Military Technology EATC

8 · MILITARY TECHNOLOGY Special Issue 2021 Message • Efficiency: undoubtedly, one of the main expectations of our founding nations was the implementation of efficient management and opera- tion of the airlift, AAR and aeromedical fleet. This is a task that we carry out in our operational processes every day, detecting and seizing all opportunities to pool missions and promoting the exchange of services between nations, where possible. This is now a reality: each week, assets from one nation are transporting personnel or cargo from another nation. While the volume of flight hours exchanged remains modest, the frequency is there. This is the most important point, as it reflects the dynamics of the exchange of services and the fact that nations have accepted the principle and become accustomed to it. Furthermore, experience shows that when operational requirements increase – as is the case for the deployment of military operations – the volume of flight hours exchanged increases very quickly. In this re- spect, the years 2013 and 2014 were exceptional in terms of volume, when exchanged services reached almost 20% of the total flight hours managed by EATC. This is largely due to the start of military operations in the Middle East and Sahel, although the Afghan theatre was already mobilising some of our resources. That said, one of EATC’s main objec- tives for the upcoming years is to introduce a shared inter-theatre shuttle system to areas of military operations. Apart from ensuring effective support to operations, this concept will offer better use of air mobility assets, structure the exchange of services between nations and free up resources for additional requirements, including training. As Effective as Required, as Efficient as Possible Ten years of existence, ten years of air mobility! EATC was designed as a multinational operational command and is undoubtedly one of the most successful pooling and sharing initiatives in Europe. In ten years of successful, safe and effective command of air mobility operations, it has also become a recognised centre of expertise in air mobility. Here is a brief history of ten years of key achievements. EATC is an Integrated Command... From the outset, EATC was conceived as an integral part of national chains of command. This is a central feature of the command and one of the reasons for its success. There is no doubt in the minds of the EATC team that EATC is closely linked to each of the member nations’ national chains of command, and that each nation looks at EATC as an extension of its own national chain of command. This founding principle is also re- flected in the structure: the seven National Senior Representatives (NSRs) are integrated into the staff in key leadership positions, as well as in the operational planning processes as EATC-led missions are exclusively linked to member nations’ requests. In addition, EATC’s software platform MEAT is key to integration. It is EATC’s command and control tool par excellence that facilitates sharing operational information between nations and EATC. MEAT was designed and implemented in 2010, shortly after the creation of EATC. Like in the past, today the system links each national operational command, wing or squadron to EATC headquarters, located at Eindhoven Air Base. As such, MEAT is one of EATC’s most valuable assets and its modernisation constitutes a priority for the command and the nations. …Delivering High Quality Service on a Daily Basis… The performance of an operational command is rated in the area of operations. The same goes for EATC. In this respect, EATC now generates nearly 8,000 air missions per year, including 500 AAR missions and 50,000 flight hours. This is reflected in the transport of about 260,000 passengers per year, the management of 1,500 patients to be evacuated, the dropping of 80,000 paratroopers and the transport of 22,000 tonnes of cargo. Over the past ten years our command reached substantial production volumes of almost industrial scale. This demonstrates the relevance of the EATC concept as a long-standing pooling and sharing initiative. Besides the quantity, the quality of the services provided is even more important. EATC strives to meet military requirements and to adhere to five key principles: safety, security, effectiveness, reliability and efficiency. • Safety and security: our daily business is aviation and support to military operations. Aeronautical and operational risk management is of course fully integrated into the operational processes. Each planned and tasked mission is subject to precise studies in this area. We check compliance with safety and employment rules, define mitigation measures and, if necessary, call on the national chains of command, which have the final decision. It is a shared responsibility with the nations and EATC has a pre-defined important role to play. • Effectiveness and reliability: EATC is responsible for the planning, prepa- ration, tasking and control of the execution of air mobility missions for the benefit of the member nations and for the best possible use of the fleet of 170 aircraft that the nations put under EATC’s operational control. However, what is paramount is to deliver effective support to the military operations in which nations are engaged. EATC never lose sight of that priority. Brigadier General Stéphane Gourg