Paratroopers join historic voyage of discovery around the globe
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On 14 August 2023, the DARWIN200 project set sail from Portsmouth with the aim of reconnecting young people across the planet with nature in order to build mankind a more sustainable future. This diverse and impressive team are retracing Charles Darwin’s original route around the world over the next two years, stopping off in a multitude of locations whilst carrying out a wide range of conservation and research projects along the way, mostly but not always in the same locations which were visited by Charles Darwin two centuries ago.
For one week this January, eight of these team members will be young serving paratroopers.
Thanks to the DARWIN200 organisers, these eight soldiers have this evening stepped aboard the Oosterschelde, a tall ship known for being the world’s largest restored Dutch sailing ship, to embark on this once in a lifetime opportunity. Between now and the 12th January, they will experience the life of a tall ships sailor as they also immerse themselves in Airborne history on the Falkland Islands.
Starting on Pebble Island, the Oosterschelde will make its way to Port San Carlos, with battlefield tours planned to Goose Green, Mount Longdon and Wireless Ridge, all key locations during OPERATION CORPORATE in 1982. Here, our soldiers will have the opportunity to walk the same ground as their Airborne forebears and learn more about the history of the distinguished Regiment in which they serve.
Each paratrooper has been sponsored on this trip thanks to the generosity of SUPPORT OUR PARAS and the Alex Fairey Memorial Fund, but this opportunity would not have been possible without the outstanding support and benevolence of the DARWIN200 organisers, who were simply determined to make sure that this exciting and uniquely adventurous pilgrimage was able to happen.
