Italian Government
THE JOINT AIR OPERANTIONS SCHOOL PROTAGONIST AT THE NATO ANNUAL QUALITY ASSURANCE FORUM 2024
The Joint Air Operations School (Ita-JAOS) of Guidonia was highlighted as an example for the quality of its training, professionalism, and commitment to continuous improvement at the annual Quality Assurance (QA) conference held in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina. The event aimed to enhance cooperation, information sharing, and relations between the Supreme Allied Command for Transformation and NATO-accredited Education and Training Facilities (ETFs).
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8th -9th October 2024 - Sarajevo (Bosnia and Herzegovina). The international event, hosted this year by the Peace Support Operations Training Centre (PSOTC) of the Armed Forces of Bosnia and Herzegovina, represents an excellent opportunity to promote education and training excellence within the Alliance. The agenda focuses on key new trends, innovations, and the future of Education and Training (E&T) management to ensure quality in the NATO learning environment.
For the Joint Air Operations School, internationally known as Ita-JAOS, the following participants took part: the Commander, Brigadier General Francesco Donato RIZZO, the Quality Manager, Lt. Col. Marco Oronzo GRECO, who, since 1st October, is also the Commander of the newly established Space Courses Command and Lt. Col. Andrea SANTACESARIA, an expert in educational design and Deputy Commander of the Remote Sensing Courses Command.
The presence of the Joint Air Operations School was requested as a direct testimony to the recent NATO reaccreditation process, which was successfully concluded last June following the on-site visit of the NATO ACT Team of Experts.
The Quality Assurance/Quality Management (QA/QM) Community has recognized the Joint Institute of Guidonia as an example of professionalism and commitment to continuous improvement, fully integrated into training and education on Multi-Domain Operations (MDO) and aligned with NATO’s Digital Transformation (DT) requirements. In this context, Lt. Col. GRECO's presentation, which focused on the best practices adopted by the School in the areas of MDO, DT, the Resilience Plan, and the mandatory "Golden Triplet" courses (Global Analysis, System Approach to Training, and the Quality Assurance Course at the NATO School in Oberammergau), was highly appreciated by the international audience.
Admiral Placido Torresi, Deputy Chief of Staff of the Multi-Domain Force Development Directorate, and Lt. Col. Damir Alibasic, Commander of the PSOTC, delivered the introductory speeches. The newcomers to the QA/QM Community, the NATO Security Force Assistance Center of Excellence (NSFA CoE) based in Cesano di Roma, and the National Defense Academy of Georgia (NDA), were also introduced.
Sixty-one representatives from 25 countries, organizations, schools, agencies, Centers of Excellence, NATO missions, and partner countries attended the international forum, including the Director of the Training Development Division of the NATO Mission in Iraq and the Commander of the JWTC PTEC in Qatar. The Nordic Centre for Gender in Military Operations (NCGM), the Cooperative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence (CCD COE), and Ita-JAOS shared innovative QA best practices, including student tracking tools, quality action plans, and strategies to integrate resilience and multi-domain operations into training curricula.
Of particular interest on the agenda were the recent reorganization of the NATO ACT Joint Force Development Directorate, aimed at an innovative transition from a joint to a multi-domain operations approach, and the upcoming update of the Bi-SC 075-007 Directive, the key document on Individual Education and Training in NATO.
A series of collaborative workshops explored the use of artificial intelligence and automation tools to enhance QA/QM processes, as well as the workflow for NATO course certification, followed by feedback sessions.
On the second day, the forum introduced the current capabilities of the QA Hub web platform, including a preview of the new online course, “Introduction to QA in Individual Education and Training.” Other highlights included a presentation on NATO Course Certification (NCC) processes and updates on the eITEP platform, a tool designed to efficiently manage the training needs of personnel from member and partner countries, providing tailored training and education solutions to meet all NATO requirements.
With a broad and diverse agenda focused on future challenges, the NATO QA Forum 2024 has effectively shaped the future of Quality Assurance in NATO education and training, ultimately contributing to the common goal of enhancing the Alliance's interoperability.
In line with the spirit of the event and in response to the new operational capabilities demonstrated by Multi-Domain Operations (MDOs), including in recent conflict zones, Ita-JAOS has developed and expanded new training sectors. This growth has been supported by the professionalism it embodies and the recent strengthening of its organizational structure, including the establishment of the Space Courses Command and a dedicated unit for Joint Targeting/Joint Fires courses. These efforts aim to provide an increasingly significant and up-to-date contribution to the Armed Forces, Defense, and NATO/Partnership for Peace.
The Joint Air Operations School, as a leading joint training center and the only Defense training and education facility accredited by NATO as an Alliance Education and Training Facility, provides outstanding instruction that is continuously evolving in line with technological innovations, operational contexts, and reference domains. This ensures that it consistently meets the training needs of the national Armed Forces as well as those of allied and partner nations.
In recent years, the School has expanded its training offerings in the area of air-ground operational cooperation, covering the full spectrum of “Joint Terminal Attack Controller (JTAC),” “Joint Personnel Recovery,” and “Joint Targeting” programs. In the field of “Remote Sensing,” it provides courses focused on the management, interpretation, and operational analysis of remote sensing images from airborne and satellite electro-optical sensors and RADAR. Additionally, for the training and qualification of JTACs, the School's commander serves as the “National Certification Authority.”
The third training sector, focused on Space as an operational domain within Multi-Domain Operations (MDO), has recently been implemented with the introduction of the “Introduction to Space Activities” (IAS) and “Space Battle Management Operator/Staff Officer” courses. These programs were developed in collaboration with the Command for Space Operations of the Defence General Staff.
The courses at the Joint Air Operations School are open not only to military personnel of the Armed Forces but also to individuals outside the Defence Administration, as well as to military personnel from NATO and countries participating in the international Partnership for Peace (PfP) program, subject to authorization by the Defence General Staff.
The mission of the School is to provide exceptional training, unique within the Defense sector, specializing in the fields of Remote Sensing and Aerocooperation for both national and international personnel. This is achieved through a highly motivated and professional staff, utilizing cutting-edge technologies. The School’s vision is to maintain a training program of the highest quality, continuously improving and adapting to the operational needs of Defense, while remaining fully integrated into the international context. Professionalism and passion at the service of the Country.
