Force Protection gets training in rescue and evacuation of missing or stranded persons

• The training exercise was conducted by SERE instructors (Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Extraction) and EUTM Mali medical personnel, most of whom were members of the mission's force protection unit.

The members of the Force Protection Unit of the Spanish mission in EUTM Mali have been instructed on rescue and extraction of isolated allied combatants in the battlefield. The main purpose was to ensure the operability and safety of our troops.

For this purpose, the activities were structured into a first, entirely theoretical part, a theoretical-practical part in the Koulikoro training camp and a real exercise at the KTC.In this exercise, the knowledge acquired in the early stages was put into practice, and the participation of a Starlite helicopter made it possible to simulate situations as real as posible.

In the first theoretical phase, the existing standardized procedures in EUTM and Starlite were taught in a classroom. Such procedures include the search, tracing and identification of allies who, for reasons of military action, have been missed within the theatre of operations.

The next stage was conducted in the vicinity of the KTC where these recovery protocols were put into practice, and also a review of first aid procedures in combat operations.

Finally, on the last day, a real helicopter exercise was carried out, where a situation was simulated in which the force protection unit located and rescued isolated allied combatants at different locations within KTC training range.

In parallel to the protection duties of EUTM instructors, with this sort of training sessions and courses, the Force Protection unit ensures and maintains an additional operational capability for the misión.