Ultimate task force.

[Come-quickly]

What in your view is the ultimate task force the DF could send to Liberia in the event of a major deterioration of the security situation?
Would the army be completely helpless, or would the deployment of the assigned backup battalion be the extent of what could physically be mustered?

What about if there was considerably more application of foot to posterior than is currently the case, if peacetime safety concerns where while not completely disregarded would hold less sway in relation to the security risk.

I'm figuring this on the basis of the state of personnel and equipment by the end of 2004; and with the assumption of the aformentioned political will.

[morpheus]

send in the entire ARW

all the Mowags
all the scorpions,
dig up a few AMLs

theres a saracen for sale in autotrader!

put rocket pods on the gazelle and Alouettes,

fill a few drums with explosives, fuel and a parachute and push them out the back of the casa's.

Send over the cessnas for recon,
arm the marchettis & PC9s if theyre here!
dust off the vampire and load her up,
dig up the one or two remaing fougas,
commandeer any ww2 or private ex fighter aircraft in the country

Bring up the reserves!!

deploy the Navy off-shore.... ims ure wed have a few more ideas :D

:-patriot: :flagwave: :flagwave:

[macca]

How long did it actually take Niamh to get over there? Steaming night and day whats the quickest a ship could make it out?

[morpheus]

3259 miles (5245 km) (2832 nautical miles) from dublin to monrovia so at a top speed of 23 kts

it would take 5.1 days cruising at 23kts 24 hrs a day.

however im not sure if the 2832 nautical miles i recieved as an answer to my www query is as the crow flies or actually by sea.

[macca]

Thats a decent response time, well better than I would have thought anyway. Of course there are faster ships than Niamh

[Bud Fox]

As per Morpheus.... but "charter" the "LE" Ulysses, load her up with everything we have... arm her with the RBS 70's, Javlins, L118's.

[T.I.M.]

how about [MOD: Edited. Inciteful comments ]

[Joshua]

Re: Ultimate task force.

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Come-quickly
[B]What in your view is the ultimate task force the DF could send to Liberia in the event of a major deterioration of the security situation?


phone conversation.....

D.F. Hello, is that the U.N.

U.N. Yes.

Howyah,This is the Irish Army,we`re having a bit of a problem with the locals here in Liberia.

U.N. Yes and.....

would you mind giving us a dig out

U.N. No worries.

---------------------------------------------------------------------

We are there on a UN mandate.

If we need help, we ask.

Regards etc

[Come-quickly]

Im dissapointed that no one tried a serious response.
Joshua, the UN isnt a hegemonic body with the power to send the right troops as it sees fit, the other contributing nations are of doubtful military value and those not involved already are highly unlikely to join in a mission at its lowest ebb.

Alright to try and salvage some worth from the topic this is what I had in mind.

If the situation deteriorates suddenly, the rapid deployment of the assigned backup battalion, plus one or more war strength artillery btys (i.e. four guns minimum), four AIIIs for organic CASEVAC and patrol deployment, 8 Scorpions plus associated logistical support for roving infantry support.
Add to that attrition replacements and the really ambitious part of my plan 3x PC-9M, two for photo recce and CAS, and one spare airframe, Liberia has no combat aircraft and currently no SAM threat (PC-7s have been successfully operated in the CAS/recce role in theatres which featured MANPADS and AAA).
And a 150+ best of the rest force of Reservists given a two week training/selection course (accompanied by some suitable "stiffeners") and then deployed to secure Monrovia airport and if numbers are large enough train themselves silly for the duration of the deployment.
Once the situation is calmed down the force could be reduced back to a battalion or maintain some of the additional elements depending on a contemparaneous est-sit.

Needless to say this would be the biggest stretch of the DF in recent history and would cost a great deal of money as well as disrupting training and peacetime routine (large numbers of reservists would be required to go full time to cover for the absent PDF personell, some small barracks might even be hibernated.).
However in military planning pessimism pays, and the ability to carry out such a deployment even for three months would turn a potentially disastrous situation into one that saves the credibility of the mission, the DF and the UN.

I see it as a better option than the UN having to allow another Operation Palliser, while the locals and the world disregard the viability of ALL the existing contingents...or worse still UNMIL being left swinging over the fire without any assistance.

[Bravo20]

CQ, Joshua's solution was more realstic than yours. We are not operating alone out there, in fact currently our role is to give the units on the ground support should they get into trouble. Also when the mission is up and running at any one time you will have 1 unit overseas while another is either forming up to go overseas or is in the process for demobilisation. I'm sure our Leb vets on this site can confirm that the unit doesn't stand down until a number of months after their return.

[Come-quickly]

I think your missing the point Bravo, I'm asking whats the maximum commitment we could give ceteris paribus, in the likely event that the UN and ECOWAS don't turn out to be militarily adequate whats the most burden we could handle.
I'm not suggesting that the whole mission depends on us just how much support we could give in the event of it being needed.
I already accounted for the backup force that already exists btw.

The issue is whether we have the military backbone to hold together that mission in the event of a deterioration, not all out war, but any situation that merits extra personnel is going to make anyone not already involved anxious about deploying them.
Nigeria is still the largest contributor, and quality and corruption issues aside it is a state which needs most of its military resources for internal security, therefore its more likely to remove its forces in the face of mounting danger than commit more.
If South Africa, China or India decided to participate in big (battalion strenght) numbers it would be a different story but as it is most of the states involved have very limited capacity or will to reinforce or upgun their contingents, the exceptions being Sweden and the Netherlands...and possibly us.