103 NLD ISTAR Battalion was the intelligence gathering

reconnaissance In military operations, reconnaissance or scouting is the exploration of an area by military forces to obtain information about enemy forces, terrain, and other activities. Examples of reconnaissance include patrolling by troops (skirmisher ...

battalion of the Royal Netherlands Army, tasked with Intelligence Surveillance Target Acquisition and Reconnaissance ( ISTAR). The battalion was the main part of the Regiment Huzaren van Boreel (Boreel's Hussars). The other parts of the regiment are the independent recce squadrons which are part of the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

' Army's Mechanised

Brigade A brigade is a major tactical military formation that typically comprises three to six battalions plus supporting elements. It is roughly equivalent to an enlarged or reinforced regiment. Two or more brigades may constitute a division. Br ...

s. 101 RPV bt and 101 Art Spt Bt belongs to the Field Artillery Regiment and 102 EW Coy to Signals Regiment. In 2011, 103 (NLD) ISTAR Bn was amalgamated with Air Force, Navy and Military Police intelligence assets into (NLD)

Joint ISTAR Command The Joint ISTAR Command (JISTARC, ''Joint Intelligence, Surveillance, Target Acquisition & Reconnaissance Commando'') is a joint military intelligence command of the Operational Support Command Land of the Royal Netherlands Army. The command is spe ...

(JISTARC). The JISTARC is a joint unit under direction of COM (NLD) Land Forces.

History

The battalion's tasking was centred on collecting and analysing operational information, then use it to compile intelligence and advice for operational commanders. Other taskings are diverse and include

Forward Air Control Forward air control is the provision of guidance to close air support (CAS) aircraft intended to ensure that their attack hits the intended target and does not injure friendly troops. This task is carried out by a forward air controller (FAC). ...

;

FOO The terms foobar (), foo, bar, baz, and others are used as metasyntactic variables and placeholder names in computer programming or computer-related documentation. - Etymology of "Foo" They have been used to name entities such as variables, f ...

; Route reconnaissance; security operations; electronic and SIGINT. 103 ISTAR-battalion had a complement of little over 800 personnel and is stationed at Legerplaats bij Oldebroek and the Lieutenant Kolonel Tonnet Kazerne in

't Harde t Harde is a village in the Dutch province of Gelderland. It is situated about 6 km southeast of Elburg, on the edge of the Veluwe forest. It has a train station with connections to Zwolle and Amersfoort. The village's population is approx ...

in the

Veluwe The Veluwe () is a forest-rich ridge of hills (1100 km2) in the province of Gelderland in the Netherlands. The Veluwe features many different landscapes, including woodland, heath, some small lakes and Europe's largest sand drifts. The Ve ...

area of the Netherlands. The minister of defence decided to found the ISTAR battalion at June 25, 2001. After preparations the Chief of the General Staff of the

Royal Netherlands Army The Royal Netherlands Army ( nl, Koninklijke Landmacht) is the land branch of the Netherlands Armed Forces. Though the Royal Netherlands Army was raised on 9 January 1814, its origins date back to 1572, when the was raised – making the Dutc ...

formally raised the unit at June 25, 2003. He then also decided to formally place the unit under the administration of Boreel's Hussars. The battalion continues the traditions of the old 103 Recce Battalion, which was also part of the same regiment. After

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

Dutch

Cavalry Historically, cavalry (from the French word ''cavalerie'', itself derived from "cheval" meaning "horse") are soldiers or warriors who fight mounted on horseback. Cavalry were the most mobile of the combat arms, operating as light cavalry ...

units became known as

battalion A battalion is a military unit, typically consisting of 300 to 1,200 soldiers commanded by a lieutenant colonel, and subdivided into a number of companies (usually each commanded by a major or a captain). In some countries, battalions are ...

s, though they still retained a

Regimental A regiment is a military unit. Its role and size varies markedly, depending on the country, service and/or a specialisation. In Medieval Europe, the term "regiment" denoted any large body of front-line soldiers, recruited or conscripted ...

identity. Boreel's Hussars even became a multi-battalion regiment (almost in an infantry style) housing all the Army's armoured reconnaissance and light cavalry units. It continues to do so today.

Subunits

103 ISTAR Bn contained the following sub-units: * Battalion staff * 101 Military Intelligence and HQ and Staff squadron * 101 RPV Bt (Unmanned Aerial Systems) * 101 Artillery Support Battery (a Target Acquisition Radar unit) * 102 EW Company (a

Signals In signal processing, a signal is a function that conveys information about a phenomenon. Any quantity that can vary over space or time can be used as a signal to share messages between observers. The ''IEEE Transactions on Signal Processing'' ...

sub unit) * 103 LIRS (Long Range Intelligence, Surveillance, Reconnaissance) * 104 LIRS The battalion was part of the

Operational Support Command Land The Operational Support Command Land (Dutch: ''Operationeel Ondersteuningscommando Land, OOCL'') is a support command of the Royal Netherlands Army. The command consists of multiple combat support and combat service support units that provide the ...

(Operationeel Ondersteunings Commando Land, OOCL), a formation also containing several specialist engineer units, medical units and such which support the manoeuvre brigades of the army.

References

Site Koninklijke Landmacht
Army units and formations of the Netherlands Targeting (warfare) Military units and formations established in 2003 Military units and formations disestablished in 2011