IN PICTURES: Airborne Signallers On Exercise Mercury Dagger

The exercise was designed to test the airborne signallers' readiness to deploy at short-notice (Picture: MOD).

Airborne signallers have gone through a range of basic soldiering tests to ensure they are ready to deploy on short-notice operations around the world.

Troops from 216 Parachute Signal Squadron practised their core soldiering skills on Exercise Mercury Dagger on the Stanford Training Area (STANTA) in Norfolk.

Among the tests, patrolling, checking vehicles, carrying out first aid and completing infantry attacks.

The week-long exercise was set up to ensure troops' readiness to serve as part of the Air Assault Task Force (AATF), the British Army's global rapid reaction force.

The Colchester-based squadron is trained to deploy by parachute, helicopter or air landing to provide specialist communications support to the AATF.