Tragedy at Lešť
A tragic accident occurred at 11:40 local time on 12 September at the Lešť Military Training Area, while a Military Police (MP) member was abseiling from a hovering helicopter. The case is being investigated by the MP and the Aviation Authority. The cause of the tragedy and the circumstances will be made public upon conclusion of the inquiry. Minister of Defence Martin Glváč and CHOD Lt. Gen. Peter Vojtek extended their deepest condolences to the soldier´s family. The MP member who died during the exercise will be buried with all military honors. Because of the tragedy, the MOD cancelled the celebrations of the 20th anniversary of the establishment of the SVK Armed Forces, which were scheduled for 14 September in Bratislava. ● To ensure good conditions for conducting Exercise SLOVAK ENDEAVOR 2013 (SE13) was the aim of the final planning conference, which, attended by 1st Mechanized Brigade Commander Col. Ján Bujňák, GS, was held in the Jaselské Barracks in Topoľčany on 9 September. The exercise, which is to be held for the first time in the history of the SVK Armed Forces, between 23 − 26 September, will be aimed at conducting training with the use of the Joint Exercise Management Module (JEMM). ● First aid courses were organized for drivers between 10 − 11 September by the Training, Education and Specialized Preparation Section, operating under the Specialized Medical and Veterinary Division (Office of Military Medical Service Chief in Ružomberok) with a detached working unit in Liptovský Mikuláš. 9 Slovak military members were trained on the first day and 14 on the second day.
Higher level of co-operation (September 11) Aircra! Repair Plant Trenčín will be allowed to bid for the Czech MOD's contracts, as follows from a defence agreement with the Czech Republic, which has been approved by the Slovak government and is to be signed by both Ministers of Defence in Ostrava on 21 September 2013. "Together with the Czech Minister of Defence we agreed to remove this legisla#ve hurdle s#ll during a bilateral mee#ng at the Globsec Conference. The inter-governmental agreement will enable the Czech MOD to have equipment repaired in our Aircra! Repair Plant Trenčín, which is a welcome step, promising more work for our people," said Minister of Defence Mar#n Glváč. According to the agreement, approved by the government on Wednesday, the two countries will forge coopera#on in such areas as defence planning, military educa#on, armaments, logis#cs, medical service, opera#ons, exercises, and in further development of armed forces. The framework agreement between the Slovak and Czech Republics was dra!ed on the basis of talks held between the Slovak and Czech governments in Trenčín and Uherské Hradiště in October 2012 and built on the previous co-opera#on agreements and the results of the Slovak-Czech working groups in 2012. Among the successes of the hitherto co-opera#on between the countries is the engagement of the CzechoSlovak Military Police Unit in Afghanistan, which successfully completed its mission a!er a six-month deployment in March 2013. It was the Þrst joint unit under NATO´s mentoring mission in Wardak. A joint Czecho-Slovak team will be deployed in Afghanistan in January 2014.
● Members of the Basic Military Training Platoon, Training Battalion Martin, participated in an exercise at MTA Lešť between 3 − 13 September. 155 service personnel, of whom 32 were servicewomen, engaged in dispersed and spot shooting, using the Model 58 submachine gun. The exercise culminated in throwing the RG-F1 hand grenades on 12 September. During the exercise the future soldiers and cadets were visited by the Martin Barracks chaplain, Lt. Ján Ostapčuk, who celebrated Holy Mass in the open air.
(September 9) Another rotation of Slovak troops left for ISAF in Afghanistan on Monday. As a rule, rotating troops take off from Sliač Airfield. However, this time it was from Bratislava Airport. The reason for this decision on the side of U.S CENTCOM was the McDonnell Douglas MD-11 aircraft. As part of the pooling and sharing of free capacities, the aircraft transported, besides Slovak troops, also U.S. service personnel.
ALTHEA standing in formation (September 12) Led by the Logistics Support Group Commander Col. Ján Žarnovický, members of the Hlohovec-based Multifunctional Battalion stood in formation before deploying to ALTHEA as part of the eighth rotation to perform tasks in EUFOR ALTHEA. Of the 13 service personnel, 9 will join the observation teams, one will serve with the LOT Coordination Centre (LCC), and 3 with the NSE. They will be tasked with monitoring the security situation, liaising with locals, and demonstrating the presence of EU security troops.
