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TIERRA Nº 14 | JULIO 2016 ESPECIAL BRJP The personnel, 42 equipment and vehicles transfer is an aspect of NATO Response Forces which does not normally attract a great deal of media attention, but without it any deployment would be possible. In this particular case we are talking about more than 1,300 soldiers, 284 vehicles, 117 trailers and 75 containers loaded with different types of equipment. They travelled by land, sea and air from Spain to Poland, were there for almost 20 days and returned without incident. Since May 13th, when the activation order was issued, the Projection HQ (made up of members of the Operational Logistic Force, (FLO, in Spanish), managed and coordinated the transport of vehicles with the help of the app LOGFAS (Functional Area Logistic Services, in its Spanish acronym), which tracks each convoy through a positioner placed in one of the vehicles. To achieve the transfer in Spain (going and returning), FLO made a Deployment/Redeployment Support Unit (UAD/UAR, in Spanish) made up of members from the Projection Support Group of the 11th Logistic Support Group (AALOG), and the 61st AALOG. The people in charge of transfers, paperwork and day-to-day matters in Poland were the members of the NSE. The bulk of that unit came from the 61st AALOG, although other units under the authority of the Logistic Brigade (i.e. the 21st AALOG and the 11th AALOG) also contributed troops, as did the 1st Signals Regiment. All in all, 46 people; this was the only unit not transferred to NATO; it reported to the commander of the Spanish contingent. The Aerial Terminal Unit (around 30 people in Spain and there fewer) was in charged to manage the personnel at airports. Since 15 May they were at Wroclaw airport (Poland) taking care of two tasks: receiving the troops and getting them through customs after their identification. The Maritime Terminal Unit (about 50 in National territory) was responsible for organising columns (a total of 16) and loading them onto the ship Morning Celesta at the port of Vigo. Loading a civilian vessel requires fulfilling a series of criteria, such as leaving the tanks half empty to avoid both excess weight and spilling and degassing the tanker trucks. When


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