Twenty cadets stay in London and train with the University of London, while the other twenty cadets train with the Cambridge University Battalion.

The UKOTC program is a free trip to England, courtesy of the United States Army, a chance to see another country and have fun; but it is most importantly an opportunity to experience working with a foreign army and continue leadership training.

The first week of training was held in London. The cadets that attended the University of London training were given very comfortable cots and sleeping bags during the first week of introductory training in London.

The first week was very laid back and certainly the most fun. We were treated more like tourists than trainees.

The most training we did involved familiarization with British weapon systems and marching equipment.

We were taken to sit in on Parliament and listen to debates, and we went on a tour of the Royal Hospital and the British War Museum.

We were able to watch the changing of the guard from inside the officer’s mess at Wellington Barracks, we went on a double decker bus and boat tour of the city, and we got to see the changing of the guard in the Tower of London, all free of charge.

The building we stayed in was located on Handle Street and was only seven or eight blocks away from Trafalgar Square and the center of the city.

We were given free reign during the week to see the city: no curfew or restrictions.

The first week seemed more like an all-expense paid trip to London than an Army training event, but the first week was deceiving—it got a lot more challenging when we arrived at the training site.

The second and third weeks of training were held at a small British Army facility outside London. It was dirty, there was no phone, and the heating didn’t work—the perfect place for training!

The second week of training followed a ‘round robin’ schedule. There were three events: adventure training, range and weapon qualification, and ‘mil skills’ that took up two days.

The third week consisted of a three day FTX (Field Training Excercise) and branch training. The ‘mil skills’ and FTX were the most challenging portions of the training.

Each night, there was sleep deprivation training. I had an hour of sleep during ‘mil skills,’ and three hours during the FTX.

This wouldn’t have seemed so impossible to survive if the Brits used their transportation corps to transport us anywhere, but they didn’t.

The British Army rucks everywhere. This is not an exaggeration. The training itself was not hard. It was patrolling the four to five mile gaps between each training station with a rucksack on that was difficult, especially after getting no sleep the night before.

The training itself focused mainly on small unit tactics and individual training, but the FTX was capped off with a joint attack on a small village.

Over one hundred cadets and cadre used the training of the last two weeks to assault the village. The operation was timely, coordinated, massive, and extremely successful.

It was some of the best training I have received since becoming an ROTC cadet.

Not many people have an opportunity to see that much of a large-scale attack take place during training.

The most informative part of training was seeing what went wrong during the attack, and then learning how to avoid it.

Communication is hard when rounds are firing overhead. Accountability is even more difficult.

Difficult, however, is not synonymous with impossible – training is designed to help soldiers realize this.

The UKOTC program was challenging and fun. It gave me the opportunity to interact with, and learn about, another military cadet program.

It was the opportunity of a lifetime, and it was much appreciated. The British army is one of the best in the world, and the training demonstrated just that.

UKOTC was a great pre-requisite for LDAC—Leadership Development Assessment Course, which I am sure will provide more challenges for me next summer.

—Cary Eden
Class of ‘07