04 Apr 24. DIO proudly enables NATO’s largest exercise in decades. Defence Infrastructure Organisation (DIO) proudly enables and supports NATO activity and exercises in the UK and overseas. DIO has been working hard to enable Exercise Steadfast Defender 2024, NATO’s largest military exercise since the Cold War. The 5-month exercise, which coincides with the NATO Alliance’s 75th anniversary, started in January this year and involves over 90,000 troops from all 32 NATO allies. The exercise has two stages, with the first focusing on securing the Atlantic and a second phase moving forces eastward into central and eastern Europe. Ex Steadfast Defender demonstrates NATO’s ability to defend every inch of its territory and the NATO allies’ commitment to protect each other from any threat. One of the many ways DIO is supporting Ex Steadfast Defender is at NATO Holding Base Sennelager, in Germany. Sennelager is being used to receive and stage a huge number of military personnel and their equipment as part of the exercise. Staging sees arriving personnel provided with accommodation, food and kit whilst ensuring logistics are in place so the required military vehicles are all simultaneously ready to deploy east on the exercise. DIO provides the required facilities and infrastructure needed as part of the exercise including meals, accommodation, storage, vehicle workshops and all manner of building requirements.
Enabling Group South’s Chief of Staff, Major Laurence Lee tell us more about how DIO are supporting Ex Steadfast Defender in Sennelager.
One example of the unique infrastructure required for large scale exercises like Steadfast Defender is a Primary Bulk Fuel Installation (PBFI) which stores large amounts of fuel. For a modern exercise like Steadfast Defender which involves more than 1,100 combat vehicles including tanks, Infantry Fighting Vehicles and Armoured Personnel carriers, fuel is a valuable commodity.
DIO worked closely with the British Army to find a suitable location for the PBFI in Sennelager with safety considerations being a priority when dealing with fuel. DIO liaised with host nation, Germany to ensure there are no environmental impacts and we are compliant with local legislation. DIO’s support to NATO takes place on British soil too, for example facilitating NATO exercises like Joint Warrior, or hosting NATO Allied countries for their training in the UK. Our Defence Training Estate (DTE) colleagues enable our Armed Forces to train and prepare for NATO exercises. Before deploying on large scale NATO exercises like Steadfast Defender, participating personnel need to ensure their skills and relevant training is up to date. The DTE team manages the diverse training areas around the UK and overseas, ensuring they are both safe and fit for purpose. This enables our Armed Forces to focus on their important training, practice their combat skills and be ready to deploy on exercises and operations around the world.
B Company 4SCOTS, Section Commander Cpl Sheppard explains how DIO’s work helps his company prepare to deploy on NATO exercises. (Source: https://www.gov.uk/)
28 Mar 24. Marines, Sailors Arrive in Australia for 6 Months of Training, Exercises. Approximately 2,000 Marines and sailors deployed to Australia’s Northern Territory this week to participate alongside their counterparts in the annual iteration of Marine Rotational Force-Darwin, the Pentagon announced today.
“Over the next six months, MRF-Darwin will conduct a series of exercises and training events with the Australian Defense Force and other regional allies and partners to establish a forward-postured crisis response force, enhance interoperability between our forces, and contribute to a more stable and secure Indo-Pacific,” Pentagon Press Secretary Air Force Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder told the media during a briefing earlier this afternoon.
Led for the third year in a row by a California-based Marine Corps infantry regiment, this will be the 13th annual iteration of MRF-Darwin, according to a news release sent out by MRF-Darwin’s media team earlier today.
MRF-Darwin dates back to 2011, when former President Barack Obama and then-Prime Minister Julia Gillard announced an agreement on force posture initiatives designed to significantly enhance defense cooperation between the U.S. and Australia. While the initial iteration consisted of only a small liaison element and a company of 250 Marines, the agreement intended to “establish a rotational presence of up to a 2,500-person Marine Air Ground Task Force,” according to White House archives.
“The Marines and sailors of Marine Rotational Force-Darwin are honored and excited to continue the legacy of cooperation and interoperability with our Australian Defense Force brothers and sisters,” Marine Corps Col. Brian T. Mulvihill, the commanding officer of MRF-Darwin, stated in the news release. “Our strong alliance contributes to stability in the region and enables the readiness of our forces to respond to any crisis or contingency that arises.”
