Response Force Task Group
Encyclopedia
The Response Force Task Group is a new initiative announced in the 2010 Strategic Defence and Security Review
and is the heart of the UK’s maritime contingent capability, held at very high readiness to respond to unexpected global events. It highlights the enduring need for the armed forces to plan and train for unforeseen events that may occur in parallel with the defence main effort of current operations. The RFTG will be poised to respond to short-notice tasking across a diverse range of defence activities such as non-combatant evacuation operations, disaster relief, humanitarian aid or amphibious operations. This deployment is not linked to events in Libya which involve other elements of the UK Armed Forces.
Commodore John Kingwell, Commander UK Task Group (COMUKTG), embarked aboard flagship HMS Albion, has said (regarding the arrival of other ships in the task force):
RFA Mounts Bay and RFA Fort Rosalie. The deployment of the task force under 'COUGAR 11' saw them transit through the Mediterranean where they will take part in multinational amphibious exercises before moving further east through the Suez Canal for further exercises in the Indian Ocean.
The RFTG has been involved in Exercise Cypriot Lion as part of their 'COUGAR 11' deployment. During this exercise, Elements of HQ 3 Commando Brigade
and a detachment from 17 Port and Maritime Regiment, Royal Logistic Corps
were also attached to the COUGAR 11 deployment. British Army Apache attack helicopters fired Hellfire missiles for the first time whilst flying from a Royal Navy warship. On Monday 9th of May on the way to Cyprus, 7 Senior Non-Commissioned Officers and the Officer Commanding the Support Troop from 6 Assault Squadron Royal Marines on HMS Albion held a service of remembrance at the Souda Bay
Commonwealth Grave site in Crete to pay tribute to their fallen colleagues to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the bitter battle for the island. The Viking armoured vehicle
s attached to the group also practiced amphibious landings.
It was reported that a French D'Estienne d'Orves class
warship, FS Commandant Birot, had joined the COUGAR 11 deployment alongside the RFTG.
On May 26, 2011, the COUGAR 11 deployment began a joint UK-Albania
n military exercise, code-named 'Albanian Lion'. This is the first major joint operation between the UK and Albanian armed forces since Albania joined NATO in 2009.
On the June 3, 2011, five vessels of the Response Force Task Group temporarily withdrew from COUGAR 11 and were deployed (an RFTG ship, HMS Ocean, and her embarked Apache attack helicopters had been deployed days earlier) to supplement UK forces in Operation Ellamy
/Operation Unified Protector
.
By late June 2011, the COUGAR 11 task group had passed through the Suez Canal
and begun Operation Red Alligator, a major maritime security and anti-piracy exercise in the Red Sea
with the Armed Forces of Saudi Arabia.
Strategic Defence and Security Review
The Strategic Defence and Security Review was announced by the newly formed Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition government of the United Kingdom in May 2010, and published on 19 October 2010...
and is the heart of the UK’s maritime contingent capability, held at very high readiness to respond to unexpected global events. It highlights the enduring need for the armed forces to plan and train for unforeseen events that may occur in parallel with the defence main effort of current operations. The RFTG will be poised to respond to short-notice tasking across a diverse range of defence activities such as non-combatant evacuation operations, disaster relief, humanitarian aid or amphibious operations. This deployment is not linked to events in Libya which involve other elements of the UK Armed Forces.
Commodore John Kingwell, Commander UK Task Group (COMUKTG), embarked aboard flagship HMS Albion, has said (regarding the arrival of other ships in the task force):
History
In May 2011, the ships and their embarked Royal Marines were deployed on their first deployment named 'COUGAR 11' to develop and demonstrate contingent capability for UK defence - in effect, the ability to respond to short-notice tasking across a diverse range of defence activities such as disaster relief, humanitarian aid or amphibious operations. The lead elements of COUGAR 11 were HMS Albion, RFA Cardigan Bay and HMS Sutherland. Follow-on ships were HMS Ocean, RFA Wave Knight,RFA Mounts Bay and RFA Fort Rosalie. The deployment of the task force under 'COUGAR 11' saw them transit through the Mediterranean where they will take part in multinational amphibious exercises before moving further east through the Suez Canal for further exercises in the Indian Ocean.
The RFTG has been involved in Exercise Cypriot Lion as part of their 'COUGAR 11' deployment. During this exercise, Elements of HQ 3 Commando Brigade
3 Commando Brigade
3 Commando Brigade is a commando formation of the British Armed Forces and the main manoeuvre formation of the Royal Marines. Its personnel are predominantly Royal Marines, supported by units of Royal Engineers, Royal Artillery, The Rifles, and the Fleet Air Arm, together with other Commando...
and a detachment from 17 Port and Maritime Regiment, Royal Logistic Corps
Royal Logistic Corps
The Royal Logistic Corps provides logistic support functions to the British Army. It is the largest Corps in the Army, comprising around 17% of its strength...
were also attached to the COUGAR 11 deployment. British Army Apache attack helicopters fired Hellfire missiles for the first time whilst flying from a Royal Navy warship. On Monday 9th of May on the way to Cyprus, 7 Senior Non-Commissioned Officers and the Officer Commanding the Support Troop from 6 Assault Squadron Royal Marines on HMS Albion held a service of remembrance at the Souda Bay
Souda Bay
Souda Bay is a bay and natural harbour on the northwest coast of the Greek island of Crete. The bay is about 15 km long and only two to four km wide, and a deep natural harbour. It is formed between the Akrotiri peninsula and Cape Drapano, and runs west to east...
