Exercise Ramstein Dust I 16 – DARS supports Slovenian Forward Air Controller exercise

Starting on 30 May, a deployment exercise – Ramstein Dust I-16 – will take NATO’s deployable air command and control capability, the DARS[1], to Slovenia. Approximately 100 women and men from the Deployable Air Command and Control Centre (DACCC) at Poggio Renatico in Northern Italy will load their equipment on more than 20 military and commercial vehicles and deploy to the air base of Cerklje east of the Slovenian Capital of Ljubljana.

"The Ramstein Dust exercise concept tests our ability to deploy and operate outside our garrison,” said German Air Force Colonel Klaus Nolte, the DARS director. "As the convoy arrives in Cerklje, the team connects to available radar, radio, and tactical data links – some organic and some shared with other NATO nations. During the exercise, the DARS is going to conduct live and simulated air operations allowing my team to practice critical tasks and AirC2 functions as well as gathering experience in deploying and operating NATO’s single deployable ACCS system – the DARS.”

The DARS deployment is embedded in the Slovenian-hosted international Forward Air Controller (FAC) exercise Adriatic Strike 16. DARS personnel will control multinational aircraft flying in this exercise during their tactical missions in providing Air Power Contribution to Land Operation and closely working together with army and air force tactical headquarters. This construct underlines NATO’s capability to generate synergies from mutually supporting exercises increasing realistic training and hone air-land-integration skills.

From 12 June on, the DARS team will start to disassemble their set-up, redeploy to the garrison at Poggio Renatico and build-up their systems for routine operations. The last cargo is scheduled to arrive in garrison on 22 June.

[1] Deployable Air Control Centre, Recognized Air Picture Production Centre, Sensor Fusion Post