Et troverdig alliert mottak – erfaringer fra Trident Juncture 2018

The ability to provide host nation support (HNS) to allied forces in Norway is an important task for the Norwegian Armed Forces. This requires a scalable logistics system with the ability to provide support in a wide range of operations. Previous studies have identified gaps in the military logistics system. The current Norwegian military logistics system has been developed in order to meet the requirements regarding reaction time, endurance, resilience and cost efficiency. The Norwegian Armed Forces has increased its use of private companies as part of its new logistics system in order to achieve these requirements. The logistics system was tested for the first time in a largescale operation during the Nato exercise Trident Juncture 2018 (TRJE18). The exercise was a unique opportunity to assess the system during an HNS-operation of large scale. The current report evaluates the HNS provided by Norway during TRJE18. Due to long preparation time, the experiences and evaluations of the logistics system during TRJE18, can only to a limited degree conclude on the logistics system’s capability in a war-like situation in Norway. Therefore, we evaluate the logistics system with regard to eight properties considering access to resources, operational processes and cost efficiency. Based on this evaluation, we discuss how the logistics systems fulfil the operational logistics requirements of the Armed Forces. Experiences from TRJE18 shows that the Norwegian Armed Forces are able to successfully carry out large-scale HNS-operations. The overall principle of central management and military leadership enables a good understanding of the required support and available resources. Regional execution of HNS ensured that the correct support was delivered in the right time to the right place. The regional logistics groups also handled uncertainties in demand and additional requests successfully. Furthermore the capasities delivered by strategic partners was crucial for the successful HNS that was provided during TRJE18. The Norwegian Armed Forces have increased their access to considerable logistics capacities through partnerships with private companies. The increased capacity of civil goods and services allows the Armed Forces to prioritize military logistics resources in areas and operations deemed unsafe for civil contractors. The increased use of private partnerships contributes to a more cost effective logistics system. By renting logistics services from the contractors and strategic partners only when the needed, a relatively low fixed cost is ensured. TRJE18 also identified areas of improvement for the logistics system. Increased interoperability between digital systems, clarification of responsibilities and increased competence in certain fields, are factors that can increase the utilization of resources, reduce reaction time and increase endurance of the logistics system.