CTS News

Exercise TRIDENT JACKAL 2019 brought a transformational era of NATO to an end.  JACKAL was the last formal run out of the SKOLKAN Setting in the Joint Warfare Centre (JWC).

TRIDENT JUPITER 2019 and TRIDENT JACKAL 2019 dominated the June/July period. CTS, its partners and its network were fully supporting JWC’s key deliverables for both exercises.

CTS  provide extensive support to the first part of Exercise TRIDENT JUPITER 2019, deploying CTS team members to SHAPE, NATO Joint Force Command Brunssum and the Strike Force NATO HQ in Lisbon for Phases 2A and 2B. 

We expected 2019 to be a busy year and the first two months have provided a sample of the tempo.  CTS are providing leading consultancy on the JWC three largest projects at the moment; TRIDENT JUPITER 2019 (OCCASUS-N Setting); TRIDENT JUPITER 2020 (FIKSO Setting and the final act of SKOLKAN TRIDENT JACKAL 2019. CTS also completed support to EuroCorps’ final Phase of COMMON TENACITY 2019. 

November 2018 was another busy month for CTS. The CTS team was instrumental in the delivery and successful completion of Exercise TRIDENT JUNCTURE 2018 Phase 3B.

The past couple of months proved to be a very dynamic month for CTS and our partners.  CTS provided Intelligence and Medial Content SMEs for JFC Naples BST in late September and early October.  

CTS provided extensive support and advice to NATO across several projects in three separate locations. In the NATO Joint Warfare Centre in Stavanger Norway, CTS continued to support the imminent delivery of Exercise TRIDENT JUNCTURE 18 through the refinement of the scenario and major incidents list as well as support to the delivery of the exercise databases. 

June was a busy month for CTS.  The CTS team continued to provide extensive support to the NATO Joint Warfare Centre (JWC), playing critical roles in the delivery of Exercise TRIDENT JAGUAR 18 (TRJR18) and the development of TRIDENT JUNCTURE 18 (TRJE18), and for EuroCorps HQ in Strasbourg, designing and delivering their COMMON TENACITY series of exercises (18 and 19).

CTS provided extensive support to the NATO Joint Warfare Centre (JWC) to deliver Exercise TRIDENT JAGUAR 2018 to train Multinational Joint Headquarters ULM.  The CTS team provided critical support for the HICON, INTEL and OPFOR Cells to ensure that the exercise met all of the training objectives in a proper and realistic manner.  In addition, CTS’ considerable contribution to the White Cell component (13 staff), simulating other military and non-military entities for the training audience to interact, continued to deliver a leading role in the training.  In parallel, CTS continued to work with Eurocorps HQ in Strasbourg to design and deliver COMMON TENACITY 18/19, the HQs road to NRF 20 series of exercises and with JWC to prepare for the execution of the second element of Exercise TRIDENT JAGUAR 2018 for NATO Rapid Deployment Corps (Greece) in June.

TRIDENT JAGUAR 2018 MELMIL Scripting Workshop took place at NATO, Joint Warfare Centre in mid-March. The CTS team provided critical support for HICON, INTEL and OPFOR interaction to ensure MELMIL focused on operational dilemmas. CTS’ White Cell component continued to build on their lead role from the Incident Workshop in February, providing leadership and continuity to deliver key political, military and social lines of development to challenge the two Training Audiences from NRDC(GR) and MNJHQ(ULM). The SKOLKAN Setting and Scenario for TRIDENT JAGUAR 2018 continues to offer the military staff with asymmetric threats and ‘Hybrid’ subversive activities. This provides them with the opportunity to allow conventional soldiers to start thinking ‘unconventionally’ in a credible realistic information environment, where the interaction with people is just as important as the interaction between weapon platforms. TRIDENT JAGUAR 2018 takes place in May and June and will be last in the series. 

 ‘CTS delivering comprehensive training for the real world’

CTS are currently providing support to the NATO Joint Warfare Centre to train and exercise the NATO Rapid Deployable Corps (Greece) and Multi National Joint Headquarters ULM using the SKOKAN 2 Scenario in Exercise TRIDENT JAGUAR Phase II (crisis response planning).  The exercise is based around a Non Article 5 Crisis Response Small Joint Operation (Land heavy) under direct command of SACEUR, in a military, civilian and asymmetric threat environment involving combat incidents with a high operational tempo.  CTS are providing specific support in the areas of exercise design, scenario development, exercise delivery and exercise simulation.  In addition, CTS have deployed a of 19 personnel to provide the Joint Warfare Centre with subject matter experts in Intelligence, Operational Planning, Logistics, Civil/Military interaction, Simulation of Government departments and the EU.  The exercise is critical in preparing the NATO Rapid Deployable Corps (Greece) and Multi National Joint Headquarters ULM to assume the NATO response Force duties in 2019.

