Can you expand a bit on what's challenging/rewarding in the course? I'm considering applying to Armour officer. How does the physical component compare to the same phase for infantry? I am interested in combat Arms but hesitant to put my slightly older body through what infantry officers do.
Its been a few years (well - three decades) since I took what is now called DP 1 for Armour Officers, so take what I say with that caveat.
All army officers take BMOQ-A, which is a challenging course. You are in a field environment for much of that course learning about leadership in the tactical setting of an infantry section. Nobody's course will ever be as tough as theirs, or a slightly older officer at their unit who is describing how tough their course was. Still, it takes some physical and mental toughness to get through.
I did not take the course, but DP 1.1 Infantry is a very tough course physically. You are in a dismounted infantry platoon going through the paces while under assessment. You don't sleep very much, you carry loads and are under pressure. I remember looking at some of my friends who were on Phase III Infantry (the old DP 1.1) as they marched out on their defensive portion from the relative comfort of my turret as I sipped my Sprite thinking "
you poor bastards." I have great respect for my Infantry colleagues.
DP 1.1 Armour (what I would have called Phase 3) is also a very challenging course. It tends to the be the course where those not really suited for Armour fall by the wayside and find another branch. It is a field course, so it has all the stress and physical discomforts of that. It is not physically challenging to the same extent as DP 1.1 Infantry Officer, but your knees and back will suffer and you will have all the pressure and mental exhaustion.
Being a successful crew commander relies on a number of things that can be hard to assess without actually doing it. Mental processing speed, spatial awareness and the ability to talk someone through something quickly and clearly without being to point at the things you want them to reference. You need to able to keep straight in your head the direction that your tank is moving, the direction that your turret is pointing and where you want to go. You then need to be able to relate that to someone in another part of the tank who is looking straight ahead. Some very smart and fit colleagues of mine were not able to successfully crew command a tank, especially when moving backwards. (jockeying a tank can be quite difficult if you lack good spatial awareness). Another colleague also just could not see things clearly at 2000m, even with binoculars. Nothing to do with effort or smarts. They went on to have great careers in other Branches. I am sure that we could come up with elaborate pre-screening like they do for aircrew as I imagine that they test for similar things, but the consequences are much greater for aircrew so they invest those resources.
What is rewarding about DP 1.1 Armour? I enjoyed learning how to crew command an armoured fighting vehicle cross- country. Gunnery was also a hoot - I really enjoyed both the IMR/Simulator shoots as well as the open range stuff. When a crew is working well together its a great feeling.
