Show of force
Soldiers of the 1st Battalion, the Royal Anglian Regiment, known to friend and foe alike as the Vikings, travelled to Liverpool Street to boost plans for Armed Forces Day.
National Express East Anglia and c2c offered serving members and veterans of the three armed forces 1,500 complimentary train tickets for travel on their services on Armed Forces Day.
Says Andrew Chivers, managing director of NXEA, ‘I was delighted to welcome 1 Royal Anglian to Liverpool Street station. National Express is proud to support Armed Forces Day across all our businesses and in the East Anglia region through our NXEA and c2c train companies we have developed strong links with the Regiment.’
One of NXEA’s Class 90 locomotives is named ‘Royal Anglian Regiment’, and fittingly ‘The Vikings’ officially launched the Armed Forces Day ticket offer at Liverpool Street against the backdrop of the ‘Royal Anglian Regiment’ locomotive.
Armed Forces Day on Saturday 26 June provided a welcome opportunity for the public to support the troops. Says Major Stuart Smith, Officer Commanding A Company 1 Royal Anglian, ‘Knowing that the British public supported us on the last tour of Afghanistan was a great boost to our morale. Armed Forces Day on Saturday 26 June is the epitome of that support and we want to thank everyone that shows their support and especially to National Express for making it a special day for us.’
Well done NXEA – it’s a pity that the government couldn’t have chipped in and given this sub carte blance across the entire rail network for the day. These guys, whether you like it or not, are putting their lives on the line all day everyday (Yes, even in the UK they are a possible “targets” to these nutters). They deserve all the support they can get.