Commission on the Defence Forces Public Consultation Response Template
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
Commission on the Defence Forces Public Consultation Response Template Introduction: For thousands of years, mankind has fought over territory, sometimes in Defence and other times in Attack, to expand into new areas, gain more resources and benefit at the expense of the defeated people. Kings ruled and the common-man had no say. After World War One, things started to change. The days of ‘King and Kaiser’ were over. Politicians lead the way now. The common-man had a vote. He / She could select their Government. The days of ‘Conquest and Colonisation’ were over. Along with that, when the British Empire was at the height of its power, British Army Officers were trained and commissioned in the UK. Their loyalty was sworn to the King / Queen. They were then sent to the Colonies to oversee the Natives, who made up the military force in those Colonies. They held power over the natives, who could only hold positions of Non-Commissioned Officer and Private. Those days are also over; thankfully. The reality is that the modern World operates today through negotiation, finding common ground and mutual agreement. Politicians do the battling. It is in this environment that the Irish Defence Force needs to find a place and to do so, requires a whole reconstruction of the Force. Radical change is required. It should not look like a traditional army when finished but more like An Garda Siochana, acting as a support for the Police and other Government Departments at home while continuing the good work of Peace-keepers overseas. Staff will be better-paid but will be required to take on more responsibility. Soldiers will have defined roles that will add value to the services provided by Government. A Technical Force is required. 1. Capabilities – In this regard, you may wish to consider future integrated capability development and the planning and delivery requirements to support a joint force approach in terms of new equipment, professional military education and training, maintenance and development of infrastructure, developments in military doctrine, and transformative concepts, including specialist capabilities, that prepare and support the Defence Forces for future operations. 1. We must stop using the term Defence Forces, there is only one Force. It is the Defence Force, made up of a land-based group, air corps and naval service. Integration of all three can be accomplished through the use of computer applications, GPS, a centralised control room for all vehicles, aircraft and ships. The basics for this already exist but preservation- minded thinking has groups operating separate from each other. The technology exists for every vehicle to have a tracking-device in it that can be monitored if need be. This will lead to better integration, better delivery of services. Unfortunately the people who manage the DF at this present time are not interested in changing it. This is the difficult part, getting this mindset to change. For some it will be impossible. For others, it will be a wonderful opportunity. 2. Military Training and Education: Military Training and Education needs to go online. I served in the DF for over 30 years. I was trained in the days before Computers, You Tube etc. Alot of time was spent going to Training Schools, both military and technical, with face-to-face instruction. It meant I was away from my workplace, had to travel, stay in accommodation, be fed etc. Since I left the DF I have worked with two Businesses. Both use online Learning / Training using computer applications, data, video clips etc. It is far more effective and means I study where I work. It is far more efficient and doesn’t involve additional costs outlined above. In terms of military training for example, a Potential NCO Course could be around 26 weeks long. Much of that time is spent in classrooms / face-to- face learning. 50% to 80% of the Course could be put online. The Student would only go to the Training Centre then for Square Drill, Field Craft etc. Time away from work could be reduced from 26 weeks to 4 weeks. 3. Traditional military thinking is that all soldiers should do the same training. An aircraft Technician could end up doing the same training as an Infantry Soldier. This makes no sense. Every member of the DF should have basic skills, marching, weapons-training etc. These skills are learned at Induction Training (Up to 3-Star Private). Individuals should diversify after. If a person doesn’t use a pistol / rifle for their job, then there should be no need for them to fire a weapon on an annual basis for example. At present, this is done for Guard Room duties. The closing of Guard Rooms will be dealt with under Structure; I will refer to this further down. Keeping Overseas Service in mind, refresher-training can be carried out online for certain modules and practical modules completed during ‘Form- Up’. The online-training will reduce Form-Up time which will benefit families, reducing time away from work and will save DF financial resources. Maximum time to departure should be 4 weeks for ‘first-timers / longest -back’ and could be less for people who have recently returned from a Trip. 4. Maintenance and development of Infrastructure: When I served in the DF, it could take months for example, to get a pair of Runners. You would imagine that this should not be the case as fitness should be a priority. When a batch would come in, it could turn out that they didn’t have my size. Why is this happening? It is happening because of different groups in different areas not working together. People are deliberately complicating the process to preserve traditional structures. In my current job, I recently had to fill out my clothing-sizes on an online Application; no QM, no Officer, no paperwork. I will refer to this again later. In the coming weeks, I expect to be told that a package is ready for collection, which will have everything in it that I ordered. This Business works internationally. There is no’ Barrack-stores’ and there is no ‘Barrack-stores mindset’. The DF needs to use an application for all members, routed to a centralised-store. The management of the App. will be done by the expanded I.T services. (I will refer to this later). 5. Specialist Capabilities: The biggest change that has to happen is the introduction of UAV’s (Drones) of all sizes into the DF. They should be utilised from an individual basis in Section / Platoon training to large Drones that fly out over the Ocean. They could cost between $100,000 and $10,000,000 (The funds for this will be dealt with below). I.T. Services will be required to manage all the Management-Applications, Computer Networks, Network Security and Data Security for day-to-day Operations. Along with that, the Drones will require Aircraft Technicians, CIS Technicians and Photographic Technicians etc. The Drones will do for the Defence Force what industry has done for manual-labour. The largest will fly out early in the morning / throughout the night etc. from Shannon Airport for example. They will gather information. This will be particularly useful for the Naval Service. A Ship can then go to a particular area when something has been identified. Fishery Patrols by the Air Corps usually operate during daylight hours and with only one aircraft operating, illegal activity could take place in other areas at other times. A number of silent Drones, some operating off the back of a Ship, flying to different areas will increase the capability of the Force and lessen the ability of illegal operators. The Drones can also be used by An Garda Siochana and other Government Services; electricity, water, education, environmental etc. For example, A protest in Dublin recently turned into a Riot. If small Drones were flying overhead, they could have captured the people on video and provided useful evidence to the Gardai. Drones could keep watch on criminal elements, provide top-cover / video over a car accident on the M50 for example, help to move traffic on, travel over forest-fires etc. Their uses are endless. As they come in all shapes and sizes, they will be used by soldiers for Field Craft and FIBUA also. The day of the Section creeping up along the ditch, trying to remain unseen is over. A Drone will locate the enemy, record the GPS Co-ordinates and a decision can be made then on how to deal with that enemy. Putting soldiers in harm’s way can be avoided. From an Environmental perspective, Drones will reduce the Carbon Footprint of the DF, with less carbon-fuelled-engines in operation. They will give DF members greater control over their work-life balance, allowing people to work standard-hours and work from home. ‘Going Technical’ will also create better-paying jobs for the lower-ranking members which will improve recruitment and retention issues. 2. Structures – In this regard, you may wish to consider the most effective high-level Command and Control (C2) structures within the Defence Forces to ensure an agile and balanced approach that can function across all domains at home and overseas. Additionally, you may wish to address appropriate future force structures for the Army (including its brigade structure), the Air Corps, and the Naval Service, individually as component services and collectively as part of an integrated joint force approach. Furthermore, you may wish to address the changing nature of reservists, which presents an opportunity for the Reserve Defence Force to further integrate and support the Permanent Defence Force through the provision of enhanced collective and specialist capability across all domains.