# SAS Black Bear



## John A Silkstone (Aug 26, 2009)

Secret behind SAS B Squadron's bear motif revealed 

The secret behind the black bear insignia of the SAS B Squadron has been revealed by members of the elite unit. 

The legend of the bear dates back more than 50 years to when the unit was fighting in the jungles of Malaya. 

Peter Thompson, an SAS trooper who is now 72, came across a young black bear hiding in a suspicious hole he was investigating while on patrol in 1958. 

His subsequent role in the unit was chronicled and found by two B Squadron veterans going through the archives two years ago. In his honour, they decided to use a bear motif on memorabilia for the squadron, whose veterans include Andy McNab and Chris Ryan, two of the eight-man team who took part in the failed Iraq mission, Bravo Two Zero. 

Mr Thompson, known as Tommo by his comrades, said his unlikely companion became a valued member of the unit. 

"I dubbed him Chieftain after the name of the operation during which he was found. He became one of us and he knew me as his dad," he told the Sun. 

"Chieftain used to sleep under and in my bed with me, he was my pet. 

"On our extraction from the jungle by helicopter several months later the bear eventually arrived at a main camp, where it slept with me and the rest of 9 troop. He would accompany members of 9 troop to the local drinking holes in Kuala Lumpur. 

"He was let free at times, but out of barracks I would have him on a leather collar and dog's lead. 

"A year or so later Chieftain contacted pneumonia and was taken to military hospital, but despite the fight to save him, he died." 

Mr Thompson, who reached the rank of Sergeant Major, said he thought it was "marvellous" that Chieftain's memory lived on as B Squadron's emblem. 

"The new tie has a bear motif on it and squadron notepaper has a bear's footprint alongside the proud winged dagger," he said. 

"At a recent squadron reunion, members and past members were presented with a set of bear footprint cufflinks." 

A former B Squadron commander added: "The bear footprint is on T-shirts, cufflinks, ties, and other stuff and the men are very proud of it."


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