Two neighboring Baltic states are at unrest. NATO intervenes. The Danish Division participates in the follow-up operation. During the operation, Brigade headquarters follow the movement of troops in the terrain on monitors. Water barriers, forest areas and road networks challenge the soldiers. This scenario is part of a simulation created in the Danish Army Tactical Trainer, where Sitaware HQ 5.3 was used to create and execute the plans during exercise Yellow Knight.
Yellow Knight
In reality there is no unrest in the Baltics. Actually, the terrain is flat and friendly as far as the eye can see. We are in Jutland. Brigade staffs from the Danish Division are on exercise in the Oksbøl military training facility. Three brigades from the Baltics also participate: Latvian Landforce Brigade, 1st Infantry Brigade from Estonia and Iron Wolf Brigade from Lithuania.
The Division staff and five brigade headquarters are in action. The division staff and four of the brigades are equipped with SitaWare HQ 5.3 and the last (Lithuanian) have their own system with a MIP gateway to SitaWare HQ at Division.
‘It was a challenge both in terms of technology and logistics, and we have a lot of experience to take home,’ says Major General Peter Kühnel, ‘The purpose of the exercise was to train the brigade commanders and their staff in operational planning and decision making, commanding their units, coordinate and collaborate with other units’.
User training
Systematic provided training for the brigades from Estonia and Latvia in using SitaWare HQ 5.3 during the course of 3-4 days. Also the Danish brigades received a brush-up in release 5.3, updating their knowledge from the 5.2 version.
The Estonian brigade already had some experience with SitaWare HQ 5.3, as they have earlier used a trial version in the field. ‘The version change from 5.2 to 5.3 was well received by the troops, who were capable of delivering a true overview of the situation to the Tactical Operations Centre, despite of a short training period, ‘says Major Peter Knøster from Royal Danish Defence College and shift-leader in Danish Division Current Ops. during the exercise.
‘It is the first time we have this type of exercise in Denmark,’ says Major General Peter Kühnel, ‘Many things need to mesh when working with such a large force’. Both the Latvian and Lithuanian brigades were impressed with SitaWare HQ 5.3.
‘SitaWare HQ 5.3 or ARMY C2IS (HRNC2IS), as we call it in the army, was stable and ran smoothly during the exercise,’ says Major Peter Knøster.