The Joint Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Regiment was a specialist expeditionary unit of the
British armed forces
The British Armed Forces, also known as His Majesty's Armed Forces, are the military forces responsible for the defence of the United Kingdom, its Overseas Territories and the Crown Dependencies. They also promote the UK's wider interests, s ...
. Personnel of the Joint CBRN Regiment were trained in the detection, identification and monitoring of
nuclear
Nuclear may refer to:
Physics
Relating to the nucleus of the atom:
* Nuclear engineering
*Nuclear physics
*Nuclear power
*Nuclear reactor
*Nuclear weapon
*Nuclear medicine
*Radiation therapy
*Nuclear warfare
Mathematics
*Nuclear space
*Nuclear ...
,
biological
Biology is the scientific study of life. It is a natural science with a broad scope but has several unifying themes that tie it together as a single, coherent field. For instance, all organisms are made up of cells that process hereditary in ...
and
chemical
A chemical substance is a form of matter having constant chemical composition and characteristic properties. Some references add that chemical substance cannot be separated into its constituent elements by physical separation methods, i.e., wi ...
weapons.
It was formed on 1 April 1999 as the Joint NBC Regiment, from a stated recommendation in the
Strategic Defence Review
The Strategic Defence Review (SDR) was a British policy document produced in July 1998 by the Labour Government that had gained power a year previously. Then Secretary of State for Defence, George Robertson, set out the initial defence policy of t ...
for an operational unit to support deployed forces of the
British military
The British Armed Forces, also known as His Majesty's Armed Forces, are the military forces responsible for the defence of the United Kingdom, its Overseas Territories and the Crown Dependencies. They also promote the UK's wider interests, su ...
in NBC defence and assistance. In 2005, the name of the regiment was changed following the addition of
radiological
In physics, radiation is the emission or transmission of energy in the form of waves or particles through space or through a material medium. This includes:
* ''electromagnetic radiation'', such as radio waves, microwaves, infrared, visib ...
weapons to its remit, and the NBC (Nuclear, Biological, Chemical) designation changed to CBRN.
There were five regular squadrons; four from the
1st Royal Tank Regiment
The 1st Royal Tank Regiment (1 RTR) was an Armoured warfare, armoured regiment of the British Army. It is part of the Royal Tank Regiment, itself part of the Royal Armoured Corps and operationally under 12th Armoured Infantry Brigade (United Kingd ...
and one (
No. 27 Squadron) from the
RAF Regiment
The Royal Air Force Regiment (RAF Regiment) is part of the Royal Air Force and functions as a specialist corps. Founded by royal warrant in 1942, the Corps carries out soldiering tasks relating to the delivery of air power. Examples of such ta ...
. Two squadrons (
A and
W) from the
Royal Yeomanry
The Royal Yeomanry (RY) is the senior reserve light cavalry regiment of the British Army. Equipped with Supacat Jackal variants, their role is to conduct mounted and dismounted formation reconnaissance. The Regimental Headquarters is located in ...
and, from March 2004,
2623 Squadron RAF Regiment provided a reserve capability.
On 21 July 2005, the name of the unit was changed from the Joint Nuclear Biological and Chemical Regiment (JNBCR) to the Joint Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Regiment (JCBRNR).
Elements of the Joint CBRN Regiment have since operated in this role in
Kuwait
Kuwait (; ar, الكويت ', or ), officially the State of Kuwait ( ar, دولة الكويت '), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated in the northern edge of Eastern Arabia at the tip of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to the nort ...
and
Iraq
Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...
(on
Operation Telic
Operation Telic (Op TELIC) was the codename under which all of the United Kingdom's military operations in Iraq were conducted between the start of the invasion of Iraq on 19 March 2003 and the withdrawal of the last remaining British forces on ...
, in which the Royal Yeomanry squadrons combined into a single unit named Y Squadron) and
Afghanistan
Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...
. The regiment contributed to operations world-wide during every year of its formation.
It was disbanded on 16 Dec 2011 as a result of the 2010 UK
Strategic Defence and Security Review, with capabilities being transferred into the newly formed Defence CBRN Wing, formed by 26 and 27 Sqns RAF Regiment and 2623 Sqn RAuxAF Regiment.
The
FUCHS armoured vehicle was retired at this point.
The 1st Royal Tank Regiment then became divisional troops within
3rd Mechanised Division. Nevertheless, in 2014, the Royal Tank Regiment formed up with one squadron, Falcon Squadron, dedicated towards CBRN, and brought the FUCHS vehicles back into service in 2016.
References
{{reflist
External links
27 Sqn RAF Regiment1st Royal Tank Regiment post 1945 history
British administrative corps
Military units and formations established in 1999
Joint military units and formations of the United Kingdom
Military units and formations disestablished in 2011
1999 establishments in the United Kingdom
2011 disestablishments in the United Kingdom