albeit by association with our mutual friend

[mrclark303]

The only "funny" I ever saw, (and fired) was an L2A1, that had been around the block with someone and came back with a flash-hider from an M-60 attached to a slightly shortened barrel.

It had modified late-pattern L1A1 hand-guards held on with stainless-steel hose clamps, instead of the C2 type bipod / hand-guard rig. L2A1 dust-cover and sight retained. L1A1 trigger housing and components.

Looked nasty, shot fine.

Do not know of its "heritage", but doubt it was an "official" mod, even for the "interesting chaps" from Western Australiaicon.

There was also alleged to be an L1A1 issued to a rather "gung-ho" Oz Infantry company commander (Major), which was bog-standard, but had a set of hand-guards with brass plates attached to them. On these plates were engraved the words: "Happiness is a warm barrel and a high body count." I suspect there may have been a set of "issue" hand-guards available, come "tech inspection" time.

Ring any bells Bruce?