ATP 3.2.1.3: CONDUCT OF LAND OPERATIONS IN MOUNTAINOUS TERRAIN – VTC WRITING SESSION
The NATO Mountain Warfare Centre of Excellence (MW COE) is the custodian of the Allied Tactical Publication STUDY 2643 – ATP 3.2.1.3: Conduct of Land Operations in Mountainous Terrain. As part of the ATP development process, after a successful fact-finding session in November 2019 and the 1st Writing Session in November 2020, the MW COE organized the 2nd Writing Session from 20 to 22 April 2021. The writing session was conducted as an integrated Syndicate Session in the Specific Environment Panel (SEP) Spring Meeting (19-23 April 2021).
Due to the situation in connection with the Covid-19 pandemic, the MW COE once again organized the writing session as a VTC event. The response and the willingness for cooperation in the community of interest were beyond expectations; Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) from 12 nations (Canada, Croatia, France, Germany, Italy, Norway, Poland, Romania, Spain, Slovenia and Bulgaria, with Austria as a Contributing Partner Nation) and representatives with Centre of Excellence (COE) expertise from 4 COEs (Military Engineering – MILENG; Military Medicine – MILMED; Cold Weather Operations – CWO; Mountain Warfare – MW) participated in the writing session and made very valuable contributions.
The structure of the ATP 3.2.1.3 had already been agreed in the fact-finding session held in NOV 2019, so the purpose of the 2nd Writing Session was to develop the substance of tactical activities in MW. Chapters 1 to 3 are now finalized at SME level, and Chapter 4 will be updated with the comments of the participants, thus going ahead with the first study draft. This must be finished by September 2021, and will be presented and reviewed at the autumn meeting of the Specific Environment Panel (SEP), which is planned for September 2021 in the USA. Thanks to the outstanding performance of the SMEs, another step forward in building the ATP has been made. We therefore consider this event a successful one.
