Home  /  Newsroom  /  News  /  2023  /  NATO eFP Battlegroup Lithuania masters logistical procedures during exercise Sustaining Stallion

KAZLU RŪDA, Lithuania – On December 11-15, the 12th rotation of enhanced Forward Presence (eFP) Battlegroup Lithuania conducted their biggest logistical exercise. Codenamed Sustaining Stallion, it was run by the Battlegroup’s combat service support (CSS) company, and its aim was to test logistical procedures, involving loading, unloading and transportation of ammunition.

The exercise was held at the Kazlų Rūda military training area, 25 kilometres southwest of Kaunas. In the first place, Sustaining Stallion served to test whether the eFP Battlegroup had enough resources to transport a large load of ammunition. This included personnel and equipment, such as vehicles, forklifts etc. Secondly, the exercise was designed for the CSS company command to use and revise their procedures as it is crucially important to have proper policies in place at all times, concerning, e.g., accurate records of ammunition.

“The interesting thing about this exercise was its multinational aspect,” a Sustaining Stallion participant, 1st Lieutenant Felix K. said. “Multiple nations were involved in the command post and the Sustaining Stallion execution phase. Moreover, the weather conditions posed an additional challenge. There was a lot of snow, and not all roads were passable which raised the complexity of the task,” Felix explains.

Exercise Sustaining Stallion (Dec. 11-15, 2022) saw logisticians from NATO eFP Battlegroup Lithuania testing their capabilities and procedures, involving inspection, loading, unloading and transportation of ammunition and explosives / Photo by PAO eFP Battlegroup Lithuania

In the end, the exercise went smoothly, even though many types of ammunition were dealt with. Their storage and transportation required a great degree of organization as there were different safety measures depending on their type, and not all ammunition items could be transported together. When summarising the exercise, Major Lutz H., the Chief of CSS company, said: “Sustaining Stallion makes you realize how important it is to regularly train not only combat but also logistical troops and their procedures." 

In addition, it was good to see the interoperability of our multinational soldiers and equipment,

Major H. added. "For example, a Luxembourg forklift would load Belgian ammunition into a truck which increased our overall efficiency.”

The German-led eFP Battlegroup Lithuania is a battalion-size unit comprising approximately 1,700 troops from Belgium, Czechia, Germany, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Norway. The Battlegroup is part of a broader effort to reinforce NATO's deterrence and defence posture on its eastern border. 

During exercise Sustaining Stallion many types of ammunition were dealt with (e.g. loaded, unloaded, transported) which required a great degree of organization and expert skills / Photo by PAO eFP Battlegroup Lithuania