As their colleagues on Civvy Street drove to work in last Monday morning's rush hour, 40 Army reservists prepared to climb aboard one of the most sophisticated combat vehicles in the world – the Challenger 2 Main Battle Tank.
And in doing so, as these pictures show, the reservists – all from the Westcountry – were able to experience the kind of awesome firepower already well known to army soldiers, but which most carpenters, accountants and mechanics would not normally expect to encounter.
The reservists are all with The Royal Wessex Yeomanry (RWxY), made up of squadrons from Paignton, Barnstaple and Salisbury. Together, they crewed the tank in a rigorous test on the Five Tips Range near Lulworth in Dorset.
Trooper Stephen Caley, 29, is a mechanical engineer for Babcock Marine, at Devonport Dockyard in Plymouth, but he has been honing his skills as a loader for the regiment which, by this time next year, will have become the only armoured reinforcement unit in Britain.
"It is very challenging," said Stephen, whose civilian job is to ensure submarines are sea-worthy. "It takes you to your physical and mental limits and you get to experience extreme heat and cold."
Being within the tank's confines is a challenge in itself, and Stephen has had to load guns in a "tight and cramped" environment before checking the firing circuits.
"It is great having the opportunity to be on Commander 2, and using it more regularly as time has gone on," added Stephen, who lives in Plymouth but serves with D Squadron in Paignton.
"It is a weapons platform very few civilians will ever get to touch in their lives, and that is one of the main reasons I am with this regiment."
Lance Corporal Art Sproson, 46, who lives in Newton Abbot and also serves with D Squadron, has been working as a gunner – a world away from running a housekeeping operation for Finlake Holiday Park.
He said: "I'm quite lucky, as my loader has been one of my counterparts from Paignton, so it is somebody I already know – which makes communication easier."
Kane Worsnop, 23, from Barnstaple, is also a gunner, who has been learning how to scan and lock-on to targets on the terrain of the Dorset range, considered one of the best in Western Europe.
A safety officer by day, Kane said the constant drone of the tank is combated with "sound cancelling" headphones.
"Obviously you can still hear it, but you can actually feel the pressure wave as you fire and see a flash through the sights," added Kane.
