The Danish armed forces have created a new, highly mobile Arctic capability in the form of the Arctic Specialists. Formed from former members of the Sirius patrol, the unit relies on snowmobiles, fast motorboats and other mobile platforms and can be deployed by air or parachuted into the operational area. This gives the Sirius patrol an additional, complementary operational capability.
Organization and mission
Like the Sirius patrol, the Arctic Specialists (ARK SPEC) are subordinate to the Sirius Squadron within the Danish Army Special Forces (Jægerkorpset). In contrast to the classic Sirius patrol, the Arctic Specialists do not use dog sleds and instead rely on motorized, highly mobile equipment such as snowmobiles, fast boats and air-portable platforms. Personnel and equipment can be flown in or dropped by parachute.
The new concept is explained by Captain Andreas, commander of Sirius Squadron: “The sledge patrols do an outstanding job, but are geographically tied to north-east Greenland. Their freedom of movement depends on the fjords being frozen and they cannot operate at high speed. The Arctic Specialists are intended to provide precisely those capabilities that the sled patrols cannot cover. They must be extremely mobile, perform time-critical tasks and be deployable anywhere in Greenland.”
Focus on search and rescue operations
The new capability consists of former members of the Sirius patrol who have undergone additional, specialized training. This includes alpine and glacier mountaineering courses that enable them to work in high mountain and glacier regions – qualifications that are not part of the regular training of Sirius patrol leaders.
A major advantage of recruiting former Sirius members is that they can draw on their extensive experience from two years of patrol service. At the same time, the Arctic Specialists are able to carry out many of the familiar tasks at a significantly higher operational tempo.
The unit’s primary mission is to support the Joint Arctic Command in search and rescue operations in normally inaccessible terrain. In addition, reconnaissance and surveillance – for example to identify unauthorized persons or activities – are among the core tasks. Another important area of responsibility is rescue and recovery operations.
New alignment of Sirius skills
According to the commander, ARK SPEC marks a new stage of development for the Sirius structures: “The Sirius patrol can be seen as a training platform. The personnel only serve for two years at a time – exactly at the time when they reach their maximum performance, their service ends. We should actually keep these soldiers and continue to use their exceptional skills. The idea behind this initiative is to use the Sirius patrol as a training base for a capability that we didn’t have before,” says Andreas.
The first Arctic Specialists have already been recruited and are currently preparing for their first missions.
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