This year’s MRF-Darwin will model itself on prior iterations by incorporating “security partners from throughout the Pacific Islands and the broader region” into the exercise schedule, according to the release. MRF-Darwin’s rotation is scheduled to conclude in October.
(Source: U.S. DoD)
28 Mar 24. Nato partners expand European flight training initiative. The expansion will help to “break down national siloes” by adopting a shared approach to training the next generation of aircrews. A group of countries in the Nato military alliance have expanded the organisation’s European flight training initiative.
Belgium, Czechia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Romania, Spain, Türkiye, and the UK have established the first ever placement of around 50 student pilots in four locations beginning in 2024.
In addition, they have set up nine new training campuses and formed a dedicated industry advisory body that will help to co-ordinate a holistic training approach.
City planning at its core is somewhat ubiquitous. Every city aims to provide the same basic amenities to its residents, from food and water to transportation,
The Nato Flight Training Europe (NFTE) initiative was originally created in June 2020 in the margins of the Nato Defence Minister’s meeting that year. Belgium soon joined in February 2021 followed by Germany and the UK in October 2023.
NFTE pilots learn to fly a range of aerial vehicles including jets, helicopters, and remotely piloted air systems.
Ultimately, delivering pilot training is an increasingly costly and challenging endeavour. Many European allies sent their pilots for training to the US to fulfil their pilot training needs, which resulted in additional strain on US capacities.
The establishment of the NFTE significantly decreases this reliance on existing US training facilities, by making European allies capable of training their own flight crews.
In December 2021, the participants officially designated the Flight Training Centre in Pardubice, Czech Republic, and the International Flight Training School (IFTS) in Decimomannu, Italy as the first two NFTE training campuses.
NFTE expansion
Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine has shown the importance of air superiority in waging a lasting campaign. It has even prompted Western allies to send F-16 Fighting Falcons to be used by the Ukrainian Air Force – its first group of pilots recently completed their initial flight training with the UK Royal Air Force last week.
Since it began twenty years ago, Nato’s air policing mission in Baltic airspace has proven highly effective in projecting a credible deterrence against Russia, having scrambled jets five times between 18 and 24 March 2024 to intercept Russian aircraft over the Baltic Sea.
NFTE’s new campuses and institutions will help to consolidate these efforts as the continent looks to achieve longer term goals into the 2030s, as the EU Commission and the European Defence Agency together unveiled its first ever Defence Industrial Strategy recently.
Nato’s Deputy Secretary General Mircea Geoană observed: “Unity doesn’t just happen, it has to be earned. One way of achieving this is by systematically training together and forging trusting relationships in the process. NFTE is an excellent example of this.
“This important multinational effort will help us to break down national silos towards a shared approach to training the next generations of aircrews.”
Trainer issues within Nato
Although the group has made substantial efforts to expand its capacity for advanced military pilot training, some Nato members have faced issues with their trainer aircraft.
The Royal Canadian Air Force is currently in a period of hiatus while the service decides on its next trainer aircraft as the country’s existing 18 CT-155 Hawk units come to the end of their 24-year-long life.
As a result, Canada has deferred its pilot training abroad as part of an interim training programme that will see Canadians take to the skies from Sheppard Air Force Base in Texas as well as other Fighter Lead-in Training programmes in Finland and at Italy’s IFTS, where Canada will have two instructors and six students by 2025.
Likewise, there was a long period in which the UK Royal Air Force was undecided in its successor trainer aircraft now that its Hawk T2 was also coming to the end of life phase.
In January 2024, there was concern that the RAF would be left with nothing for real-world training in a physical aircraft that possesses next-generation capabilities suited to a completely new era of aerial warfare other than simulator technology.
However, in March 2024, the UK finally announced it will deliver a Capability Investigation process into the Hawk’s replacement later this year.
Although, it was confirmed that the Hawk will continue to be used right up to its end of life date in 2040, it still gives rise to the concern that the Hawk will not reflect an up-to-date reflection of fifth or sixth generation fighter aircraft, such as the F-35B or the forthcoming GCAP fighter jet. (Source: airforce-technology.com)