Amanda has a real blast in army exercise

Amanda Ambler, a Sapper who is serving with 35 Engineer Regiment, took the lead on the dramatic bridge demolition task.

She used it as an opportunity to experiment with the explosives, explaining: “We set the plastic explosive slightly differently than we would normally for this task to see if we could create a simpler way of collapsing a bridge.

“From the damage caused to the sample bridge panel the explosives certainly did their job and we found the structural weaknesses.

“It’s good fun working with explosives. That’s what we train for and I enjoy being a Combat Engineer.”

It also gave her the chance to take the lead on a major operation.

She added: “I had to oversee the task making sure everyone did their jobs properly, safely and then brief the whole troop on why we had set the explosive charges in the manner we had. Briefing and talking to my peers is something I am comfortable with, you just have to remember to be informative and confident when speaking.”

It’s just the latest challenge the engineer has taken on, including a short deployment to Kenya where Amanda’s trade skills as a design draftswoman came to the fore during a small building project.

She said: “It was really good to see my drawings come to life as the building was constructed from my design.

“My long term aim is to be a clerk of works so this was a great opportunity to get first hand experience working with all the different trades on site.

“Spending time in Kenya and seeing and helping the local community was really rewarding, seeing how they lived definitely broadened my horizons - it was a fantastic life experience.”

Next up for Amanda in the summer is a major armoured exercise in Canada where her engineering skills will be tested on the vast prairies.