An Cosantóir

www.military.ie the defence forces magazine | 31 Lt Niall Stringer RDF and Sgt Michael Mulligan RDF, both OTW, arranged a programme, rations and transport for the event, which was scheduled for Saturday 11th March. On the day of the event Lt Stringer opened the registra- tion at 1000hrs and soon all 65 seats were filled by RDF personnel from DFHQ, 1 Bde, 2 Bde, DFTC and the Naval Service Reserve. ACOS Brig Gen Peter O'Halloran delivered the opening address and a leadership presentation. This was followed by a very interesting presentation by Declan Power who skilfully described the world strategic picture in 1961 and set the tone for the more tactical presentation by Capt Carey. The attendees broke for lunch at 1300hrs during which they were broken down into smaller groups for a tour of the Museum's relevant items, guided by Comdt Joye. With everyone suitably refreshed after the lunch break it was the turn of Capt Carey to relate his experiences during the action at Jadotville. The old saying that 'you could have heard a pin drop' rang true for this presentation. Capt Carey spoke very honestly and sometimes humorously and it was with great disappointment that the event soon ran out of time as a message over the speaker system announced that the NMI was closing for the day at 17:00hrs. Capt Carey's presentation was recorded by Lisa Dolan of Military Archives so that his personal experiences could be preserved. The event was also used for a survey of stu- dents of past PME achievements by RDF Comdt I Conlon, DFTC G7. This will assist in the future delivery of relevant courses and CPD. This military history case study proved a great suc- cess and was received very positively by all involved. It is intended to build on this success with a similar event in 2018. I would like to acknowledge and thank the support and assistance of GOC DFTC Brig Gen Joseph Mulligan; Col M Dawson (D Inf); Comdt D Slattery (OC OTW); Lt Col D Harrington (J7); Lt Col C Dwyer (D PRB); Comdt C King; Capt J Tynan; and RDF Comdt I Conlon (G7 DFTC). A special word of thanks is due to Comdt Joye, Lt Stringer, Sgt Mulligan and Cpl F Nolan (TVMS), for all their work in the background on the day, and to the officers of all forma- tions who supported this event with their attendance and good wishes. Members of the RDF and NSR visiting Collins Bks, Dublin as part of their continuous professional development (CPD) and professional military education (PME) programs. Capt Noel Carey Retd, a platoon commander with A Coy, 35 Inf Bn in the Congo, discussing his experience in Jadotville.

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