An Cosantóir

www.military.ie THE DEFENCE FORCES MAGAZINE | 7 Engineer Platoon and QRF Role in IRISHPOLBATT, UNIFIL Prior to deployment to the mission area, the 128 Inf Battalion conducted pre-deployment training in Ireland. QRF and Engineer members of the battalion underwent an intensive period of collective training, culminating in the Mission Readiness Exercise in the Glen of Imaal. This training emphasised the importance of interoperability, tactical proficiency, and mission specific skills required to operate effectively in UNIFIL. Through combined exercises and realistic training serials, both elements developed the necessary procedures to conduct route clearance in order to maintain freedom of movement and respond effectively to a variety of operational tasks within our area of operation. Since deployment to the Mission Area, as the commanders for their respective cells, Capt O'Farrell and Lt Switzer work closely together to support IRISHPOLBATT operations. The integration of Cavalry and Engineer capabilities provides a versatile and responsive force capable of addressing a broad range of operational challenges. Traditionally, these Corps have operated independently at home and abroad, however due to the complexity currently present in the AO, this partnership first established by the 127 Inf Battalion highlights the necessity of this cohesive relationship. A combination of QRF and Engineer platoon, with support from the medical section are the battalion's rapid response elements that are the first to be tasked to a major incident within the AO. The QRF is made up of two Quick Reaction Teams. QRT 1 is comprised of recce dismounts in two armoured vehicles on standby at ten minutes notice to move, with QRT 2, the secondary element of the QRF maintaining a standby of thirty minutes notice to move. In a similar way, the Engineer Platoon, consisting of a Fire crew which has a three-minute response time and a route clearance team in a High-Mobility Engineer Excavator (HMEE) which has ten minutes notice to move, provide a versatile unit capable of deploying a highly adaptable force on behalf of the battalion. Since deployment, the QRF and Engineers have cleared routes required for movement by identifying and clearing any potential threats or hazards. The QRF element deploys their specialist capability of recce combined with providing overwatch and security. In turn this allows the Engineers freedom of action to conduct an advanced search of potential hazards before deploying specialist armoured clearance assets. The result of these route clearances facilitates the freedom of movement for U.N. personnel and local civilian population. These clearance operations have been vital to the mobility and sustainment of IRISHPOLBATT in the non-permissive environment of Lebanon. Due to the extensive damage to supply routes in the AO, there has been a search element required to be embedded in all operational movements. One such operation that included a response to a fire occurred early in the deployment of the 128 Inf Battalion to the mission area. This required QRF and AST assets to clear and secure a safe route and area for IRISHPOLBATT Firefighters to extinguish a fire in vicinity of a U.N. Outpost 6-41. This outpost, located within the IRISHPOLBATT AO, is manned by U.N. soldiers from the French Army. Due to the proximity of the outpost to Camp Shamrock, IRISHPOLBATT Firemen have a technical agreement with the French Contingent to intervene in the event of a fire. This cooperation strengthens inter-contingent relations. Prior to the response of this incident, the battalion crisis action team (CAT) conducted a situation analysis before deploying Irish troops to the scene. The dynamics of the situation were continuously evolving, with intelligence suggesting that the root cause of the fire was due to a downed drone with a possible explosive payload. This equated to three main hazards that were identified by the CAT; launching into a kinetic hostile environment, operating within the AO at night, and the possibility of an explosive device on site of the fire. The complexity of the situation required the simultaneous deployment of a variety of skilled personnel. Armoured vehicles, manned by QRT 1, provided navigation and overwatch, AST operating in the armoured HMEE, provided mobility and clearance finally allowing the fire crew to tackle the fire safely. The search and clearance operational arrangement between QRF and ENGRs is built on mutual trust, shared training, and operational experience. This strong partnership between these two elements ensures they can respond rapidly to emerging situations and deliver a capable, adaptable, and effective force asset wherever required across the mission area. Going forward these two elements will continue to deploy in the AO, to facilitate the battalion's commitment to UN Mandate 1701. APC Route Clearance 128 Inf Bn Recce Troop 128 Inf Bn Engineers

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