Airforces

http://www.airforcesmonthly.com #367 OCTOBER 2018 // 61

Royal Netherlands Army’s 11th Air Assault

Brigade and made use of the German air base

of Celle. Different scenarios were practised

by night and day including co-ordinating

and carrying out of fire support in the form

of close air support (CAS) and close combat

attacks. Live-fire sessions for the Apaches

(with rockets and guns) and the transport

helicopters (door guns) were practised on the

ranges of Bergen-Hohne and Munster-Süd.

Special operations forces

The Dutch Ministry of Defence is currently

developing a strategic vision for further

development of the special operations

forces (SOF) role. The newly established

Special Operations Command is responsible

for this and will provide a second life for

the Cougars of 300 Squadron – previously

threatened with retirement for budgetary

reasons. The commander of the RNLAF

personally addressed squadron personnel

last November and announced that the unit

will receive a dedicated SOF task and will

require further specialisation in the coming

years. The details of this assignment

have yet to be defined by RNLAF staff.

Although the goal of the course has

remained the same over the years, its

content has changed several times.

Anticipating the new SOF role, this year’s

syllabus has already put extra focus on

the mission by adding a special phase.

During the two flying weeks, the helicopters

practised together with special forces from

the Dutch military police and the Netherlands

Marine Corps. Different missions included

an airfield seizure and simulated rescue of

hostages on board a ship and from a car. For

the academic phase, participants spent a

week at NATO Special Forces Headquarters

in Mons, Belgium, for integrated simulation

training involving both air and ground forces.

The C-130 Hercules of 336 Squadron were

supposed to play an important role during

the third phase of the course – a combined

airfield seizure/simulated forward arming

and refuelling mission. Originally planned

to participate during all three phases, the

squadron’s operational commitments limited

its presence to the last phase. Since 2014,

336 Squadron has had a strategic partnership

with the 11th Air Manoeuvre Brigade (AMB).

This brigade comprises DHC helicopters

and the army’s 11th Air Assault Brigade.

Unfortunately, due to technical problems,

overhaul, and the demands of the mission in

Iraq, 336 Squadron was unable to participate

at the very last moment. On the other hand, it

also revealed the challenges of SOF missions.

Maj Martin explained: “SOF missions are

always different – there is no standard.

SOF units teach us to think and act out-of-

the-box by focusing, thinking of solutions

different to the obvious ones. Even though

the loss of air capacity was a setback,

it also offered a challenging perspective

for the mission planners. The ‘fat cow

refuelling’ procedures have been planned

and actual verification of the TTPs with the

C-130 will take place at a later date.”

Bright future

Maj Martin was pleased with the results of

this year’ s HWIC. The decision to switch the

course from autumn to early spring proved

wise and only one mission was cancelled due

to bad weather during the 15 weeks. Only

three missions were scrubbed due to technical

failure, the result of excellent co-operation

between HWIC and the active squadrons.

The next HWIC will be held in 2020 instead of

next year. The addition of a special SOF module

proved useful for all involved and this new

task will likely result in a further specialisation

for the different assets in future courses.

Maj Martin concluded with satisfaction:

“The new-look course for our helicopter force

further emphasises the importance of having

high-quality weapons instructor training. The

future for the HWIC looks very bright.”

This AH-64D has just returned from a ‘tactics’ mission during HWIC and the crew is about to shut down

the systems at its dispersal at Forward Operating Base Deelen.

All three helicopter types that participated in

HWIC 2018. During phase one, operations were

flown from Gilze-Rijen AB, FOB Deelen and other

locations. In some scenarios the rotorcraft were

‘attacked’ by fighters operating as Red Air.

AFM

56-61 Chinooks AFM Oct2018.indd 61 9/10/2018 10:03:54 AM