Royal Marines get new snowmobiles to boost raiding operations in Arctic Circle
Royal Marines Commandos are striking faster and further across the snow and ice of the Arctic, thanks to the arrival of new snowmobiles for reconnaissance and raiding operations.
The UK Commando Force now controls 159 Lynx Brutal Over Snow Reconnaissance Vehicles (OSRVs) which allows them to move across the snowy mountains, deep within the Arctic Circle, to get into combat.
As the nation's specialists in extreme cold weather warfare, the Commando Force's battlefield tactics have evolved for the modern era, deploying in smaller teams deployed across a wide area on reconnaissance, raiding and strike missions behind enemy lines, requiring greater mobility.
Traditional methods, such as skiing, skijoring and snowshoes, still exist as proven methods, however, snowmobiles have been used previously by specialist teams and these are now being made available to a wider group within the Littoral Strike Group.
The demand to move more quickly and over longer distances across extremely difficult terrain has resulted in a £9m investment to update and grow the Commando Force's fleet of snowmobiles, with 159 Lynx Brutal Over Snow Reconnaissance Vehicles made by a Finnish subsidiary of Canadian firm Bombardier Recreational Products.
"This is a very important investment in the Commando Force's Special Operations capability in the High North, at a strategically significant time," Brigadier Chris Haw, who is responsible for the Commando Force Transformation Programme, said.
"This is yet another cutting-edge capability enhancement as part of a wider transformation programme providing a more sophisticated and specialist force to defence."
The Royal Marines' battlefield tactics have changed, meaning the personnel are deploying in smaller groups in a massive area on reconnaissance, raiding and strike missions behind enemy lines.
As Russia is gradually asserting its influence, the Royal Marines will be able to be more responsive and to hold heavier equipment in the High North frontier.
The Surveillance and Reconnaissance Squadron (SRS) from Plymouth-based 30 Commando Information Exploitation Group have been trying out the snowmobile at Camp Viking in northern Norway during their Winter Deployment this year.
The squadron – selected from the entire trio of services – are trained to go ahead of the main allied forces to create a route that is sometimes far into enemy territory.
The SRS member said: "So far, the platform has received high praise for ease of use and manoeuvrability, making it the most agile platform used to date.
"A more powerful platform, but in a lighter frame, enables the carriage of heavier sledges without any compromise to performance.
"The new Lynx Brutal has proven to be superior to previous platforms with better performance at night, extra suspension options that can be easily changed by the operator, as well as having a more aggressive track which provides more power and lift in deep snow conditions."
The Defence Equipment & Support branch assisted with delivering the snowmobiles.
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