NBC Companies belonging to the Spanish Army are trained in 'Ave Fénix' exercise

NBC Companies of the Spanish Army have been trained, from the 7th to the 10th of May, in the exercise of Post Commands (CPX) called "Ave Fénix", at "Daoíz y Velarde" Staff of Paterna (Valencia).

Organized by the 1st NBC Defense Regiment, this exercise had as main aim to train the leaderships of the NBC Companies belonging to eight Spanish Army's Brigades in the Command, Control and Conduction of NBC Defense Operations, as well as in the advicing of their respective general staffs. The Support Squad to the Air Deployment of the Spanish Air Force and the NBC Unit of the "Tercio de Armada" Navy Infantry Brigade also participated in the exercise.

The NBC Defense Cell of the Regiment and its Control Centre took the role of NBC Defense Cell of a superior General Army Staff deployed in a zone of operations, while the NBC Defense Cells of the Land Force participated as part of the General Staff of each of the Brigades involved in the operation. It was trained the concept of leadership, demanding an elaboration of different advices for the General and the General Staff of the Brigade in the resolution of incidences, and it was used, by the Control Centre of the Cells, the "CBRN Analysis" computer programme, compulsory in the General Staffs and NATO units for the execution of calculations and messenger company of tne Alert Network and NCB Information.

The stage of the exercise was set in a conventional conflict between two fictitious countries, in which one of them owned nuclear weapons and it was ready to use them. The practice of the procedures towards nuclear detonations and the following fallout was a challenge for all the participants, because in these last years to be aware about the nuclear threat had decreased in NATO environments, paying more attention to the biological, chemical and radiological threats.