The first edition of the Joint Fires Course, designed and developed with the coordination and technical direction of the Joint Effects and Targeting (JET) Division of the Italian Joint Operations Headquarters (JOHQ), led by the Air Squad General Silvano Frigerio, was held at the Italian Joint Air Operations School (JAOS).
As highlighted by the Commander of the Institute, Brigadier General Glauco Luigi Mora, on the occasion of the greeting to the attendees, the aim of the course is to provide the necessary skills and updating the staff in the field of Joint Fires functional area, in particular for those of the national Operational and Tactical levels (Operational Component Commands), in international Operations and in the context of NATO Commands (NATO Command and Force Structure), to perform tasks of planning, coordination and execution of joint fire support through lethal and non-lethal engagements, in order to create effects in the physical, virtual and cognitive dimensions.
Bearing that in mind, the course illustrated the doctrinal principles and consolidated procedures in the Alliance and National context, highlighting the areas that are not yet sufficiently disciplined, about which the JOHQ staff (together with the Subject Matter Experts in the Defense sector and in synergy with the development within NATO) intends to outline necessary dedicated procedures for the integration of Land, Naval, Air and Special Forces fire (definition of a National Operating Directive).
In this sense, the course provided a valuable point of view on the procedures and command and control systems in use in the Armed Forces, on the new military technologies used for Space Operation, Electronic Warfare (EW), on sensors for Intelligence Surveillance Target Acquisition and Reconnaissance (ISTAR), Logistic Projection, Joint Targeting, Info Ops, Air Land Integration, Close Air Support, Joint Battle Space Management and NATO Communication Information System (CIS).
Lectures on Multi Domain Operations were held during which the General Defense Innovation Office (UGID) illustrated the Italian perspective on the conceptual aspects of Multi Domain Operations. In this context, an interesting overview was presented about the aspects that fall within the meaning of the "Fires" Joint Operational Function in the environment of Space and Cyber Operations, for which intervened, respectively, personnel under the Space Operations Command (SOC) and the Joint Command for Network Operations, as part of the JOHQ.
Particular attention was paid to the NATO operational level planning process, and the elaboration of products prepared by the Joint Fires functional area in several phases of planning and conduct of an operation. The theoretical instructions provided by the instructors allowed the attendees (divided into teams) to carry out practical activities by confronting themselves against a fictitious scenario, making use of the constant support of a team of experts.
The course is the answer to a training gap identified at a national level and strongly felt by the Alliance in the specific sector. In this context, the operational experiences of the instructors and the speakers from various Defense Commands and NATO bodies in Italy were also enhanced, in particular from the aforementioned General Defense Innovation Office, from the Command in Chief of the Italian Fleet (CINCNAV) of the Navy, from the Space Operation Command of the Air Force, the Joint Special Forces Operations Headquarters (-), the Fire Targeting & Info-Ops Centre of the Army Artillery School and the aforementioned Command for Network Operations.
The Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE) of Mons (Belgium) and other NATO HQs stationed in Italy, such as the Joint Force Command (JFC) of Naples, the NATO Rapid Deployment Corps - Italy (NRDC-ITA) and, finally, the 4th US Combat Training Squadron provided their valuable contributions to the course.
The course, born as an initial training experience aimed at satisfying, first and foremost, national needs, made it possible to combine skills and experience thanks to the numerous Subject Matter Experts involved such as to induce the Defense to offer the Joint Fires Course to the NATO SHAPE Command as a possible reference training module for all the personnel of the Alliance.
Contributions provided by the students and instructors will allow the Defense to refine the program and contents of the course planned for next year (2022), providing for an extension of the duration to allow the conduct of a first module intended for specialized NATO staff, followed by a second module attached to the needs of national staff only.
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