Praise for the Soldiers of Győr

The soldiers of the HDF 12th Arrabona Surface-to-Air Missile Regiment have successfully completed one of the largest exercises of the Hungarian Defence Forces this year, the SAM tactical live fire exercise “Swinging Sword 2013" on the range of Ustka, Poland. On August 21, the LFX day of the almost two-week exercise conducted by 160 soldiers, altogether eight KUB short-range (SHORAD) and seven MISTRAL very-short-range (VSHORAD) surface-to-air missiles were launched. All SAMs have successfully destroyed the designated targets, and the Identification Friend or Foe (IFF) system has also passed the test with success.

Gen. Tibor Benkő, who inspected the exercise on the spot, said that the Győr soldiers’ performance was praiseworthy and very reassuring. “I think so far we have seen some highly spectacular launches and hits. It is also reassuring to see that the target drones developed by the MoD Currus Ltd have passed the tests with flying colors, so their development can continue. At the same time, I saw a few shortfalls regarding the assets, so we will have to take remedial action. But this is exactly what such a large live fire exercise is all about, as it provides the best venue for learning lessons", the Chief of Defence said.

Gen. Tibor Benkő added that the soldiers of Győr had executed a lot of important tasks this year, and there is more to come, since a designated subunit of the regiment will also participate in the next large exercise, Steadfast Jazz 2013, which is scheduled to take place in November.

Answering our question, Maj.-Gen. László Domján, the commander of the HDF Joint Force Command (HDF JFC) told us that the present exercise was the culmination of a training program that the soldiers of the SAM regiment have been conducting for years. “The faith in the weapon has been worth the efforts, just like the great many dry runs executed by the soldiers of Győr. This live fire exercise is also important because here we had opportunity to test the weapons under very realistic conditions" – the major-general said. The commander of the HDF JFC added that “he kept his fingers crossed for the soldiers", as he had seen their commitment and attention to every detail during the training for this exercise. “Today the soldiers of the SAM regiment have given proof of the work of many years. I am proud of the soldiers of Győr and congratulate the regiment", he added.

HDF JFC Air Force Chief Brig.-Gen. Albert Sáfár pointed out that the launches seen during that part of the day were a success by all means. “The NATO evaluators’ detailed assessment of the live fire exercise will be revealed only in the final exercise report. At any rate, the soldiers of Győr are clearly able to carry out the tasks assigned to them" – the brigadier-general said.

Lt.-Col. Ferenc Könczöl, the deputy commander of the HDF 12th Arrabona SAM Regiment also spoke with satisfaction of what he had seen. He told us that the period until late afternoon had been a successful one. “As the saying goes, «Don’t count your chickens before they are hatched», but we have a good record so far. The missiles have been successfully launched and the designated targets destroyed. This was the first time we had worked with the target drones, their parameters meet the requirements of the live fire exercise, but their development must go on. We have gained good experiences with the Polish soldiers and our cooperation is very good, they are giving us all the support we need", the lieutenant-colonel said.

The live fire exercise ended early in the evening, and according to reports, the missile launches after the late afternoon break were successful too.

Photos by the author