An Cosantóir

An Cosantóir February 2015 www.dfmagazine.ie 16 | 34th by LT BRIAN KELLY, INSTRUCTOR, NCO TRG WING PHoToS by SGT KARL BYRNE & CPL NEVILLE COUGHLAN 34th Senior NCo Course was conducted over eleven weeks from 15th September to 28th November 2014 in the NCo Training Wing, Inf Sch, DFTC. The aim of the Senior NCo Course is to further develop the qualities of leader- ship and supervision and to provide the necessary knowledge, skills and competencies to qualify sergeants of the Defence Forces to execute the tasks and duties of a senior NCo in national and multinational forces. Students study a variety of subjects ranging from training management to staff duties to leadership and of course tactical training. Examinations are held regularly throughout the course to ensure instruction is being as- similated. A large amount of time on the course is dedicated to briefs from various directorates. Of course, not all the instruction is left to the classroom and students follow an exacting physical training pro- gramme, including battle PT, in order to prepare them for the final exercise. As part of the course the students are afforded the opportunity to undertake a level-7 qualification in leader- ship, management and defence studies through IT Carlow. This is an optional programme but one that has had a 100% uptake to date. It requires a considerable amount of extra-curricular work but lecturers from IT Carlow offer assistance throughout and each student is assign a supervisor from their home unit who has completed a similar dissertation. The successful students from 34th Senior NCO Course are due to graduate with their degrees in November 2015. This is a significant step for NCOs and a huge investment into education within the Defence Forces. The penultimate exercise on this course was Exercise Anaconda. This exercise was aimed primarily at combat service support during battalion-level operations and focused on the senior NCO role from battalion sergeant major to company sergeant. The exercise was fast forwarded to the reorg and consolidation phase, so from the students point of view the fighting had already taken place and it was up to those in senior NCO appointments to collect casualty figures, prioritise and casevac casualties, and resupply ammo and water. Based in Kilworth Camp, this was a large-scale exercise with 244 people involved. It also included a day in Fort Davis conducting combat service support in an urban environment. Along with the huge commitment of personnel, there was also a significant commitment of Defence Forces assets including the AW139 helicopter, MOWAG Piranha, BAE systems LTAV and John Deere Gator 6x4 all-terrain vehicle. These assisted the students throughout the week in completing the required casevacs with the 'golden hour'. An exercise of this scale is only possible without the co-operation of all supporting units throughout the Defence Forces. Overall, the course challenged students and instructors, developing both groups through interaction and discus- sion. The 34th Senior NCO Course proved to be an engaging and challenging group and the NCO Training Wing would like to wish them the best of luck in their dissertations and in their future careers.

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