Sapper Joe Lovell always wanted to be an Army diver - now his dream has come true in some of the most testing conditions in a landlocked country.
As one of a small team of Army Divers in Afghanistan, Sapper Lovell, of 35 Engineer Regiment, is on stand-by should an Army diving team be required.
The team could be called out all over Helmand to recover weapons or vehicles from the canals and waterways that lace the province.
The 23-year-old from Islington only qualified to be an Army diver in June and is looking forward to his tour on Operation HERRICK 15. He is now keeping his skills sharp at a 70,000-litre dive tank at Camp Bastion.
Army-taught from scratch
He said: “It’s rare for a diver get the opportunity to do an operational dive. I’m nervous in case we do get called out, but it would be very good experience.
“I had never been scuba diving before and the Army taught me from scratch. As I train more with the Army there will be more chances for me to convert my qualifications into civilian qualifications. I’m really looking forward to getting out on some diving holidays after my tour.”
After joining the Army in December 2008 Sapper Lovell has achieved a lot in a short period of time. He was even selected to be part of an Army training exercise in Kenya before he had been assigned to his first official Army job.
He said: “Being given the opportunity to go to Kenya before arriving at my first official Regiment was great. I was able to see how an Army unit worked before even getting to one, and it also gave me some idea of what to expect from the training for Afghanistan."
Football shirt
Sapper Lovell has also been on exercise in Canada, where he worked as a Section Sapper on an Armoured Engineer training exercise – a role where he could be called on to tackle any construction task.
Not only is this his first operational tour, but it is also Sapper Lovell’s first Christmas away from home. He said: “It’s not too bad being away from Christmas. I could have asked for my R&R to be around Christmas time, but I would rather let people with young families have the Christmas flights so they can see their kids.”
A dedicated Arsenal supporter, Sapper Lovell made sure his Arsenal football shirt was part of his luggage, just in case on the rare occasion that he gets to relax it will be in front of the TV watching a football match.
He said: “I have bought my shirt with me just in case, and I have also written to the team to tell them that although I might be in Afghanistan I’m still supporting them, even from the desert.”
Appreciative of the support from the public Sapper Lovell said: “It’s lovely to receive a parcel with things like toothpaste and shower gel in. I forgot to bring spares. We have a rule where you have to write to the sender so I’ll make sure I do.”
Sapper Lovell is in Afghanistan until March next year when he will return to 35 Engineer Regiment in Paderborn, Germany.
