32nd Regiment Royal Artillery

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32nd Regiment Royal Artillery
Active1939 – present
Country United Kingdom
Branch British Army
RoleMini-Unmanned Aerial Systems (MUAS)
SizeRegiment
398 personnel[1]
Part of1st Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance Brigade
Garrison/HQRoberts Barracks
Nickname(s)The Wessex Gunners
EquipmentDesert Hawk III PUMA 2
Website32 Regiment Royal Artillery

32 Regiment Royal Artillery ("The Wessex Gunners") is a regiment in the Royal Artillery, part of the British Army and is equipped with the Lockheed Martin Desert Hawk III and PUMA 2 miniature unmanned aerial vehicles. 32nd Regiment is the only Royal Artillery unit that operates MUAS and along with the 5th Regiment Royal Artillery provides an integrated tactical and strategic; intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition, and reconnaissance (ISTAR) capability.

As part of 6th Division, under the immediate command of 1st Intelligence & Surveillance Brigade (1ISR), 32nd Regiment supports the Reactive Force elements of the British Army and provides dedicated MUAS capability to the 3rd (UK) Division.[2]

History[]

The regiment has its origins in 7th Medium Brigade which was raised in 1927, evolved into 7th Medium Regiment and served throughout the Second World War.[3]

In 1947, the 32nd Regimental Headquarters (RHQ) was retitled as the 45th Field Regiment[4] and the 7th Medium Regiment RHQ was retitled as the 32nd.[5]

In 1966, the regiment became a Heavy Regiment with M107 175 mm self-propelled guns.[5] In 1972, it became a light Regiment, equipped with 105mm Light Guns; then, in 1978, a Guided Missile Regiment equipped with Swingfire anti-tank missile.[5] In 1985, it became a heavy regiment again with M107 guns based in Dortmund.[5] During the Gulf War, the regiment was equipped with M110 self-propelled 203 mm howitzers and served as part of the Divisional Artillery Group supporting the 1st Armoured Division.[5]

In December 2016 it was announced that the Regiment would be disbanded and its personnel redistributed to other parts of the British Army.[6] In the British Army's Soldier Magazine October 2020 edition, it was confirmed the regiment would not disband but will continue to support the field army in the Mini-Unmanned Aerial Systems support role, using the Puma and Wasp AE (All Environment) mini unmanned air system.[7]

Batteries[]

The Regiment currently comprises the following batteries:[8][9]

References[]

  1. ^ "Army – Question for Ministry of Defence". p. 1. Retrieved 14 December 2020.
  2. ^ 6th Uk Division 1st intelligence surveillance & reconnaissance brigade at MoD.com
  3. ^ "32 Regiment Royal Artillery". Ministry of Defence. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
  4. ^ "45th Regiment RHA". British Army units 1945 on. Retrieved 10 May 2014.
  5. ^ a b c d e Young, A. "32nd Regiment RHA". British Army units 1945 on. Retrieved 10 May 2014.
  6. ^ "Strategic Defence and Security Review - Army:Written statement - HCWS367". www. parliament.uk. UK Hansard. 15 December 2016. Retrieved 11 October 2019.
  7. ^ "Flying High". Soldier Magazine (October 2020). 1 October 2020. p. 29. Retrieved 2 October 2020.
  8. ^ "32nd Regiment Royal Artillery – Our History". British Army. Retrieved 4 July 2019.
  9. ^ a b "32 Regiment Royal Artillery". army.mod.uk. Retrieved 11 October 2019.
  10. ^ "32 Regiment - British Army Website". 2 November 2017. Archived from the original on 2 November 2017. Retrieved 9 October 2019.

External links[]


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