| Allied Command Europe Rapid Reaction Corps | |
|---|---|
Formation sign |
|
| Formation: | 2 October 1992 |
| Country | United Kingdom and 16 other nations |
| Armed Force | Her Majesty's Armed Forces and 16 others |
| Service | British Army and 16 others |
| Type | High Readiness Force (Land) HQNATO Response Force (temporary) |
| Strength | ~ 400 (permanent) |
| Higher formation | SHAPE |
| Headquarters location | Imjin Barracks, Innsworth |
| Motto | Audentis fortuna iuvat Fortune favours the brave |
| Commander | |
| Commander (COMARRC) | Lieutenant General James Bucknall |
| Deputy Commander (DCOMARRC) | Major General Riccardo Marchiò |
| Chief of Staff (COSARRC) | Major General Tim Evans |
The Headquarters Allied Rapid Reaction Corps, (HQ ARRC or ARRC) is a North Atlantic Treaty Organisation High Readiness Force (Land) Headquarters ready for deployment worldwide within five to thirty days.
Contents |
HQ ARRC was created on 2 October 1992 in Bielefeld based on the former British I Corps (or I (BR) Corps).[1] It was originally created as the rapid reaction corps sized land force of the Reaction Forces Concept that emerged after the end of the Cold War, with a mission to redeploy and reinforce within Allied Command Europe (ACE) and to conduct Petersberg missions out of NATO territory.
Since 2002 however the HQ has been re-roled (with five other corps HQs of other NATO nations) as a High Readiness Force (Land) HQ (HRF(L)) with a broader mission. The formation HQ is under Operational Command of Supreme Allied Commander, Europe (SACEUR). The ARRC has a notional Force Pool of Combat, Combat Support and Combat Service Support units with which to train and execute its mission. However in reality COMARRC commands no forces until he receives an Activation Order from SACEUR. On receipt of ACTORD, forces from troop contributing nations, generated through the NATO Force Generation process are passed into his Operational Command for the duration of the operational deployment.
Although the corps is commanded by a British Army lieutenant-general, the corps is no longer a purely British formation HQ. The UK is the 'framework nation' and provides about 80% of the funding and 60% of the staff for the HQ, which, from 1994 to 2010, was based in the Rheindahlen Military Complex, Germany. The remaining 40% of the staff are made up of a further 14 Partner Nations.
ARRC took command of the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan on 4 May 2006. Previously, it was deployed as the headquarters commanding Land Forces during the Kosovo War in 1999 and, prior to that, commanded the Land Forces of NATO's first ever deployment as part of the IFOR operation in Bosnia in 1995/6.
ARRC relocated to Imjin Barracks, outside Gloucester in England, in 2010.[2] and will deploy to support the ISAF Joint Command Headquarters in Afghanistan in 2011.[3]
The first commander, appointed in 1992 was General Sir Jeremy Mackenzie.[4]
Recent commanders have included:[5]