Remembrance Page

This page is dedicated to former Company members who have passed on. If you would like to submitt a tribute/memorial piece for this page, please get in touch via the 'Contact Us' page. 

Nick Bajic. I knew Nick from being in the Leicestershire ACF's County Shooting Team with him before joining 16 Coy.  He was a Bisley shot during his time with the ACF and went on to 16 Coy but had gone to the Regular Army before I joined.  I saw him at Brize Norton whilst I was doing my BPC as Nick was put into our course as a refresher.  Having gone onto the PF Pl Nick was tragically killed with a couple of his PF colleagues when the car they were travelling in left the road when returing from an Exercise in Brecon. Pinky I first met Nick in January 1987 on the first recruit cadre of that year.  What was immediately apparent to me, as one of the oldest recruits, was Nick’s maturity which, as one of the youngest, was well beyond his years.  Also his superb fitness and the calm nature with which he approached all things put before him.  Nick was not one to flap under pressure; he was quiet and reserved in some ways and I felt at this stage he was happy to weigh everyone else up.  Not that this meant he was reserved when it mattered and he would be up at the front when on TABs doing more than his share of carrying the GPMG.  His weapon handling skills were the best on the cadre and he made the excellent turnout of his kit look remarkably easy, I believe his prior time in the ACF helped with this. After passing ‘P’ Coy and going to depot, Nick excelled in this section of our training being one of the best shots, also I believe the first recruit to get 100% pass mark in the written tests and generally being the top of the group in all tasks. Nick and I went down to Brize Norton together to do our BPC and it was at this time that I realised just how he had his future mapped out.  He was doing his apprenticeship as an electrician before joining the Regular Army so he would have a good trade when he eventually returned to Civvy street.  Again, this summed Nick up and in my view put him way ahead of most people of his age. Back at 16 Coy, having spent some time in the Company, Nick did a spell with the recruit staff but as I recall spent most of 1988/89 with the highly successful 4 Para shooting team under the leadership of our then PSI Sgt Bill Phillips. I spent time away with the shooting team between Company training and Nick was clearly a key member of the team. He last time I saw Nick was in April 1990 just before I left the Company.  He told me had decided to join the Royal Engineers on the understanding he would join 9 Sqn after gaining another trade, again to strengthen his job prospects in later life.  We wished each other the best and hoped to catch up when I returned from travelling overseas. On my return I never did get to catch up with him.  His old ACF mate Dave Chiswell, who joined the Coy at the same time, would update me with news;  how he had shone through his training with the Engineers (not a surprise to me) and that he was now with 9 Sqn.  Later Dave told me he was going for Pathfinder selection.  Again I never had any doubt that he would take that in his stride too. Not having been in contact with the lads or the Coy for a while I was shocked to read a newspaper report related to the tragic accident leading to Nick’s death.  Sadly for me this was sometime after Nick’s funeral and I was unable to be there to show my respects. In my eyes Nick was a born Para and I never doubted his ability to be highly successful in that career, with his superb fitness, unflappable and totally reliable nature I can’t think of anyone more suited.  His death was a tragic loss of a great Coy member and friend. John Statt 22 May 2010

Brigadier Donald Fletcher. Brigadier Donald Fletcher was OC of 16 Coy back in the 1960s.  His son Col Hugo commanded 4 Para around 1999-2000.  His very interesting Obituary appeared in the daily Telegraph back in March. It is well worth a read and can be seen here. Pinky 25 Apr 10

Sqn Ldr Paddy Marshall. Sqn Ldr Paddy Marshall was killed when the C130 in whihc he was flying was shot down over Iraq in 2005.  He was from Honington in Lincolnshire, and I'm lead to believe he served in the Coy prior to joining the RAF where he Comissioned and qualified as a Tornado Pilot.  Any further information would be greatly appreciated. Pinky 25 Apr 10

