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D' Army Corps

by Thymis Tsiliopoulos

The grey C-27J Spartan rumbled softly as it sped down the runway and with a slight jerk shot up into the blue Attica skies over the bay of Elefsis. For those that have flown with the HAF’s (Hellenic Air Force’s) C-130s, the sound of C-27J is… well, more “civilized”. The aircraft itself smells of newness, like a brand new car giving away the fact that it’s a recent addition to the Air Force fleet.. 

From Elefsis the plane touched down at Hrysoupolis near Kavala in less than an hour and after a perfect landing. Fro the airport we boarder one of the Army’s characteristic blue busses and headed towards Xanthi, where we are awited by the leadership o D Army Corps. The briefing was customary and did not betray what was to follow. 

Our next stop: the Xanthi Tank Firing Range at Camp “Triandafylidis”, a little outside Xanthi, the base of ΧΧV Brigade. The Brigade’s subordinate units are:

 *   The 645 Mechanized Infantry Battalion, most of which is in Kossovo on Peace Keeping duties.                                         *    The 22 and 25 Main Battle                    Battalions.                                                *     The 139 Self Propelled Field Artillery Battalion.                                                 *      The 25 Armored Support Battalion.       *      The 25 Engineer Company                 *      Xanthi Firing Grounds Company. 

These units are based in the “Triantafyllidis” camp. The Brigade also has under its command the Headquarters Armoured Company and 25 Signals Company based at the “Stefanidis” camp, on the SW part of Xanthi, where Brigade Headquarters is also located. 

Passing endless motor pools, with literally, hundreds of armored vehicles, we reached the edge of the camp complex, and were led to a glass fronted building facing the hills ahead. The building is positioned in such a way as to offer a panoramic view of the field ahead. And this is it should, since this is the observation post for the training that takes place on the field ahead. Low vegetation and rocky undulating ground lies ahead for about three kilometers. The ground is marred by ground up paths, indicative of the courses taken by tanks, leading to the range itself dotted with various targets at various points. The firing range has the following targets: 300 meters ahead of the observation post there is a grouping of three targets for tank gunnery, while behind it is a single target for use of the commander’s AA machine gun. Still another similar target for the same purpose lies behind, while immediately behind the latter there are nine targets for the tanks’ coaxial machine guns. Behind this are two moving targets for use with the main guns. The moving targets move along on carts along a railway track, which the soldiers call “the little train”. Its course passes through many points offering different degrees of cover, different speeds and following “hull down” procedures giving gunners a run for their money. All in all it’s a very realistic course that trainers vary each time. Unfortunately anti tank shells from the tanks’ main weapons are not suited for spectacular effects, since they don’t explode, but merely rip through the cloth targets and bury themselves in the mountain side behind the targets. A puff of dust is all that betrays they were fired at all.

To the left and behind the moving target are the four shot traps, carved out of the mountainside, used to fire high explosive shells. Effects here are more dramatic as the 105mm shells explode into plumes of smoke and flame. 400 meters beyond the end of the combat training range is a plateau where tank commanders practice firing the tanks’ anti-aircraft machine guns. Finally straight ahead, about 500 meters, from the observation deck there is a multiple target for the tanks’ coaxial machine guns. 

The course followed by the tanks begins below and to the right of the observation deck. From that point on, crews may fire their weapons (with non-explosive rounds) at will, or when ordered by their platoon leaders. During our visit, four Leopard 1A5 were on the grounds beginning a round of training runs. The crews were the ones scheduled for that day and were not specially chosen for exhibition purposes. Moving in pairs over different paths they moved around the course at full speed, firing on the move with main guns and machine guns at the targets. The accuracy was indeed surprising. One does not expect to see a vehicle moving at 70 kms an hour over rough terrain fire and hit targets. In fact the mere speed with which they traversed the grounds was in and of itself impressive. They changed positions, bounded overwatch, and varied tactics with one pair remaining as cover as the other dashed on to another point. Fire, change of position, fire on the move, change of relay; it all seemed impossibly quick. The bangs of the guns and the muzzle flashes overlapped as the four armored monsters churned a rain of steel and tungsten at their hypothetical foes. The surprising part was the debriefing where the tankers and their trainers could watch video from inside and outside their vehicles, with trainers choosing angles and viewpoints to press home points about tactics and response. The voices of the crew members as they scrambled to load shells aim and fire, while the vehicles were moving could be heard recorded as they were during the run. Curses when a shot missed or wasn’t snappy enough, and yells of enthusiasm at direct hits. We calculated that the crews missed two shots out of over thirty fired.    

In any event it was an impressive sight, a far cry from the training drills of old. It is certainly a blessing that nowadays the Army feels generous with expanding ammunition in training. 

The observation post from where we watched the whole exercise is also the fire control and range center, from where the various targets can be manipulated. Besides training tank crews, the range is also used to train operators of infantry heavy weapons (mortars, machine guns, Anti Tank missiles, machine guns) and artillery crews in direct fire missions. It is also used for trial proving new equipment or candidate weapon systems.  

