The Arctic - The Playground Of The Royal Marines
The north of Norway has been the training ground of the Royal Marines and their support arms for more than 45 years and with security in the Arctic an ever-present issue there's no stepping back on the momentum.
Pilots, soldiers and engineers are among the personnel undergoing cold weather survival courses under the watchful eyes of the mountain leaders.
The Arctic doesn't discriminate.
Age, sex or even rank – those not equipped with the knowledge to survive in the extreme environment will last little longer than a day.
That's why every man and woman on Exercise Clockwork must go through the cold weather survival course.
The Arctic is very much the playground of the Royal Marines Mountain Leaders.They're running the four-day courses and have taught a number of Naval engineers to become survival instructors.
It's a tri-service effort from the students and for the first time, soldiers from the Princess of Wales Royal Regiment have joined Clockwork.
The course teaches the basics of survival in the extreme conditions, it's very much a soldering effort:
Everyone from engineers to pilots must complete the course – if an aircraft was to go down in the mountains, it's their only chance of beating the conditions and making it out alive. Clockwork is run by the Commando Helicopter Force in Bardufoss.
The aim is to be ready to support the Lead Commando Group – the Royal Marines at high readiness for operations across the world and with security in the Arctic a hot topic there's no backing down on the training.
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