The Armed Forces of Malta are preparing to set up a training centre for Maltese and foreign military and civilian personnel specialising in the coordination of search and rescue missions, Brigadier Carmel Vassallo, the army's newly appointed commander, said.
The centre is being established at Safi Barracks with the support of the US government. It targets military and civilian men from Malta and from other Mediterranean countries, in particular Malta's North African neighbours.
Brig. Vassallo said coordination of search and rescue (SAR) operations was a very sensitive and sometimes complex issue that the AFM had to deal with, especially because Malta had such a vast and busy SAR region.
"Our involvement in coordinating operations is vital, even if a vessel in distress is so far off the coast that we would not have the vessels to carry out the rescue on our own."
Recently, the commander said, the army was involved in a rescue mission involving a ship that sunk off the south coast of Crete. "That is the furthest eastern border of our SAR region. We were informed that a ship was in distress. Our officials successfully coordinated the operation and, with the help of rescue units from other countries, they managed to save one of the crew.
"We have excellent relations with the Italians, so our response to each other's calls is almost automatic when it comes to coordinating SAR operations. A draft agreement with the Greeks has been on the cards for quite some time. As for our southern neighbours, we have established contacts with Libya and with Tunisia but a lot more could be done. It is important to exchange information with your neighbours not only in cases of emergency," he said.
Having been involved in search and rescue operations for a number of years, Brig. Vassallo recalled the time when he served as a helicopter pilot. "It is so rewarding when you are part of a rescue mission and you help save someone's life. You treasure those moments for life."
He said the idea of opening a local SAR learning centre had been cooking for a number of years.
"This is perhaps the first time that the AFM, with its limited financial and human resources, is carrying out such a project that could make a name for Malta in SAR coordination," Brig. Vassallo said.
Brig. Vassallo first came into contact with the AFM when he joined the Pioneers Corps, a military auxiliary body, in August 1973. In May 1976, he was commissioned in the regular force as lieutenant. He specialised in infantry.
Little did Brig. Vassallo know when he turned down an opportunity to work at Bank of Valletta and opted for a career in the AFM that he would one day be called to carry such a big responsibility.
He joined the armed forces at a time when the British were about to pack up and leave Malta and when the AFM stopped relying on British finances and fell under the Maltese government, becoming more resource-stricken than ever before.
In the early 1980s, when the Maltese forces started working closely with the Italian Military Mission in the SAR field, Brig. Vassallo and four other trainees went to the Italian Air Force Academy of Frosinone to become helicopter pilots.
The AFM always had to rely on military forces of other countries both when it comes to its resources - weapons, artillery and vessels - as well as for the training of its officers and soldiers.
"Due to a shortage of budgets and human resources, and because Maltese officer cadets are recruited in small numbers, it makes little sense to set up a local academy, so they are sent to academies overseas," he explained.
But is it a problem that some Maltese soldiers are trained in Italy, some in the US and Germany, and others in England?
"I wouldn't be telling the truth if I said that training soldiers in different schools is not a problem. People come from abroad with different ideas and experiences and that's a good thing in itself. But it's often difficult for the soldier to come back to Malta and accept that he forms part of the Maltese armed forces, that are different from the armed forces of other countries, with their uniqueness.
"But we make an effort so as not to have a cacophony in the AFM. We have to keep in mind that we are Maltese, with our particular needs. With a little bit of attention, overseas-trained officers and men settle down admirably. They know that they form part of a disciplined force and that they do not simply wear a uniform just to be different from civilians."
The AFM tries to give basic training in one country so that there is homogeneity.
"When it comes to specialised training, we choose countries that are known to be specialised in a particular field. We've sent soldiers to Sweden, Austria and Ireland for training on peacekeeping operations, for example. These are known to have contributed a great deal in this field. We also manage to send an officer cadet to Sandhurst, the British military academy, every year.
"We think that, together with other specialised training in the UK, this is very important to keep our traditional ties with the British army. Many other specialised courses are attended in Italy and the US."
Brig. Vassallo said the AFM relied a lot on the expertise of its personnel but he admitted that today it was a big challenge for the armed forces to keep its valuable human resources.
"We always run the risk of losing people we have trained. When someone understands that one can use one's expertise to work with a private company for example, possibly with better pay, one leaves. That would be a big loss for the AFM because it's always a big task to train new people. It's also tough to lose people who would have become experts in the armed forces," he said.
"The AFM does not only need people to join the infantry. The armed forces need soldiers who possess various skills - bomb disposal specialists, pilots, boat masters and technicians. While we never found problems recruiting pilots, for example, we've always had difficulty to recruit aircraft technicians."
While the current strength of the AFM stands at 1,680 men and women, the complement to be reached is about 2,200. Apart from the fact that it is rather difficult to recruit new people, the army faces a lot of funding problems.
"We believe that if we were allotted a slightly larger budget, we would manage to do much more. But you'd be surprised to know what we do with the little funds that we have," Brig. Vassallo said.
The AFM's shortage of funds has led to a lack of standardisation in the use of firearms. The AFM has had to use the FAL rifles and Bofors guns that the British had left behind, the anti-aircraft cannon donated by North Korea and the AK rifles that the Chinese government recently donated to Malta.
According to the commander, one of the biggest headaches is to classify soldiers on different rifles.
Three years ago, the AFM decided to buy a standard pistol - the Beretta - for all those who should classify with the pistol.
The AFM did a similar exercise with sub machine-guns, he said.
"With the recent donation from the Chinese government, we think that, by June, the problem of training with different rifles will be solved because all soldiers will have an AK rifle."
However, while the AK rifle is good for the AFM's local needs, it would not make sense for the Maltese soldier to carry it with him on an EU mission.
"That's true. We would have to take ammunition and spares ourselves if we took the AK rifle on EU missions. That would not make much sense. Since we depend so much on the support of the Italian government, we want to get the kind of rifle that is used by the Italian army, an inter-operable rifle conforming to Nato standards. This would cover us in terms of logistics."
It is not a positive sign that the AFM takes up entire pages of the Ombudsman's report, with the batch promotions - given at random intervals - creating most problems.
Brig. Vassallo said the number of cases that ended up at the Ombudsman's office was relatively small compared to the number of promotions issued.
"The Ombudsman is right to say that the system of bulk promotions should change. It is not right. But you have to prepare for that and you cannot simply change the practice overnight.
"I will start preparations immediately after a bulk promotion exercise takes place. Then we can set off a new system of vacancies and promotions that could be revised, say, every four to six months. Naturally, promotions also depend on the manpower available at the moment. You could have a vacancy but nobody qualified to fill that space. Or you could have someone who is sufficiently qualified but not responsible enough to be given that post," he said.
"You might ask me: How do you plan to achieve all this? I would be bluffing if I told you how I intended to achieve what. I want to do my best to help this dynamic and changing institution to improve and most of all to be of good service to the nation," Brig. Vassallo said.