BELFAST — Thousands of British soldiers, sailors and aviators have taken part in a full scale rehearsal of King Charles III coronation procession ahead of the official ceremony in London on Saturday.
The rehearsal, staged in central London earlier this week, involved scores of soldiers, in their iconic bearskin hats and cavalry, as well as, senior defense chiefs from UK military services including Commander of Strategic Command, General Jim Hockenhull.
“The Coronation of HM King Charles III is an historic event, and I am proud of the role that Strategic Command personnel will perform in the celebrations in London and across the world,” Hockenhull said in a release.
The UK’s Defence Infrastructure Organisation (DIO) has also been heavily involved in preparations for the event. Supported by contractors Aramark, VINCI, Sodexo, Aspire and Landmarc, it has been working across 14 military bases and two training camps to provide accommodation and food to personnel selected to take part in the coronation, according to a Thursday statement.
Some of the more unusual items DIO has to assist with include tailoring of military uniforms, water trough provisions and temporary horse stables. It also manages a whole host of other essential supplies from generators and heaters to portable sanitation areas, shaving sinks, marquees, lighting towers, seating stands, privacy fencing and even carries out road sweeping. So called “brew stations” for service personnel to privately make tea and coffee will be provided by DIO too.
At a security level, the Royal Air Force will be on watch to monitor and manage UK airspace throughout the event.
Meeting Zero Trust goals while maintaining information dominance
Balancing security and access to data are critical to providing users with trustworthy, reliable data for real-time decisions.
“The UK has a credible cross-domain, multi-layered capability to counter any threat to UK airspace,” said a RAF spokesperson in a statement to Breaking Defense. “The RAF defends the UK’s airspace 24/7, 365 days a year. The RAF remains constantly alert and ready to intercept any potential airborne threat; the 6th of May is no exception.”
Military personnel will flank the procession over the course of a 1.42 mile route that starts at Buckingham Palace and passes through major UK landmarks like Trafalgar Square and Big Ben before finishing at Westminster Abbey where King Charles III will become Britain’s 40th monarch to be crowned at the church. Hundreds of thousands of onlookers are expected in London for the event.