The NATO Defense College’s Senior Course 119 started its visit to Hungary on 29 September 2011 at Pápa Airbase, where they were given an overview of the Strategic Airlift Capability (SAC) Headquarters. The Command comprises ten NATO nations (Bulgaria, Estonia, Hungary, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Romania, Slovenia and the United States), and also includes Finland and Sweden, two Partnership for Peace (PfP) nations. The nations are all striving to implement a unique SAC Programme for the Boeing C-17 strategic transport aircraft.
László SZARVAS, Deputy Director General of the NATO Airlift Management Agency (NAMO), together with Col Frank ROMBOUTS (NLD F), Vice Commander of the Heavy Airlift Wing (HAW) briefed the Course Members on the Command’s structure, functions and operations. The aircraft based at Pápa were most recently used in various military and humanitarian missions in Afghanistan, Uganda, and Poland.
The following day, SC119 attended a series of presentations at the Hungarian Ministry of Defence and the Museum of Military History in Budapest. The briefings were given by officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Defence, Ministry of the Interior, and the General Staff of the Hungarian Defence Forces. The topics included Hungarian Security Policy (by Mr Zoltán NAGY, MFA, Head of the Security Policy and Non-Proliferation Department); Defence reform in Hungary (by Dr Attila DEMKÓ, MoD, Head of the Defence Planning Department); and the Current International Crisis Management Activities of the Hungarian Police (by LtCol László KELEMEN, MoI, International Training and Civilian Crisis Management Centre, Head of the Crisis Management and Peace Support Department). The final lecture was on the Hungarian Defence Forces’ International Missions, and was presented by LtGen Zoltán OROSZ, Deputy Chief of the Defense Staff of the Hungarian Defence Forces, who also received a courtesy visit from LtGen Arne Bard DALHAUG, Commandant of the NATO Defense College.
Before leaving Budapest for Bern to continue with the visits alternating between NATO and PfP countries, the NATO Defense College delegation was graciously hosted at the Hungarian Parliament.
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