Return of Forces to Germany
Exercise reforger shortly REFORGER (literally "return of armed forces to Germany") was a series of large maneuvers of NATO , which were held in one or more times. The maneuvers took place from 1969 until shortly after the end of the Cold War in 1993.
Goal and scope
The objectives of the exercises were, within the framework of NATO's Flexible Response (MC 14/3) strategy, to review and improve the planned processes, to train the troops involved and to demonstrate their power against the potential enemy, the Warsaw Pact . Since neither the USA nor the Federal Republic of Germany wanted to permanently station the conventional US armed forces required for a war in Europe in Germany, these exercises became necessary. The material (combat and transport vehicles, weapons, supplies, etc.) of several major units of the US Army was incorporated into Germany. By quickly bringing in the personnel from overseas, who then only had to take over and activate the material, a rapid reinforcement of the conventional armed forces in Europe should be made possible as cheaply as possible. The exercises were part of the Rapid Reinforcement Concept (RRC) of NATO.
In addition to the US troops that had been brought in, the German WHNS offices in particular exercised . In addition, units of the 7th US Army , the German Armed Forces , the British Rhine Army , the French armed forces in Germany and the Canadian armed forces were usually involved in the exercise on a large scale in West Germany , which is the actual REFORGER part as a free-running exercise connected.
The operational readiness of the army , air force , navy and special units was practiced realistically under the assumption of war . Army units and air force units from the USA were also shipped to Europe and flown. Naval forces from all NATO countries secured the Atlantic against assumed attacks by the Soviet Northern Fleet . The units of the NATO member states were largely placed in combat readiness and some also took up combat positions at military training areas . Maneuver-related accidents with injuries or even deaths occurred again and again. B. on the occasion of the Reforger maneuver in 1977 to 12 dead and 94 injured, including civilians. The Offices for Defense Burdens were responsible for regulating the damage caused by the large-scale maneuvers .
The maneuvers were not an exercise organized directly by NATO, but a national US exercise with Host Nation Support (HNS) services and the participation of other states on the basis of bilateral agreements. Regulations that were stipulated in three bilateral agreements with the USA applied to billing:
- The costs for transport and accommodation as well as all costs associated with the stay in Germany were borne by the USA.
- All costs for establishing telecommunication connections using the Bundeswehr telecommunications network and for military traffic management measures were borne by the Bundeswehr. The US reimbursed any additional costs (e.g. overtime pay, telecommunications fees, and material operating costs).
- The costs for the German troops participating in the exercise were borne by the Federal Republic of Germany. If NATO-financed facilities were used, the costs were distributed to the nations according to cost allocation keys.
In addition to units of the Bundeswehr, units of the Federal Border Police were also involved in the maneuvers.
The maneuvers in the 1990s attempted to drastically reduce the "fighting portion" by means of a new exercise concept (staff frame exercises, computer simulations) and by largely avoiding troop movements in the area, environmental damage and pollution of the population in the exercise room. The opposite of the REFORGER exercise were the Warsaw Pact's autumn maneuvers .
Reforger maneuvers
The first REFORGER exercise took place in January 1969 with 17,000 soldiers, the last in May 1993 with 7,000. The largest exercise took place in 1988 with 124,800 soldiers.