Tim Duckworth Right from the start I hit it off with Tim. We found we had a lot in common including a take it or leave it attitude (With the emphasis on leave it…) towards Parachuting. I had found a kindred spirit; we would not be throwing ourselves out of balloons or aircraft any more times than was strictly necessary. The first time I went away with 16 was annual camp Sennybridge ’93. Tim was the Rad Op in our patrol with Alec Hags and Mac as the commander. We called ourselves the ‘A’ team thinking that we were the best. The rest of the platoon were just left wondering where we had parked our black van and if Mac was the one we had to drug to get on a plane! We embarked on a 12 day Recce cadre: I could not believe how hard it was! I remember whilst stopping for a nav check, all of us dead on our feet, Tim dropping off instantly his headset crackling loudly from the sound of a dying battery, he was totally oblivious to it. Tim never failed to amaze me he could sleep in the most uncomfortable of places; nightclubs (Often), propped up like a penny for the guy outside the Wheatsheaf in Brecon, on the doorstep of my mum’s flat to mention a few! And snore? He could give Jules Cowley a run for his money! Tim was always immaculately turned out, whether in uniform or going out on the town. This came at the cost of how long it used to take him to get ready. You could guarantee you would be waiting for him, trying to get him to get a bloody move on, he would just grin and say ‘chill!’ He would not be rushed. I have so many happy memories of Tim; Parachuting, on exercise, Ritzys (Who can forget Grab a Granny night and Sad Man’s Corner?), days out with our kids, Christmas ’96, 4 weeks solid drinking in Hinckley (Tim always said Hinckley was the centre of the universe.) Wings courses, the JNCO cadre we did along with Vinny Hags, which was a hard 2 weeks, Cambrian patrol..Etc..Etc..Etc. Tim was always fun; he was a bloke you always looked forward to spending time with, a King of the one-liners and a Professor of sarcasm. He could give it and take it in equal measure. His toothy grin was infectious, you could be on your chin-straps feeling utterly miserable and sorry for yourself and then you would catch a glimpse from him; maybe you were on the back of an aircraft ready to jump, maybe on a tab, or on exercise, he would probably have a radio on his back along with all the other gubbins we used to carry. (Not to mention the tins of stag chilli and power bars he used to take.) I can see him with his helmet on, a sweat and cam cream streaked face giving me that toothy grin, you could not help but grin back, it lifted your spirits there and then. Tim was a great bloke; he was fun, loyal, strong, dependable and a great friend. He was proud to be a Paratrooper and we were proud to stand beside him. PD 23 Nov 09 Note: There's a small memorial plaque to Tim in the Workshops at BATUS in Alberta, Canada, which is where he was working when he died. If you find yourself over there go and have a look. Pinky

Ernie Derbyshire. Ernie died on 3rd October after a long and valiant battle with cancer. I have included a couple of the tributes received so far: Thank you for including me in the sad new about Ernie, this is new no one wants to hear, I and my family would like to pass on deepest sympathy to all of Ernie's family. I have fond memories of Ernie as my recruiting Corporal long ago back in November 1984, he was a true gent and greatly respected within the Company, I will near forget the Milling line up the day before,of which Ernie was involved in Pairing up opponents, a see of smiles when two brothers were paired to fight, also the chat we had prior to the 10 mile Battle March, without that chat I truly believe I wouldn't have completed the 10 miler and the Cadre, with a further 3 yrs service. Karl Rogers   Please pass on my deepest sympathy to Ernie’s family. I too was one of Ernie’s ‘P’ Coy cadre recruits. I remember one poignant occasion on the trip between Glen Pava and Lincoln barracks. We were rather exuberant in the back of the 4 Tonner and as we were driving along, Sergeant Ernie Derbyshire stopped the wagon. He ordered us all to get out and line up to attention with authority. He did not look happy; we thought we were in for it! He then told us to about turn and we did as ordered and then a voice from the gods behind us with a boyish laugh ‘Ernie’ said “Now boys look at the marvelous sunset”. We did and watched a stunningly beautiful sunset. I will say every time I look at a stunning sunset as I am painting them I remember Ernie and that wonderful evening. Well as the sun sets on Ernie’s illustrious career I hope we can all say a fond farewell to a true “Sky god”, never forgotten and when the sun sets I will raise a glass to you Ernie another fallen hero. Mark Moloney   It's with great sorrow that I read your email of the sad passing of Ernie Derbyshire. Ernie was also my recruit Sergeant who took me through "P" Coy and a stalwart figure to me in the company. It's an honour to have been one of Ernie's lads. John Statt

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Andy Slesser If anyone would like to submit a remembrance piece for Andy Slesser please e-mail me...

