ISTAR Participation (or non participation) in Battlegroup Readiness Exercise

[Bravo20]

http://www.irishexaminer.com/ireland/troops-left-out-of-war-games-over-insurance-390057.html

WTF? Seriously? Everytime I think the DOD can't be any more incompetent they go to great lengths to surprise me.

[Battletour]

http://www.irishexaminer.com/ireland...ce-390057.html

WTF? Seriously? Everytime I think the DOD can't be any more incompetent they go to great lengths to surprise me.

I would echo your sentiments if I could move my jaw back into place!

[ancientmariner]

Defence planning and training

When we built an advanced OPV with Flight Deck, full flight facilities, Air warning radar with IFF, sonar, FCS, and fire by radar system, it opened the service to a new range of Naval experiences and became a third level Naval asset which we unfortunately failed to cherish. It did provide a boost to our electronic/IT knowledge bank and gave us an enhanced electrical/electronic branch. We need to plan boldly or remain a one trick pony churning out ships with suppressed potential. You may not like submarines but they are a key Defence/ Offence asset which should be on our developmental shopping list. It is a short step from ROV's to manned units.

In today's Irish Examiner 140 pretrained Irish troops have been pulled from an ISTAR exercise due to take place in Germany. We are in non-compliance with regulations requiring governmental signature of SOFA agreement covering insurance matters of troops serving in EU area.
It seems to me before any planning and training such matters should be cut and dried. Are we facing a situation where our manoeuvering forces are being controlled by Civil Service decision deferment and blocking tactics? It is another example of controlling useful tactical growth within the Defence Forces by using red tape as a halter. This kind of Defence planning leads to neutered capabilities in ALL Branches of the Services.

[Turkey]

In today's Irish Examiner 140 pretrained Irish troops have been pulled from an ISTAR exercise due to take place in Germany. We are in non-compliance with regulations requiring governmental signature of SOFA agreement covering insurance matters of troops serving in EU area.
It seems to me before any planning and training such matters should be cut and dried. Are we facing a situation where our manoeuvering forces are being controlled by Civil Service decision deferment and blocking tactics? It is another example of controlling useful tactical growth within the Defence Forces by using red tape as a halter. This kind of Defence planning leads to neutered capabilities in ALL Branches of the Services.

Sounds deliberate alright, the trouble with having civil servants thinking they really run the country is that some of them really do!

[paul g]

They tendered for a ship to move the Istar Company to the exercise, so it sounds more like somebody plucked up.

Remember the mantra, when you have a civil servant devoid of talent and iniative, move them to defence.

[DeV]

https://www.kildarestreet.com/committees/?id=2015-09-30a.698

Nothing to do with insurance (the State isn't insured)

The SOFA agreement would cover things like:
Trooper Murphy writes off a MOWAG on a poor bridge, Trooper Byrne's LTAV "comes into contact" with a civilian vehicle, Gunner Bloggs commits a serious crime, etc

It is about who pays, who responsible, etc etc

[Bravo20]

Exactly, bog standard stuff that should be in place anyway.

[Bravo20]

"We may do so in the future but we are getting legal advice from the Office of the Attorney General. Ireland is not a member of NATO. We are not going to be a member of NATO any time soon. We have put arrangements in place that are the equivalent of signing the SOFA to ensure that our troops get the protection they need when they are abroad, training with other troops in other European countries. It would probably be more straightforward if we did sign the SOFA, but I do not want to give a legal opinion on the complexities of that. I do not have the detail to provide to the committee, but perhaps we can provide it from the Office of the Attorney General."

OK so the advise from the AG must have been do not sign the SOFA offer the exchange of letters instead, the Germans must have done what the Germans do and "Nein, you must sign ze SOFA". Maybe we should just stop playing with the Germans, other nations do not seem to have a problem with an exchange of letters lets play with them instead.

[paul g]

Give him his due, he's a gobshite, but even Willie O Dea signed the PFP NATO SOFA

[TangoSierra]

All horseshit from DoD. The audacity of these people to spout the shite they say!

[hptmurphy]

https://www.kildarestreet.com/commit...015-09-30a.698

Nothing to do with insurance (the State isn't insured)

The SOFA agreement would cover things like:
Trooper Murphy writes off a MOWAG on a poor bridge, Trooper Byrne's LTAV "comes into contact" with a civilian vehicle, Gunner Bloggs commits a serious crime, etc

It is about who pays, who responsible, etc etc

Its quite straight forward, the state pays....he's working for the state the state underwrites the potential for liability in every case.the extension of military police powers is a given if you are working in someone elses back garden, you are subject to their rules

Happens every day, all activities undertaken by the DF are underwritten by the state, so why should it be any different on a state approved exercise.

Some gobshite just found out he might have to do the paper work and objects to it.

[na grohmiti]

Sounds deliberate alright, the trouble with having civil servants thinking they really run the country is that some of them really do!

Every day, as a civil servant, I come up against senior management finding ways to prevent me from doing my job.

[TangoSierra]

Some gobshite just found out he might have to do the paper work and objects to it.

Or just sit on their hands and run down the clock

[SwiftandSure]

[ODIN]

If something like this happened in the corporate world, there'd be a head or two rolling