The UK’s NATO ally Albania hosted over 200
RAF Reserves and Regulars in numerous locations around the country as they
trained together developing operational teamwork and friendships on Exercise Ushtar
Eagle 17.
Exercise Director and Officer Commanding 8
Force Protection group, Wing Commander Phil Hateley said:
“The UK is committed to NATO, and despite
the fact we have are leaving the European Union we are still committed to
European security, and our deployment of troops in Albania is a clear
demonstration of that. Coming to Albania has given us many opportunities that
we could never replicate in the UK. The freedom to be able to go and conduct
military training in and amongst local villages is the hallmark.”
Drawn from 18 individual RAF stations
across the UK, Reserves from specialisms including the RAF Regiment, RAF
Police, logistics, medical, intelligence and Media Operations worked alongside
their Albanian counterparts to hone their war-fighting, peacekeeping and
humanitarian skills.
The Balkan country provided a stunning back
drop for a series of gruelling drills and training scenarios that UK and
Albanian troops could carry out on operations together in the future. Gunners
and soldiers bonded together over tactical training, physical exercise and some
social time in the evenings.
Interest in Ushtar Eagle reached
presidential levels in the first week with a visit from the Albanian President,
Ilir Meta, who watched a combined tactical demonstration by the RAF Regiment
Reserves and soldiers from the Third Battalion of the Albanian Army. He was
joined by the British Chief of the Defence Staff, Sir Stuart Peach, who was in
Albania’s capital Tirana for a NATO conference.
An Albanian naval establishment close to
Durres was the setting for members of 2503 and 603 Squadrons and the Third
Battalion of the Albanian Army to storm a building suspected of being a
“terrorist safe house”. Under the cover of smoke the combined assault team
entered the building, making an “arrest” and extracting the “suspect” with the
help of RAF and Albanian police.
Air Chief Marshal Sir Stuart Peach said:
“I would like to thank the Albanian people
for the warmth of their welcome and the exceptional training facilities they
provide. We have come a long way together through our shared military history
and shared experience in NATO. I am confident as the UK Chief of Defence that
our future is much more secure as a result of our alliance.”
The Albanian Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces, Brigadier General BardhylKollçaku, who also
attended the demonstration, said:
“This is a demonstration of the excellent
cooperation we have between the Armed Forces of the United Kingdom and the
Armed Forces of the Republic of Albania, and the assurance that this
cooperation will extend and will continue even more in the future in the
interests of peace and security, not only between our countries but also in the
region and beyond.”
Moving from the coast to more rural areas
in the mountains for the second week the exercise featured section attacks,
patrolling through Albanian villages, ambushes and defensive tactics. Enduring
temperatures over 35 degrees the RAF and their Albanian counterparts trained
from dawn till midnight, pushing themselves physically and mentally. The
gunners received a warm but curious welcome from the local population as they
went about their daily business.
LAC Alex Hand, from 609 Squadron, and the
youngest Reservist on the exercise, said:
“Opportunities like this to train abroad
are one of the reasons why I joined the Reserves. I have been pushed out of my
comfort zone but loved every minute of it. Working with the Albanians has been
very interesting and meeting other Reservists from around the country has made
me realise the scale of the organisation I belong to.”
This is the first time the RAF Reserves
have worked and trained so closely with the UK’s NATO ally Albania. The two
countries are developing a close working relationship after the Royal Navy and
British Army previously completed exercises and training.
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