| Surname | Beginning | The End | Important participating units | Total troop strength | Practice room |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reforger I FTX - Carbide Ice | 29th January 1969 | 4th February 1969 | US 24th Infantry Division , US 2nd Armored Cavalry Regiment | 17,000 | Northern Bavaria, Grafenwoehr, Amberg , Hohenfels |
| Reforger II FTX - Certain Thrust | October 13, 1970 | October 23, 1970 | VII. US Corps , 3rd US Infantry Division , 1st US Infantry Division , 4th Canadian mech. Brigade, Panzergrenadierbrigade 35 (DE) | 33,500 | Bamberg, Ebern, Schweinfurt, Würzburg, Kitzingen, Bayreuth , Haßfurt , Grafenwöhr, Pegnitz , Neumarkt |
| Reforger III FTX - Certain Forge | October 11, 1971 | 15th October 1971 | VII. US Corps, 4th Canadian Mech. Brigade, 1st US Infantry Division , 1st US Armored Division , Panzergrenadierbrigade 35 (DE) , Panzerbrigade 36 (DE) | 33,000 | Ingolstadt, Amberg, Freising , Beilngries , Landshut, Schwandorf, Munich, Nuremberg, Bayreuth |
| Reforger IV FTX - Certain Shield | January 9, 1973 | 22nd January 1973 | VII US Corps, 1st US Infantry Division, 1st US Armored Division, 2nd US Armored Division , | 46,000 | Bad Mergentheim, Walldürn , Crailsheim, Würzburg, Kitzingen, Rothenburg od Tauber , Neustadt / Aisch |
| Reforger V FTX - Certain Charge | October 9, 1973 | 16th October 1973 | VII US Corps, 1st US Infantry Division, 1st US Armored Division, 3rd US Infantry Division, Panzer Brigade 29 (DE) | 51,000 | Nuremberg, Ansbach, Schwäbisch Hall, Schwäbisch Gmünd , Dinkelsbühl, Ingolstadt , Crailsheim |
| Reforger 74 FTX - Certain Pledge | October 10, 1974 | October 23, 1974 | VII. US Corps, 1st US Infantry Division, 2nd Armored US Cavalry Regiment, 1st US Armored Division, 4th Canadian Mech. brigade | 44,000 | Stuttgart, Ulm, Donauwörth, Eichstätt , Weißenburg in Bavaria , Crailsheim, Heidenheim an der Brenz, Göppingen, Schwäbisch Hall, Dinkelsbühl |
| Reforger 75 FTX - Certain Trek | October 14, 1975 | October 23, 1975 | VII US Corps, 1st US Infantry Division, 2nd Armored US Cavalry Regiment, 3rd Armored US Cavalry Regiment, 3rd US Infantry Division, | 57,000 | Ansbach, Fürth , Erlangen , Bamberg, Fulda, Hanau , Darmstadt , Heidelberg |
| Reforger 76 FTX - Gordian Shield | 7th September 1976 | September 11, 1976 | 5th US Corps , 11th US Armored Cavalry Regiment, 13th Panzer Grenadier Brigade (DE) , 8th US Infantry Division, 101st US Airborne Division | 40,000 | Alsfeld , Feldatal , Lauterbach , Marburg , Zeilbach |
| Reforger 76 FTX - Lares Team | September 11, 1976 | 17th September 1976 | 1st US Armored Division, 2nd Armored US Cavalry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division, 1st US Infantry Division, Panzer Brigade 29 (DE), 4th Canadian mech. Biragde | 43,000 | Nuremberg, Amberg, Regensburg, Ingolstadt, Donauwörth, Ansbach |
| Reforger 77 FTX - Carbon Edge | September 13, 1977 | September 21, 1977 | VII US Corps , 1st US Infantry Division, 4th US Infantry Division , 2nd Armored US Cavalry Regiment, 3rd Armored US Cavalry Regiment, 3rd US Infantry Division, | 51,800 | Stuttgart , Tübingen , Ulm , Augsburg, Munich , Füssen , Sonthofen , Friedrichshafen , Tuttlingen |
| Reforger 78 FTX - Certain Shield | September 18, 1978 | September 28, 1978 | 5th US Corps, 8th US Infantry Division , 4th US Infantry Division, 11th US Armored Cavalry Regiment, 5th US Infantry Division , 9th US Infantry Division , 3rd US Armored Division , | 55,780 | Frankfurt , Wetzlar, Bad Hersfeld, Fulda, Wildflecken , Karlstadt , Aschaffenburg , Hanau, Schweinfurt, Darmstadt, Limburg , Marburg |
| Reforger 79 FTX - Certain Sentinel | January 27, 1979 | 7th February 1979 | VII US Corps , 1st US Infantry Division , 2nd Armored US Cavalry Regiment, 1st US Armored Division | 61,000 | Bamberg , Hammelburg , Würzburg , Ansbach |
