Gulf Kit List
This is my checklist of stuff to take, combined from the official lists, recommendations
from Gulf War Part 1 veterans and those who have lived in the desert before.
I've added things since our return, in the light of subsequent less mobile deployments.
Medical
see Sgt M's, to be added.
Washkit (Field)
- mini tube soap, toothpaste, toothbrush, flannel, raser, shaving oil
- wet wipes
- bog roll/small packets tissues
Washkit (Barracks)
- Shower gel, big toothpaste, proper toothbrush,
- electric raser + spare batteries (no water required, but I found mine didn't
really shave properly)
- towel (marked/distinct),
- Travel (eg tube) clothes-washing soap
- Nail clippers
- Open mesh laundry bag (marked) that you can wash socks/t shirts/other indistinguishable
(from other peoples') items in
- Sun cream (F20 to start with; F8/similar for later)
- Insect repellent
- Foot powder
- Sewing kit: safety pins, needle(s), various threads
- Pegs
- bog roll/small packets tissues
Clothes
- Combat 95 x2: T-shirt, Norwiegan, Fleece, Quilted Jacket, Combat Jacket.
- 'Wicking' T shirts/base layers
- Socks. Lots; eg 8 pairs. Good ones. Light ones.
- Undies. Some; eg 5 pairs.
- Boots (no really?) Don't go for 'overbig' and add socks to fit!
- Beret, stable belt, spare green belt.
- Waterproofs
- Gloves
- Warm hat
- Civvies (for during training):
- 1pr crumpalable trousers,
- 2 shirts,
- 2 t shirts,
- 1 jacket/pullover
- Socks
- Shoes
- Plimsolls/Flip flops (plimsolls expose less of your foot to sun/sand/biting
things) for icky showers etc
- PT kit: Running shorts, sox (same as civvi?), trainers. share t-shirts
with civvies/C95
Sleeping
- Sleeping bag (army, apparently it may get cold) + bivvy bag
- Cotton/silk liner
- Mat - thermorests are smaller but take valuable sleeping time to inflate
and can puncture
- Blow up pillow
- Basha (We had side tents for our vehicles, but it did rain some nights!)
- Pegs
- Bungies
Accomodation
If you're likely to be static, then you might like to take:
- Cloth shelves (as supplied by Ikea etc to put your shoes/shirts in) so you
can hang your stuff off the floor.
- Camping cot
Eating/Drinking
- Water will be supplied in 1.5L bottles, so think about where you can carry
it comfortably. You won't want to decant it into your ordinary water bottle
ten times a day...
- Water purification tablets (iodine) for emergencies
- Racing spoon with hole in the end to tie to absent minded rocket scientist
carrying it.
- KFS for barracks to be posh
- Plastic plate & bowl
Lighting
- (I go for the new LED torches where possible - you can get tiny ones that
run off watch batteries for hours).
- Red mini light
- White for around camp (Head torch, or some bicycle lights are compact LED
ones with good battery life)
Organising stuff
- Washbags (boots/army/etc) have lots of little compartments for keeping things
organised, and some padding to protect them
- Zip lock bags are handy for field use - I find they tend to fall apart a
bit though, compared to washbags.
- Plastic bags (eg shopping bags) for compartmentalising clothing
- Tippex pens for marking dark stuff in white (Good for webbing, bags etc
- can see it in the dark)
- Black marker pens for marking light stuff in black.
- Writing pad, pens. Pencil is reliable.
Not being killed stuff
- Helmet. Check cover is secure; tape it on on the inside if nec. Foam
padding at the top of the head is more comfortable if you're a baldy. And
we all will be. Don't use the elastic trick for holding it on over respirators
- it just falls off when you're rushing about. Put a grenade-pull ring (or
large keyring if you don't have a grenade and somewhere to lob it to hand)
through the normal clip-ring, and clip onto that instead.
- Mine clearance kit (small prodder, bits of mine tape on small wires made
from eg an old coat hanger) in say an old cigar tube.
- First aid kit: (see Sgt M's list, to be added)
Killing people stuff
- This will be issued.
- Try and aquire a spare combi tool that can sit in an easy-access pocket
for blockages.
- You can make a rifle cover out of an ammunition bandolier, which I will
try to remember to put up here...