CTS, in cooperation with Roger Lane Consulting Ltd, have recently completed the delivery of Ex EURASIAN STAR 2017 (EAST 17) with NATO Rapid Deployable Corps (Turkey) (NRDC TUR). The exercise was to train NRDC TUR to command Non-Article 5 Crisis Response Small Joint Operation (Land heavy) under direct command of SACEUR, in a military, civilian and asymmetric threat environment involving combat incidents with a high operational tempo. CTS and Roger Lane Consulting provided bespoke support to NRDC TUR throughout all Phases of the exercise including exercise design, scenario development, exercise delivery and exercise simulation. Significantly, CTS and RLC were able to initiate, facilitate and manage a real-world OLRT deployment to Estonia, hosted by NFIU Estonia, providing a unique training experience for NRDC TUR personnel. In addition, CTS deployed team to provide specific support subject matter experts in Intelligence, Operational Planning, Logistics, Civil/Military interaction and the simulation of Government departments. The exercise was deemed by the Commander, Lieutenant General Daysal "resounding success" and praised CTS and Roger Lane Consulting with a "well aimed package (of training) that entirely met our aims". Additionally, CTS was commended on our flexibility and responsiveness and our ability to "go the extra mile" to ensure the success of the exercise.

CTS has completed two exercises back to back in support of the Joint Warfare Centre (JWC).  The CTS team contributed to the success of TRIDENT JAGUAR 2017, enabling the JWC to deliver exercises to two NATO Force Structure HQs (NFS HQ) resulting in their NATO certification as a Small Joint Operational HQ and to gain a better understanding of the challenges at the Strategic and Operational level.  The CTS team was responsible for creating the complex operating environment at Political, Strategic and Operational levels, presenting the Commanders of the NFS HQs a realistic and challenging training opportunity against both conventional and asymmetric threats. CTS played a key role in ensuring both Rapid Reaction Corps France and 1 German Netherlands Corps are prepared to fulfill their stand-by period roles for NATO as Small Joint Operational HQs.

CTS has completed two exercises back to back in support of the Joint Warfare Centre (JWC). The CTS team contributed to the success of TRIDENT JAGUAR 2017, enabling the JWC to deliver exercises to two NATO Force Structure HQs (NFS HQ) resulting in their NATO certification as a Small Joint Operational HQ and to gain a better understanding of the challenges at the Strategic and Operational level. The CTS team was responsible for creating the complex operating environment at Political, Stractegic and Operational levels, presenting the Commanders of the NFS HQs a realistic and challenging training opportunity against both conventioial and asymmetric threats. CTS played a key role in ensuring both Rapid Reaction Corps France and 1 German Netherlands Corps are prepared to fulfill their stand-by period roles for NATO as Small Joint Operational HQs.

"Most beneficial to the training was allowing us to continually engage in dialogue with all subjects along with your teams perspective with reference to your experiences in NATO exercises."

"We are certainly more confident and capable as this training will build capacity within our headquarters."

"Your three day workshop is a "model" that I would recommend to my counterparts throughout NATO."

CTS provided extensive support to the NATO Trident Juncture 16 exercise master event and incident scripting phase that took place from 5 to 16 September at the NATO Joint Warfare Centre (JWC) in Stavanger. The exercise is based on the NATO SKOLKAN 1 Scenario that is centered on the fictitious country of Bothnia. The exercise has two major training audiences: NATO Joint Force Command Headquarters Naples and; the NATO Allied Rapid Reaction Corps based in UK. CTS full time and associate subject matter expert staff provided support to the JWC to script exercise injects to challenge the training audiences during the upcoming exercise execution phase that is scheduled to take place in November. Our team provided support to the JWC by scripting a wide spectrum of events and incidents for the exercise that included political developments, hybrid warfare, conventional warfare, terrorism, intelligence and logistics.

CTS provided extensive support to the NATO Trident Jaguar 17 exercise that ran from 5 to 22 September based on the NATO SKOLKAN 2 Scenario focusing on the fictitious (and failing) State of Arnland.  The exercise has two Training Audiences - 1 German Netherlands Corps and Rapid Reaction Corps France.  Some of our full time staff formed a major part of the exercise control team, representing SHAPE and NATO Headquarters throughout the planning phase, and helped to train each Headquarters' Operational Planning Liaison Elements at SHAPE.  We also provided a wide range of expertise through CTS subject matter experts during the Operational Liaison and Reconnaissance Team(s) deployment to Arnland.  Our pool of experts role played a wide range of functions from the Arnish government Ministries, including Transport and Telecommunications, Health, the Coast Guard and Navy and the General staff.  In addition, we provided Arnish government military liaison officers to both Headquarters and an Arnish Cultural Liaison officer to the Rapid Reaction Corps France.  Finally outside of the government functions, we provided an experienced EU representative and a Danish Embassy team of three.  This combination of expertise provided the OLRTs with a realistic and challenging training environment within which to hone their skills.

CTS have the experience in devising complex scenarios for traing exercise to test your organization's resilience and response in the face of multiple potential challenges, including:

Crises management and response plans;

Airline, airport, maritime and land based industry crisis management training;

Security threat management;

"Road to crises" mapping;

Natural disaster response;

Multi-location risk assessment and management;

Business continuity.

http://www.jwc.nato.int/images/stories/_news_items_/2016/SKOLKAN_interview.pdf