Page 45 - The Cormorant Issue 14

The focus for a large part of the course was aimed very much at the operational level of war. It is within this context that many of the operational art and campaigning exercises are constructed, all culminating with the theatre war game Exercise HABILE COR- MORANT in late March with the assistance of a number of civil- ian support staff within the Defence Academy and civilian and military staff from outside agencies. The aim was to practice multinational, joint and multi-agency planning and decision-mak- ing at the military-strategic and operational levels of command in order to apply the major elements of the course in practice. While none of us would necessarily be so presumptuous as to now consider ourselves experts in this field on the basis of 4 months education and training, there is no doubt that we have been given a solid top-up and broad knowledge base from which to draw from in our future roles, particularly for any emerg- ing future operations. It was of course fascinating to witness the recent ‘Arab Awakening’ unfold which provided yet further food for thought, if it were needed, and also sadly resulted in one of our number having to return to his day job as COS JFHQ – a rea- sonable demand given JFHQ’s involvement. Unsurprisingly and reassuringly, some of my fellow HCSC 11 graduates are already very closely involved in this particular part of the world one way or another, along with half a dozen others who have returned to Afghanistan. This is the real value of HCSC, which despite widespread resource pressures should not have to be justified in purely financial terms alone, despite its remarkable value for money I should add. HCSC graduates will continue to play a central role in the senior leadership, planning and execution of all current and future operations, and return on investment should surely be considered and measured from this perspective.
The final stage of the course was the Staff Ride in Northern France. This phase of the course allowed us all to consider ideas for contemporary and future operations through the prism of his- torical events. Aside from researching, writing and presenting our Staff Ride Papers, it was here as well as in the margins of the course elsewhere, that we all contributed to each others’ learning and understanding of our respective environments, often over the occasional beer or calvados it must be said, that we forged those friendships which will endure beyond HCSC well into the future. No mention of Staff Ride is complete without reference to Profes- sor Richard Holmes. His premature passing less than 2 weeks after the course had finished was felt by each and every one of us. Throughout the course, but on Staff Ride in particular, Richard
The Polish Memorial, Mont Ormel
brought many of the themes and issues we had been debating alive with historical accuracy, passion and remarkable insight, and he was extremely generous of his time to each of us individually while we wrestled with how our own particular contribution might in some small way assist in addressing tomorrow’s challenges. The HCSC course of 2011 was extremely fortunate to have ben- efited from Richard’s immense contribution to the course.
Having now had a period to reflect on the course, I conclude with some brief thoughts. It is challenging in just four months to explore all the fascinating topics which we covered in any real depth, but it was certainly sufficient time to allow us all to refresh our military thinking in the right environment and to carefully consider and debate many of those challenges which lie ahead of us. I can also honestly say that I don’t think I have read so many books, articles and journals in such a short period of time, stimulated further by the impressive list of Defence Academy and external speakers. But more than this, the course has given me plenty of food for thought as well as a very useful ‘toolbox’ of campaigning expertise to draw on in any future command and staff appoint- ments I might be invited to take on. Should you too be fortunate enough to be offered the opportunity to attend HCSC in the future – and of course it is a privilege to be asked – then grab the oppor- tunity with both hands; you won’t be disappointed.
Briefing the Falaise action
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