| Reforger 80 FTX - Certain Rampart | September 15, 1980 | September 24, 1980 | VII US Corps, 1st US Armored Division, 2nd Armored US Cavalry Regiment, 3rd US Infantry Division | 38,000 | Nuremberg , Ingolstadt , Scheyern , Augsburg , Regensburg , Gunzenhausen , Ansbach |
| Reforger 81 FTX - Certain Encounter | September 8, 1981 | September 23, 1981 | III. US Corps , V. US Corps , 8th Infantry Division , 4th Infantry Division , the 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment US , 3rd Armored Division | 70,000 | Fulda , Giessen , Bad Hersfeld , Marburg , Schwalm-Eder district , Wetterau district |
| Reforger 82 FTX - Carbine Fortress | September 13, 1982 | 23rd September 1982 | III. US Corps , V US Corps, VII US Corps, 3rd US Infantry Division, 1st US Infantry Division, 1st US Armored Division, 8th US Infantry Division | 72,500 | Bamberg, Rothenburg od Tauber , Heidenheim an der Brenz , Wertheim , Schweinfurt , Ebern , Ochsenfurt , Steigerwald |
| Reforger 83 FTX - Confident Enterprise | September 19, 1983 | September 30, 1983 | 5th US Corps, 3rd US Armored Division, 11th US Armored Cavalry Regiment, 8th US Infantry Division, 3rd US Armored Cavalry Regiment | 61,000 | Bad Hersfeld, Vogelsbergkreis , Giessen, Main-Kinzig-Kreis |
| Reforger 84 FTX - Certain Fury | September 12, 1984 | September 28, 1984 | VII. US Corps, 5th US Infantry Division , 1st US Infantry Division, 3rd US Infantry Division, 2nd US Armored Cavalry Regiment | 50,000 | Donauwörth , Nördlingen , Schwäbisch Hall , Göppingen , Ansbach |
| Reforger 85 FTX - Central Guardian | January 21, 1985 | January 31, 1985 | V. US Corps, 8th Infantry Division, the 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment US, the 197th Infantry Brigade , 3rd Armored Division , 4th Infantry Division | 72,000 | Kassel , Frankenberg , Homberg , Neukirchen , Vogelsbergkreis, Bad Hersfeld, Battenberg , Giessen, Wetzlar , Butzbach |
| Reforger 86 FTX - Certain Sentinel 86 | January 20, 1986 | January 31, 1986 (weather-related cancellation on January 24) | VII. US Corps, 1st US Armored Division, 4th Canadian mech. Brigade, 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment, 12th Armored Division (DE) , 1st US Infantry Division | 73,000 | Schweinfurt, Kulmbach , Hof , Weiden , Schwandorf , Ansbach, Kitzingen , Grafenwoehr , Bamberg |
| Reforger 87 FTX / CPX - Certain Strike | September 14, 1987 | September 24, 1987 | III. US Corps, 1st US Cavalry Brigade, 2nd US Armored Division , 1st Armored Division (DE) , Panzer Grenadier Brigade 1 (DE) , Armored Brigade 3 (DE) , 4th Division (NL), 43rd Panzer Grenadier Brigade , 4th Division UK tank brigade | 78,300 | Hanover , Wolfsburg , Uelzen , Rotenburg (Wümme) , Soltau , Verden , Nienburg |
| Reforger 88 FTX - Certain Challenge | September 6, 1988 | September 26, 1988 | 5th US Corps, VII US Corps, 3rd US Armored Division, 8th US Infantry Division, 10th Armored Division (DE) , 197th US Infantry Brigade, 11th US Cavalry Regiment, 3rd US Cavalry Regiment , Berlin Brigade , 3rd US Infantry Division, 1st US Infantry Division, 2nd Armored US Cavalry Regiment, 12th Panzer Division (DE) , 4th Canadian mech. brigade | 124,800 | Bad Kissingen , Bamberg, Nuremberg, Dinkelsbühl , Heidenheim an der Brenz, Crailsheim , Heilbronn , Schwäbisch Hall, Bad Mergentheim , Wertheim , Gemünden am Main |
| 1989 no Reforger, rejection for reasons of environmental protection, the widespread rejection of low-level flights and the beginning reorientation of NATO (dismantling of the east-west confrontation, a threat will increasingly arise in the future from the south and south-east in the form of Islamic fundamentalism) | |||||