Rex Harrison To say that this memorial piece is overdue would be an understatement of monumental proportions. Suffice to say, it has taken me way longer to put pen to paper than it should have, but finally I have the opportunity. In 1985 I was in the same cadre as Rex and attended “P company” with him. We met at Glen Parva barracks in Leicester and immediately hit it off. Rex and I were the oldest in the cadre and this fact gave us common ground from day one. As with every recruit, past and present, the training was probably the most demanding and rewarding thing we had done in our lives. What set Rex apart was his awesome level of fitness and his fantastic wit, which even now, 23 years later, I have vivid memories of. He was more than a mate to most in the cadre; even though he could easily have outpaced any of us, he always helped the less able members to get through the really tough sessions on every march, exercise or drill (myself included). It was during May 1985 that we found ourselves in Browning Barracks, Aldershot for our 2 week “P company”, during which we had one night off base to unwind during what was proving for most of us to be the hardest 2 weeks of our lives. As Rex and I were the oldest, we decided to head back before the other lads and Rex made a point of wanting to telephone his wife before lights out. With this in mind, we decided to race each other back to barracks to ensure we used the ‘phone in time. It was whilst rushing back to do so that Rex was tragically killed by a motorist outside the camp. Despite all efforts by myself and medics Rex died at the scene. Despite the fact that 23 years have elapsed, I have never forgotten him (and never will) and grabbed this opportunity to finally put into words what a remarkable person he was. I wish to express my thanks to Marcus Orme of 16 Coy website for extending this opportunity to me. God bless Rex, and I’m sorry it has taken me so long mate. Brian Woods 16th Oct 08   Firstly, I would like to say a big thank you to Brian Woods for his very moving tribute to Rex my "big brother".  It was quite by accident I stumbled across this memorial and very uplifting to know that Rex had left such an impact on his colleagues. Rex was my true "hero" big brother and to lose him so tragically just the month before my 21st birthday was devastating to me.  I had spent many happy time exercising with rex and hi brother in law Andy at the local gym and he was so inspirational and he always led life to the full.  He would rock climb like a mountain goat wihtout a care in the world for his own safety when he was trying to reassure someone else (like me).  Rex was so fit and full of life that he seemed indisctructable to me and it has taken many years for me to come to terms with his mortality.  Brian's memorial has also helped me to understand more of the events of that tragic night. Rex was the eldest of five brothers (myself being the youngest).  He embraced all forms of activity, from weekends participating in the Sealed Knot civil war re-enactments with myself in tow to regular sessions in the gym and gruelling training runs for the TA with his other brother Paul. Perhaps my biggest regret is the lack of photos I have of Rex, with his wry smile and wicked sense of humour. Most recently I was blown away when visiting rex's grave to find awonderful laminated picture of him had been left there, together with an unopened beer can and some very kind words from his comrades (who I hope shared a drink in his memory). My sinserest thanks go out to "Woody", "Haywood", "Nixon" and "Singlehurst" for this very king gesture and I know Rex would be proud to know that his memory still lives on after all these years. David Harrison 16th April 2012

Nick Haller Nick Haller was one of my recruit Cadre Corporals when I first joined 16 (Lincoln) Company back in September 1990. Although I was a recruit and he was an instructor we seemed to be on the same wavelength and hit it off from the start. During an NBC lesson he made an allusion to one of Shakespere's works and I was the only one that laughed... he reckoned later that he knew I was going to pass 'P' Coy as soon as he spoke to me, which was pretty complimentary, although having seen a number of recruits pass through myself I now know what he meant. Despite having had his parachuting career curtailed by a broken back suffered in a jump onto Sennybridge, he continued to serve on in the Company demonstrating his flair for soldiering at every turn. Blessed with an extremely dry sense of humour, Nick was a natural cynic who became more amusing as circumstances grew more depressing. On many occasions we would find ourselves on some foresaken training area, in driving rain on an apparently pointless exercise and still in hysterics as we took delight in the absurdity of the situation. The event which gave Nick's gallows humour particular vent was the annual Martial Merlin Military Skills Competition; convinced from the start that it was a huge 'Hat' conspiracy to humiliate us. To reduce the number of challenges to the Umpires it was decreed that each complaint registered would need a £10 deposit to be returned if the complaint was upheld. Nick turned up prepared with all his kit as per the joining instruction and with a wallet full of tenners. For me the enduring image is Nick, at the end of each stand, shouting 'Right!!!', ripping a tenner from his smock pocket and storming over to the DS to berate them about their mismanagement of the stand! The competition must have cost him more than £80... Nick was probably frustrated by the limitations his back injury imposed on him, in the eyes of the Medical Board if not in his own. Unable to Parachute and limited in his operational options he eventually left the Company back in about 1996 to go to work as a transport manager for the UN in Bosnia. In one of those memorable moments of a chance meeting with a friend when far from home, I did manage to talk to him out there in '97. I was manning a roadblock in the mountains when a UN rep turned up. I started talking to the driver and mentioned Nick's name, on the off-chance he might be able to pass on my regards. To my suprise he told me Nick was his manager and was on the net if I wanted to talk to him. Although he was several hundred miles away in Sarajevo he put me onto the net and we managed to catch up, albeit for only a few minutes. Subsequently Nick moved into the Private Security Sector and had been working in Pristina and various other hot spots around the world. He was married and lived with his wife and son in Sarajevo. I managed to get in touch with him by e-mail a couple of times in 2006 when I was out in the Oman and then in Afghanistan. He told me that he was about to start a new job, I think in Iraq. It was shortly after that, in October 2006 that I received the tragic news of Nick's untimely death whilst undergoing surgery for a heart condition which had come to light during a medical examination as part of the recruitment process for his new job. I think Nick was one of those people who was born outside his time; intelligent, fit, funny and irrepressable, if the current world situation had existed 10 years earlier he'd have been in his element out in Afghanistan. I had huge respect and admiration for him; I'd have cheerfully served next to him under any circumstances and I'm sure he'd have kept me in stiches under virtually any circumstances. With his death the Company has lost a stalwart member, the Regiment a fantastic soldier and I've lost a great friend. Pinky 18th Oct 06

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