● The first joint air refueling procedures exercise, THIRST QUENCHER, involved members of the Air Traffic Control of the SVK Air Force and the Czech Air Force on 10 September. A Czech-operated JAS-39 Gripen and an KC-135 aerial refueling aircraft practiced air refueling procedures in Slovak airspace. The activity was entirely controlled by ATC controllers – combat radar operators under the supervision of a qualified instructor, a Czech Army member from the Control and Reporting Centre (CRC) Hlavenec. After accomplishing this mission, both aircraft remained in Slovak airspace and served as occasional targets for our stand-by MiG-29 aircraft. ● Detection and decontamination of real toxic chemical agents were the key areas for an exercise involving CBR specialists from the Kingdom of Belgium, which took place between 9 − 13 September at the Chemical, Biological Radiological (CBR) Defence Training, Analysis and Supply Centre Čereňany. The Belgian CBR unit commander, Capt. Christoph Vincart, expressed his satisfaction with his soldiers performing all the assigned tasks excellently. Also, he appreciated the logistic support provided by and the professionalism of the CBR Centre personnel in Čereňany during the entire training session.
Blonde Avalanche 2013
www.mosr.sk/ebulletin/
An international command-staff exercise, Blonde Avalanche 2013, involving the TISA Multinational Engineer Battalion, culminated on 12 September at the Váh Water Training Facility in Sereď, attended by Minister of Defence Glváč, CHOD Lt. Gen. Peter Vojtek, 1st Deputy CHOD Maj. Gen. Miroslav Kocian, Deputy CHODs from Hungary, Romania, Ukraine and other officials from the SVK MOD.
September rotation departs for ISAF
The invited guests viewed the Battalion's dynamic demonstrations, the equipment and weapons in service with the SVK Armed Forces, Fire Fighting and Rescue Services and Civil Defence. Minister of Defence was pleased to conclude: "The Armed Forces demonstrated their excellent readiness and professionalism. I believe that even this type of exercise can make the public realize that the military is needed not only in wartime but also in peacetime. It has its indispensable place in domestic crisis management." The SVK Armed Forces were represented in the exercise by the Sereď-based Engineer Battalion, Ružomberok-based ZAMKIS unit, Hlohovec-based Multifunctional Battalion, a brigadelevel first aid station, and by some other units. To mark the end of the exercise, the participating troops stood in formation on a square in Sereď, where the command of the TISA Multinational Engineer Battalion was handed over to the Ukrainian component. Exercise Blonde Avalanche will take place in Ukraine next year.
eBULLETIN MoD SR
UNFICYP pre-deployment ceremony (September 13) SVK Armed Forces members lined up in Nitra on Friday before departing to UN-led UNFICYP. The September rotation numbers 77 service personnel, of whom 6 are women. On this occasion, Nitra-based Air Defence Brigade Commander Col. Miroslav Lorinc welcomed SVK Air Force Deputy Commander Col. Ivan Hůlek, Kuchyňa Transport Wing Commander Col. Peter Prokop, Command Sergeant Major of the SVK Armed Forces Vladimír Beluš, and other guests. The commander of the departing unit, Maj. Miroslav Mišovic said: "I am aware of our responsibilities and I will do everything to ensure that, after completing our mission, all of us will return home safe."
The success of Dukla athletes (September 15) SVK Minister of Defence Martin Glváč congratulated the sportsmen and women of the Dukla Banská Bystrica Army Sports Club on their excellent results. Last weekend, Canoe Slalom Athletes Michal Martikán, Alexander Slafkovský, and Matej Beňuš retained their World Championship titles in 3xC1 in Prague's Troja. On Saturday, Alexander Slafkovský won the C1 silver medal. The successful weekend of the Dukla sportsmen was improved by Jana Purdjaková winning the silver medal in bodybuilding at the Bodybuilding Championship in Kiev. "Our sportsmen and women make a good reputation for us abroad. Therefore, I am pleased to see that last weekend they proved they belong to the world's top athletes. I extend my congratulations to them and wish them lots of excellent results in competitions," said the Minister of Defence.
September 9 - 15, 2013