| Reforger 90 CFX / FTX / CPX - Centurion Shield 90 | January 15, 1990 | January 26, 1990 | CENTAG , US Corps V, US VII Corps, 3rd US Armored Division, 8th US Infantry Division, 11th US Armored Cavalry Regiment, 2nd US Armored Division, 1st Mountain Division (DE) , 194th US Infantry Brigade, US 10th Mountain Division , US 1st Armored Division, US 1st Infantry Division, US 2nd Armored Cavalry Regiment, Panzerbrigade 36 (DE) , Panzergrenadierbrigade 13 (DE) | 57,300 | Schwetzingen , Heilbronn, Ansbach, Donau-Ries , Regensburg, Landshut , Dachau |
| Reforger 91 CFX / FTX / CPX - Certain Shield 91 | September 10, 1991 | 20th September 1991 | NORTHAG , III. US Corps, V US Corps, 4th US Infantry Division, headquarters of US , Belgian , Dutch and British units | 28,400 | Paderborn , Bielefeld , Kassel, Göttingen |
| Reforger 92 CFX / CPX - Certain Caravan | 17th September 1992 | November 15, 1992 | CENTAG , 5th US Corps, 1st Infantry Division, III. Corps (DE) | 20,000 | Hessen , CMTC Hohenfels |
| Reforger 93 CFX / CPX - Chariot Fury | May 1993 | May 1993 | CENTAG, 5th US Corps, 1st US Armored Division, 3rd US Infantry Division, 5th Armored Division (DE) , 20th UK Armored Brigade, 12th mech. Brigade (NL) | 7,000 | Kaiserslautern |
Abbreviations: FTX = Field Training Exercise (field exercise), CPX = Command Post / Paper Exercise (staff frame exercise), CFX = Command Field Exercise (staff field exercise)
Others
Under the name DEFENDER-Europe 20 , a similarly extensive US maneuver with the participation of other NATO members was to take place under different political framework conditions in the period from January to May 2020. The approximately 37,000 participating soldiers from 18 countries, including around 20,000 from the USA, were supposed to practice relocating troops to Eastern Europe as quickly as possible and subject the infrastructure in the host NATO countries to a stress test. The exercise was effectively suspended in early March due to the COVID-19 pandemic .
photos
A German C-160 Transall and soldiers during the REFORGER exercise 1980
A US M60A1 tank during the REFORGER exercise in 1982
A German Leopard 1 tank during the REFORGER exercise 1983
F-104 and F-15 fighters over Neuschwanstein Castle , REFORGER 1982
M113 , M901TOW and M981 FIST-V, Reforger 1982
M113, M551 and other vehicles translating across a river, REFORGER exercise 1982.
An M60A3 main battle tank crosses a river on a Medium Girder Bridge (MGB), REFORGER exercise 1983.
An M901 in the "Laubacher Forest", REFORGER exercise 1983.
German tank destroyer gun in Wildflecken , Reforger 1984
American MLRS system on a country road, Reforger 1984
An M60A3 during the REFORGER 1985 maneuver in Langgöns in Hesse
Three M2 Bradley armored personnel carriers during the 1985 REFORGER maneuver
Camouflaged heavy artillery during exercise REFORGER 1986
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Web links
- REFORGER '87 gallery , Panzerbaer, accessed February 10, 2009
- REFORGER , GlobalSecurity, accessed February 10, 2009
Individual evidence
- ↑ Helmut Groß: Reforger 77: Security last . In: The time . September 30, 1977, ISSN 0044-2070 ( zeit.de [accessed February 10, 2020]).
- ^ Reply of the Federal Government. NATO exercise REFORGER 92. In: Drucksache 12/3726. German Bundestag, November 12, 1992, accessed on February 10, 2020 .
- ^ Information from the German delegation to the North Atlantic Assembly about the plenary session of the North Atlantic Assembly on October 9, 1989 in Rome. In: Drucksache 11/5950. German Bundestag, accessed on February 10, 2020 .
- ↑ a b "Defender Europe 20": Thousands of US soldiers land in Germany. In: welt.de . February 21, 2020, accessed February 22, 2020 .
- ↑ Thomas Wiegold : Coronavirus: 'Defender Europe 20' actually suspended (updates). In: augengeradeaus.net. March 13, 2020, accessed March 14, 2020 .