Czech Republic has two new mission commanders to command NATO air operations in case of conflict
Ministry of Defence & Armed Forces of the Czech Republic
Author: by editorial staff (ob)
21.2.2024
Since February, the Čáslav AFB has two new Mission Commanders, who are able to control a multinational air operation in case of conflict. JAS-39 Gripen fighter pilots completed the test in a Tactical Leadership Programme (TLP) exercise in Spain two weeks ago.
"We have proven that we can be good leaders both on the ground and in the air. While the Mission Commanders do not do the planning itself as it is all about teamwork, they control the whole process and put in their experience. They are also authorised to decide the final shape of the mission," said one of the successful course graduates on the importance of their role. He and his colleague became the first ones to have completed the challenging course on JAS-39 Gripen fighters.
This very intensive international exercise is held several times a year with the participation of few dozen aircraft from various European countries. The program includes the Composite Air Operations (COMAO) that involve a multitude of various types of aircraft operating together. The AWACS aircraft attend on regular basis, and the air assets this year included Eurofighters from Italy and Spain, Rafale from France, Greek F-16s and Swiss F-18. The fighters again took off from the Los Llanos airbase in the southeast of Spain. The three week exercise comprised 12 missions and trained a total of 650 personnel. The 21st Tactical Air Force Base in Čáslav participated with roughly three dozen of flight and ground specialist personnel plus three JAS-39 Gripens.
Two weeks of stress
The primary objective of the exercise is planning and preparation of complex missions. According to the Czech Air Force fighter pilot, the TLP differs in its high demands, extensive scope of various types of missions and presence of highly experienced instructors involved in after-action reviews of mission planning and performance. All participants are subject to extreme pressure as they are required to plan, perform and assess an operation in one day.
"While other exercises run in a two-day cycle, with planning done on one day and flying on the second day, here everything is concentrated into a single day. We started very early in the morning and ended up late in the evening, which was demanding, especially mentally, given the accumulating fatigue," says the Czech pilot and expands that the difficulty level was growing as well as mission variedness - no mission was like the previous one. "The difficulty was growing, no mission repeated. The organisers always added something that necessitated a different course of action and different planning process," he added.
During the two weeks of the flight part of the course, the Czechs spent thirty hours airborne, and an average sortie took under two hours. As opposed to the previous editions, they played the good guys in the Blue Air team. The days started early in the morning, when the trainees heard a new tasking order. The instructors then selected the mission commander - always a new one - and the leaders of partial missions. Every mission had its objectives both in the air and on the ground. The plan had to be ready under the control of the mission commander within a couple of hours. "What we are talking about here are composite air operations involving about forty various aircraft, ground units and UAVs. You have to include that in the plan and write down for everybody what they are required to do in individual steps," the pilot explains.
Understanding each other
For the operation to be successful, it is necessary that the participants, who come from all over the world and serve at different posts with various tasks, understand each other. The course is held in English and individual language levels can of course differ. "We stuck by the rule ʽCommunicate to Win'. When you talk to both native and non-native speakers and you are in a stressful situation, you can often mishear something or not be sure what you heard. Here, we were forced to verify every single detail do get the right information, which is key for mission success," he emphasized.
He also mentioned that most of the missions were demanding from the point of view of communication. "The events often followed one after another or overlapped and each mistake impacted the following phases. It was therefore necessary to think each mission through and prepare it with regard to planned as well as unplanned contingencies which might occur," said the second of the pilots. Even though some of the tasks were not fully finished, the Czech team was satisfied with the overall results. Thanks to the feedback from their instructors and colleagues, they learned valuable lessons to be used in the future.
Czech contingent's success
The Čáslav AFB service members were successful even outside of air operations. Their contingent was the only one to be commended for their pilot support, language levels and attitude of the ground specialist personnel to the environment. "Our aircraft were evaluated as the best prepared and our international colleagues commended our kindliness and helpfulness. We were the only ones who managed the entire exercise with full serviceability," said Deputy Commander of the 211th Tactical Squadron for Ground Support Service Major Jan Koudelka, who was the commander of the Czech team during the exercise.
The TLP includes a total of 10 countries of the Alliance and its objective is to improve the effectiveness of the air force with a focus on tactical leadership. Although the Czech Republic is not a member of the program, Czech Air Force personnel participate in TLP exercises regularly.
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