Paratroopers Roar Through Exercise Eager Lion In Jordan

Troops from 3rd Battalion, the Parachute Regiment, have been training in Jordan alongside soldiers from 20 other countries as part of Exercise Eager Lion.

For the men of C Company, 3 Para, it was a chance to test themselves in arduous terrain against their international allies.

Eager Lion is the largest exercise to take place in the Middle East, involving 5,000 troops, including 214 personnel from the UK.

The exercise culminated in a large set-piece battle in the desert - involving British and Jordanian forces, US armour and the might of American's bombing power.

The scenario involved an insurgent group attacking a border crossing, prompting a counter-attack by a coalition of forces.

But with the Syrian border just 60 km to the north, this has become an all too frequent reality since the rise of Islamic State.

During the exercise, the Jordanian Army’s Quick Reaction Force, which is modelled on the British Army’s 16 Air Assault Brigade, took the lead for the first time to command British troops in the mock battle.

Officer Commanding C Company, 3 Para, Major Ash Howard, said: "They see the maroon machine, as we term it, as where they want to go in the future. 

"The ethos that we have within 16 Air Assault Brigade is something they very much want to model.

"Certainly, some of the urban training that they conduct out here is perhaps more developed than ours in the UK.

"We trust them with our lives."

For many of the younger soldiers in 3 Para, it is their first experience of the Middle East and of working alongside a foreign army.

While for the more experienced paratroopers, these overseas exercises are something to be relished.

Lance Corporal Joe Kelly said: "The place where you're most likely to get deployed is in these conditions under these circumstances. 

"It gives the best insight for what you could be potentially up against."

For 3 Para, Eager Lion is three weeks of hard soldiering, sharing knowledge and experience with the Jordanian Army.

Situated in the middle of one of the world's most volatile regions, it comes as no surprise how seriously Jordan takes the exercise. 

Eager Lion proves to the Jordanians that they have reliable and dependable allies and, if needed, partnerships that could extend from exercise to operations.