Navigational wisdom used to prepare the Royal Anglian Regiment for Kenya

The Royal Anglian Regiment is practising its navigation techniques ahead of its upcoming three-month deployment to Kenya.

While society relies on GPS (Global Positioning System) and Google Maps, soldiers in the regiment must learn to rely on just a map and a compass, as it can prove to be the difference between life and death while on operations.

"In a battle space, GPS will likely be denied, or you might run out of battery on your phone. But the one thing that is not going to fail you is a map or a compass," said Major Paul Machnicki of B Company, 1 Royal Anglian.

• 1 Royal Anglian pushes soldiers in platoon competition in honour of fallen officer
• Royal Anglians past and present parade to celebrate regiment's 60th anniversary
• Boosting soldier numbers a priority for new CO of Royal Gibraltar Regiment

Training in the Peak District, the Royal Anglian soldiers are practising in rural areas and preparing for their deployment in Kenya.

For some of them, it will be their first time in the country.

Soldiers are taught to focus on prominent features of the land such as farm buildings and wood blocks to orientate themselves if they become lost.

Maj Machnicki said: "I think there's a general wisdom about core navigational skills, using a map and a compass that has fallen behind a bit as society is now very used to GPS, using Google Maps on their phones, and not having to think about where they're going day to day because a computer does that for them."