 Arriving in April, Poett joined a draft of troops joining the 2nd Battalion, and then spent two weeks on a train travelling to the city of Bannu; once there, the draft were forced to remain until they could join one of the lorry columns that transported troops to Razmak.These only travelled once or twice a week, as the area surrounding the route to Razmak had to be guarded by British troops to protect the lorries from hostile tribesmen and snipers.The area around Razmak was in open conflict, with hostile tribesmen attacking those villages that had allied themselves with the British authorities, and sniping at British patrols.