JULY 2025AEROSPACEDEFENSEREVIEW.COM8In My OpinionTHE EVOLVING LANDSCAPE OF IRISH MILITARY LOGISTICS As the current Head of Strategic Force Design, Colonel Prendergast was recently tasked with withdrawing the soldiers and equipment that constituted the Irish commitment to the United Nations Mission in Syria (UNDOF). To complete this complex task, his staff in the J4/Logistics Branch of the Irish Defence Forces HQ undertook a twelve-month planning cycle. The Military Decision Making Process (MDMP) was the main planning tool used, as key members of the J4 Staff had recently completed their Land Component Command and Staff Courses and the Senior NCO Logistics Course. In support of the MDMP, elements of the Operational Planning Process (OPP) were also employed to better understand the strategic environment that the Joint Logistics Teams (JLTs) would be operating within. Several implied tasks augmented the specified tasks assigned to J4 by the Irish General Staff. These were then analyzed fully to provide Mission Essential Tasks and Contingency Planning, which became crucial after serious conflict escalated in the region from October 2023 onwards. All of these planning constraints, guidelines, and elements were captured in the Operational and Administrative Planning Orders produced by the J4 staff.Throughout the planning process, excellent civil-military collaboration ensured maximum efficiency and cost-benefit analysis. Special mention must go to the Irish civilian colleagues in the Executive Branch, Finance Branch, and Internal Audit Section of the Irish Ministry of Defence. Other Directorates from the Irish Defence Forces were also heavily involved in By Colonel Gareth Prendergast, Head of Strategic Force Design, Irish Defence Forcesthe complex planning process, especially those from Operations, Ordnance, and Transport, who also provided staff from the National Stores Reception Centre for manifesting and Military Customs and Clearance. The Irish UN Contingent based in Syria also played a key role in preparing all the equipment for stock checks and loading before the JLTs arrived in the Joint Area of Operations (JOA).In March 2024, two JLTs, including Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) from all the Resourcing and Sustainment Branches of the Irish Defence Forces, flew out to the JOA. The Logistics Management Team traveled to Syria, while the Logistics Operations Team positioned themselves in Beirut. To enhance the logistics capabilities of the JLTs, Young Army Officers undergoing their Degrees in Supply Chain Management were drafted into the J4 Branch as part of their College `Work Experience' program. Some of these officers operated the Logistics Operations HQ, supervised by the Deputy J4 in Dublin alongside others that reached the JOA for supporting the JLTs.Over three weeks, operating in a hostile environment as conflict raged throughout the region, logisticians from the Irish Defence Forces HQ successfully withdrew every item of Irish equipment from the Mission Area. This highly complicated withdrawal process encompassed over twenty vehicles, the majority of which were armored, and over thirty containers full of equipment. The withdrawal routes transited
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