The five-day UN Mission Orientation Field Training Exercise (FTX) ‘Harmattan–3’ for Combat Convoy Company (CCC) duties in UN Peace-keeping missions covering 457.2 km distance ended recently at the Minneriya Infantry Training Centre (ITC) after an extensive debriefing to assess its gains and identify lapses or shortcomings.
The full-scale rehearsal of military manoeuvres as practice for fairly realistic scenarios and situations with a vehicle convoy of 47 vehicles and 20 officers and 223 Other Ranks, belonging to the Gajaba Regiment, Armoured Corps, Engineers, Signal Corps, Mechanised Infantry Regiment, Corps of Engineer Service, Army Service Corps, Army Medical Corps, Army Ordnance Corps, Electrical and Mechanical Engineers, Corps of Military Police and Army General Service Corps began February 12 from Mailady, Jaffna under five phases.
Major General Champaka Ranasinghe, General Officer Commanding (GOC), 58 Division who functioned as the Exercise Director ‘FTX - ‘Harmattan - 3’ as well as Major General Deepal Pussella, GOC, 62 Division who worked as the Deputy Exercise Director led the de-briefing sessions at Minneriya after participating Officers gathered with their submissions.
The FTX was proved a success in terms of its overall gains theoretically and practically.
The FTX traversed from Mailady to Kuweni Junction (Phase 1), Kuweni Junction to Nayaru (Phase 2) Nayaru to Thawulwewa (Phase 3), Thawulwewa to Kandakadu (Phase 4) and Kandakadu to Minneriya ITC (Phase 5) within five days where ‘Drone’ technology tactics of 15th Drone Regiment of Sri Lanka Artillery (SLA), for surveillance, practical simulated war conditions, Tactical Exercises, map model practices, simulated attack scenarios making situations more unpredictable and realistic in more difficult or more far-fetched settings of actual battles were rehearsed to suit ground realities in the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilisation Mission (MINUSMA) in Mali and Goa.
Some 47 vehicles, including six Armoured vehicles, six unibuffels and 19 administrative vehicles contributed to the success of the mock expedition.
The FTX was devised guided by Chief of Defence Staff and Commander of the Army, General Shavendra Silva and was spearheaded under the supervision of the Director General, General Staff Branch Major General Priyanka Fernando.
