17 HRVCON sent off to KFOR
The first component of the 17 HRVCON KFOR has been deployed to Kosovo during the weekend. It is composed of 18 members mostly of the Croatian Air Force and Air Defence. KFOR is the sole operation where the Croatian Armed Forces have deployed the assets (two Mi-171 Sh helicopters) alongside the manpower.
The 17HRVCON KFOR is commanded by Major Stjepan Stepić, a Mi-171 Sh pilot of the 93rd Croatian Air Force and Air Defence Base.
The main mission of the HRVCON to KFOR, subordinated directly to the KFOR Commander, is to provide airlift of troops, cargo and VIPs. Its members also conduct recce of the key sites in the area of operations. It also serves as an airlift practice for the KFOR personnel.
The members have been accompanied by a working team of the Croatian Armed Forces, headed by the Chief of Staff and the Deputy Commander, Brigadier General Miroslav Kovač. Brig. Gen. Kovač met with the MNBG Commander and the Camp Bondsteel Commander, Lieutenant Colonel Clinton Baker and with the KFOR Chief of Staff, Brigadier General Michael L. Scholes.
Lt. Col .Baker briefed the members of the working team with the missions undertaken currently in KFOR as well as with the plans for the upcoming period. Brig. Gen. Michael L. Scholes praised the mission readiness of the flight crews of the HRVCON KFOR.
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