Other fighting order stuff
- Assault vest/Chest rig if you can afford it. We were continuously getting
in and out of vehicles. Bear in mind it's difficult to reach your pockets
with a vest/rig on, so make sure it's got enough room to put everything you
need into it.
- Piece of string. How long?
- Strong sticky tape, black and/or green
- Pace beads
- Light carabina on the webbing's right hand side (away from ammo pouches)
to attach helmet to
Having a better time stuff
- I'm told a head-net for keeping nasty biting insects off while you're on
stag is good.
- Tobasco sauce/sachets of chilli sauce/herbs/etc
- Try the self-tanning creams - some of them kick off the melanin that protect
you against the sun. Good for pale whiter-than-white scots.
- Music player + sociable (eg in-ear) headphones. The iPods (or similar) are
great ways of taking a huge amount of music
- Short-wave radio.
- Insulated mug
- Plastic wash bowl (?? get onsite?)
- Wet wipes
- Thermosflask
- Pack of cards
- Book(s). Take a few small ones rather than one big one - they're a bit easier
to swap about! I took a palm pilot with a lot of books on too.
- More lighters & matches. These were not being brought in while I was
there...
- Camera. You can post film/disposable cameras home to be developed, or you
can take a digital one. I took a digital - you can see immediately how your
pictures are coming out. Without access to a PC though you have to make sure
you have enough memory chips. Make sure you don't have the compression setting
too high - you won't notice on the little camera screen, but when you blow
it up you'll get strange edges etc
Seeing things stuff
- Sunglasses
- Binoculars
- Night-vision... I bought a 'cheap' nightscope (£200) but it was a
complete waste of money - the optics are not good enough to see anything useful.
Probably alright for watching foxes in your garden, but not much else.
...for those who can't naturally:
- Spectacles & Spare - even if you wear contacts, take a pair and
a spare emergency pair. The dust can make contacts uncomfortable
- 'reactolight' lenses or clipons for harsh sunlight.
- Securing band - something to hold your specs on if you're bouncing around.
- spare screws & screwdriver
- Contacts - if you do, get some daily disposables. No looking after,
and you don't get scratches building up on them.
- Spare screws and screwdriver for specs
- Hard cases
Other
- Camera(s).
- Leatherman
- GPS
- Whistle
- Compass
- Pouch (if you smoke a pipe) to keep tobacco/pipe/cleaning stuff in away
from everything else
- Alarm clock
Documents
- Zip lock bag
- Call-out notice
- ID discs and chain
- Medical warning tags, if issued
- JSP 381 (Aide-memoire on the law of armed conflict)
- All driving licences held
- F MED 965 (the small summary of your medical record - if you went to Kuwait
you should have this)
- NHS Medical Card
- FMT 600
- F IDENT 189 and F IDENT 189A (paper identity cards - will probably have
to be reissued to you by RHQ)
- Next of kin details
- UNICOM verification (will be provided to you by RHQ) *
- Current eyesight prescription (important, if you wear spectacles or contact
lenses, so that prescription lenses for your respirator can be made)
- Personal vaccination certificate (the official Army one, completed by your
GP)
- Address and telephone number of your GP
- 4 passport photos in civilian dress *
- Valid 10-year passport with at least 12 months to run, or (if you don't
have a valid passport) your birth certificate
- Details of your cheque bank account
- Chequebook
- Credit card(s)
- Evidence of DSS benefits currently being received, if any
- Evidence of your pay (income tax forms P45 and/or P60s for both your civilian
AND TA employment, including bounty) and pay statements for the current
year (civilian and TA)
- Evidence of any of the following benefits, if you receive them from your
employer and ONLY if they will be withdrawn on mobilisation:
- company car previously used for family
- medical insurance
- any civilian form of boarding school allowance
- any employer's contribution to a subsidised mortgage
- Evidence of your pension contributions (as set out on p.3 of the mobilisation
booklet)
- Evidence of all your expenditure (rent, mortgage, all bills, insurance,
loans, car tax, MOT and servicing, TV licence, etc.)
- Evidence of your current tax code (either from the Inland Revenue or your
most recent pay slip)
- AFH 1157 to scale (a printout of the kit you have been issued, which will
be provided to you by RHQ) ha ha ha ha etc
Let me know on my feedback page of any of
your own kit tips and I'll see about adding them on!