Commonwealth Grave site in Crete to pay tribute to their fallen colleagues to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the bitter battle for the island. The Viking armoured vehicle
BvS 10
The BvS 10 is an All Terrain Armoured Vehicle produced by BAE Systems Land Systems Hagglunds of Sweden. This vehicle, referred to as the All Terrain Vehicle - ATV or VIKING by the UK forces, was originally developed as a collaboration between industry - Hägglunds Vehicle AB - and the UK Ministry...
s attached to the group also practiced amphibious landings.
It was reported that a French D'Estienne d'Orves class
D'Estienne d'Orves class
The A69 type Avisos are small warships mainly designed for coastal anti-submarine defence, but are also available for high sea escort missions . Built on a simple and robust design, they have an economical and reliable propulsion system which allows them to be used for overseas presence missions...
warship, FS Commandant Birot, had joined the COUGAR 11 deployment alongside the RFTG.
On May 26, 2011, the COUGAR 11 deployment began a joint UK-Albania
Albania
Albania , officially known as the Republic of Albania , is a country in Southeastern Europe, in the Balkans region. It is bordered by Montenegro to the northwest, Kosovo to the northeast, the Republic of Macedonia to the east and Greece to the south and southeast. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea...
n military exercise, code-named 'Albanian Lion'. This is the first major joint operation between the UK and Albanian armed forces since Albania joined NATO in 2009.
On the June 3, 2011, five vessels of the Response Force Task Group temporarily withdrew from COUGAR 11 and were deployed (an RFTG ship, HMS Ocean, and her embarked Apache attack helicopters had been deployed days earlier) to supplement UK forces in Operation Ellamy
Operation Ellamy
Operation Ellamy was the codename for the United Kingdom participation in the 2011 military intervention in Libya. The operation was part of an international coalition aimed at enforcing a Libyan no-fly zone in accordance with the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1973 which stipulated...
/Operation Unified Protector
Operation Unified Protector
Operation Unified Protector was an NATO operation enforcing United Nations Security Council resolutions 1970 and 1973 concerning the 2011 Libyan civil war and adopted on 17 February and 17 March respectively...
.
By late June 2011, the COUGAR 11 task group had passed through the Suez Canal
Suez Canal
The Suez Canal , also known by the nickname "The Highway to India", is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea. Opened in November 1869 after 10 years of construction work, it allows water transportation between Europe and Asia without navigation...
and begun Operation Red Alligator, a major maritime security and anti-piracy exercise in the Red Sea
Red Sea
The Red Sea is a seawater inlet of the Indian Ocean, lying between Africa and Asia. The connection to the ocean is in the south through the Bab el Mandeb strait and the Gulf of Aden. In the north, there is the Sinai Peninsula, the Gulf of Aqaba, and the Gulf of Suez...
with the Armed Forces of Saudi Arabia.
Composition
The United Kingdom had assigned relatively significant assets to the Response Force Task Group. Below is a list of all assets originally assigned to the RFTG.- Surface (Royal Navy)
- HMS AlbionHMS Albion (L14)HMS Albion is a Landing Platform Dock of the Royal Navy, the first of the two-ship Albion class. Built by BAE Systems Marine in Barrow-in-Furness, Albion was launched in March 2001 by the Princess Royal...
(fleet flagship), an - HMS LiverpoolHMS Liverpool (D92)HMS Liverpool is a Type 42 destroyer of the Royal Navy. She was built by Cammell Laird in Birkenhead and launched on 25 September 1980 by Lady Strathcona, wife of Euan Howard, the then Minister of State for Defence. Liverpool is the last Batch 2 Type 42 in service.-Operational history:Liverpool was...
, a Type 42 destroyerType 42 destroyerThe Type 42 or Sheffield class, are guided missile destroyers used by the British Royal Navy and the Argentine Navy. The first ship of the class was ordered in 1968 and launched in 1971, and today three ships remain active in the Royal Navy and one in the Argentinian Navy... - HMS SutherlandHMS Sutherland (F81)HMS Sutherland is a Type 23 frigate of the British Royal Navy. She is the thirteenth ship in the Duke class of frigates and is the third ship to bear the name, more than 200 years since the name was last used....
, a Type 23 frigateType 23 frigateThe Type 23 frigate is a class of frigate built for the Royal Navy of the United Kingdom. All the ships were first named after British Dukes, thus the class is also known as the Duke class. The first Type 23 was commissioned in 1989, and the sixteenth, was launched in May 2000 and commissioned in... - HMS OceanHMS Ocean (L12)HMS Ocean of the Royal Navy is an amphibious assault ship , the sole member of her class. She is designed to support amphibious landing operations and to support the staff of Commander UK Amphibious Force and Commander UK Landing Force...