The final establishment and acceptance of the Live Firing Monitoring Equipment (LFME) took place in January 2006. The actual brain of the system is housed in a special container, which includes a position for the training supervisor and also houses the equipment that is mounted on the tanks to provide the live video and audio feedback, along with a fire designation system and a power generator that can be used to supply the unit autonomously in the event of power failure. 

The integrated system offers simultaneous oversight of up to four tanks (LEO1A5, LEO2A4, LEO2HEL), video transmission to the supervisor, graphics displaying systems and ammunition status, video and audio storage and control of external monitoring cameras. The entire process is video and audio taped and the supervisor can choose angles and specific focus, while stored data can be played back in various formats. The benefits for training are obvious. What is more difficult to explain, but perhaps can be merely described, is the feeling one gets from the played back tapes. Crews speaking to one another and with other crews in staccato voices. The sound of the guns firing can be heard, sometimes with overlapping machine gun and cannon fire. One can hear the brushing noise of the shells being rammed into the steel breaches of the big guns, and the clang as the empty shells are ejected. You watch and can almost smell the acrid smell of cordite. Orders, responses, enthusiastic cries after successful hits, temporary survival-continuation of the fight. Curses and tension and scurrying to ram another round home for a second shot. Mistakes will be analyzed and pointed out. Trainees will learn from mistakes in order to save their lives in the future, their tanks and in order to become better warriors and the members of the team that they should be. At times its funny as trainees can hear the exclamations or silliness they uttered under stress.

The training grounds also maintain a classroom where ordinary PCs have been utilized by the Brigade’s personnel to work as initial low level simulators. The programs and graphics were designed and implemented by the Brigade staff, both career military and conscripts, something for which the officers were justifiably proud.  Furthermore the Brigade has also built housing facilities for trainee units that move to the range to carry out their training cycles. 

After watching the training exercise on the training grounds we attended an exhibition of the Army’s newest bridging equipment, the Leguan bridge that was obtained within the framework of offsets for the purchase of the Leopard 2A6HELs. The bridge is 4m longer than old US made equipment and furthermore the way it is put in action (in a sliding manner) affords a much lower profile than the older scissor type folding bridges that had to be raised to height greater than a two storey buildings revealing the vehicle’s position from a ggreat distance.   

Next stop the ΧΧΙ Armored Brigade in Komotini. The beautiful northern town is home to one of the most powerful armored formation in the Greek Army. The Iliopoulos camp is home to the Army’s Leopard 2A4. Adjacent to the camp is a drill ground used to train drivers and crews in tactics and terrain. It was bought by the Army at considerable expense in order to improve training for the Army’s latest additions the Leopard 2A4 and the even more powerful Leopard 2A6 HEL. It was on these grounds that we had he chance to watch a platoon of 2A4 being put through its paces. Their mobility and speed were immediately obvious as the tanks spun on the varied course climbing over or traversing obstacles, churning the ground with their treads. We watch in amazement as the 64 ton vehicles ran over the course at more than 70 kilometres an hour. The role of ‘enemy’ was played by a pair of US made M48A5s which the Leopards quickly outmanoeuvred, despite the fact that the older tanks still remain quite battle worthy. The training on this field is tactical and limited to field manoeuvres since proximity to inhabited areas makes firing live ammunition too much of a risk. 

After Komotini, it’s on to Alexandroupolis and the home of ΧΧΙΙΙ Armored Brigade at camp Kandilanaptis. The camp also houses the Tank Training Simulation Center, which started functioning on 30 October 2006. The LEO1 A5 simulators were up and running ahead of schedule. During our visit crews under training were fully utilizing the systems. A written description cannot do justice to the impressive machinery that constitutes the simulators. The turret simulators are housed in domes mounted on hydraulic ‘arms’ that simulate all the movement that can be expected on the battlefield. The machines move incredibly quickly and therefore constitute a hazard for anyone wandering aimlessly. Therefore, access to certain points is forbidden when they are operational. The overseer feeds data and scenarios into the computer which then feeds the corresponding images onto the dome covering almost a ¾ spherical view. The trainees have to respond to threats and cooperate with their driver in another simulators (in real life the driver is outside the turret ‘ring’, anyway), as well as another crew, possibly, in another simulator.  One may say, however, that visiting journalists are more of hindrance and bother than any help to the trainees. The very positive image reaffirmed the professionalism we already experienced on the firing range at Xanthi. 

Two additional buildings were constructed to house the simulators (the systems are in fact quite bulky). In order to house visiting trainees the Brigade constructed an additional barracks that sleeps 40.  

Greek Tanks in Thrace

Within the framework of a more general upgrade of the Hellenic Army’s armor potential there has been an additional procurement 183 Leopard A4 and Leopard 1A5 tanks. With regard to Leopard A4 the main difference with the Leopard 2 HEL is the L55 gun of the latter (length of barrel 55 calibers) as against the L44 gun of the former.