, an Ocean-class landing platform helicopter
- HMS Albion
- Surface (Royal Fleet Auxiliary)
- RFA Mounts BayRFA Mounts Bay (L3008)RFA Mounts Bay is a Bay class auxiliary landing ship dock of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary. She is named after Mount's Bay in Cornwall.-Design and construction:...
- RFA ArgusRFA Argus (A135)RFA Argus is a ship of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary, part of the Royal Navy. Italian-built, Argus was formerly the container ship MV Contender Bezant. The ship was requisitioned in 1982 for service in the Falklands War and purchased outright in 1984 for use as an Aviation Training Ship, replacing RFA...
- RFA Cardigan BayRFA Cardigan Bay (L3009)RFA Cardigan Bay is a Bay-class landing ship dock of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary . Built by BAE Systems, the ship was dedicated into the RFA at the end of 2006. Cardigan Bay is active as of 2011.-Design and construction:...
- RFA Fort RosalieRFA Fort Rosalie (A385)RFA Fort Rosalie is a fleet stores ship of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary. Fort Rosalie was originally named RFA Fort Grange, but was renamed in May 2000 to avoid confusion with RFA Fort George, a change which was not universally popular.-History:Fort Rosalie was laid down in 1973, by Scott Lithgow on...
- RFA Fort VictoriaRFA Fort Victoria (A387)RFA Fort Victoria is a Fort Class combined fleet stores ship and tanker of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary of the United Kingdom tasked with providing ammunition, fuel, food and other supplies to Royal Navy vessels around the world....
- RFA Wave KnightRFA Wave Knight (A389)RFA Wave Knight is a Wave-class fast fleet tanker of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary of the United Kingdom tasked with providing fuel, food, ammunition and other supplies to Royal Navy vessels around the world....
- RFA Mounts Bay
- Subsurface
- , a
- Air
- 4 x Sea King Mk4 helicopters from 845 NAS, Joint Helicopter CommandJoint Helicopter CommandJoint Helicopter Command is a tri-service organisation uniting military helicopters of the British Armed Forces for command and coordination purposes...
- 3 x Lynx AH7 helicopters from 847 NAS, Joint Helicopter Command
- 3 x Apache AH 1 helicopters from 656 Sqn AACNo. 656 Squadron AAC656 Squadron is a unit of the British Army Air Corps. It was chosen as one of the AAC new Apache Squadrons and in April 2004 started its conversion to role. The first phase of this completed in October 2004...
, Joint Helicopter Command - 2 x Lynx Mk8 helicopters from 815 NAS815 Naval Air Squadron815 Naval Air Squadron is a squadron of the Fleet Air Arm, part of the Royal Navy. The squadron is currently based at RNAS Yeovilton in Somerset, United Kingdom and it is the Navy's front line Lynx Naval Air Squadron. It currently comprises more than 30 Lynx helicopters of various types...
- 2 x Sea King Mk7 ASaC helicopters from 857 NAS857 Naval Air Squadron857 Naval Air Squadron is a squadron of the Royal Navy Fleet Air Arm. It was first formed on 1 April 1944 at Squantum NAS in the USA as a Torpedo Reconnaissance unit with Avenger IIs. It reformed in its present state on 13 December 2006, when 849 NAS B Flight recommissioned as 857 Naval Air Squadron...
- 4 x Sea King Mk4 helicopters from 845 NAS, Joint Helicopter Command
- Land
- 'A' Company and Signal Troop, 40 Commando40 Commando40 Commando RM is a battalion sized formation of the British Royal Marines and subordinate unit within 3 Commando Brigade, the principal Commando formation, under the Operational Command of Commander in Chief Fleet....
Royal MarinesRoyal MarinesThe Corps of Her Majesty's Royal Marines, commonly just referred to as the Royal Marines , are the marine corps and amphibious infantry of the United Kingdom and, along with the Royal Navy and Royal Fleet Auxiliary, form the Naval Service... - 539 Assault Squadron539 Assault Squadron RM539 Assault Squadron RM is 3 Commando Brigade's integral amphibious movement capability, delivering them on to land from water and patrolling waterways. It also contains the Royal Marines Armoured Support Group operating the Viking BvS10 All Terrain Amphibious Armoured Vehicle...
, Royal Marines - 6 Assault Squadron in AlbionHMS Albion (L14)HMS Albion is a Landing Platform Dock of the Royal Navy, the first of the two-ship Albion class. Built by BAE Systems Marine in Barrow-in-Furness, Albion was launched in March 2001 by the Princess Royal...
- Armoured Support GroupRoyal Marines Armoured Support GroupThe current Royal Marines Armoured Support Group is an element of the Royal Marines which operates the Viking BvS 10, All Terrain Vehicle. It is the successor to the Royal Marines Armoured Support Company, and is in effect on permanent loan from operational command of 3 Commando Brigade to the...
, Royal Marines
- 'A' Company and Signal Troop, 40 Commando