Apollo11
Posts: 24082
Joined: 6/7/2001
From: Zagreb, Croatia
Status: offline
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Hi all,
quote:
ORIGINAL: Grollub
I feel that I (maybe) should explain some things concerning the Swedish military as there are some major differences to larger countries as the UK and USA.
Basically, from 1980 up until 2007, we haven't had any NCOs in the same sense as you have had for a long time.
Excerpt from wikipedia; "Until 2010 the Swedish army recruitment was based on conscription German style. All personnel where called up as conscripts for a year of national service, after which, the unit he/she trained with was put in the war reserve. Upon completion of conscript service with sufficient service marks, conscripts are eligible to apply for commissioned officer training, NCO/Warrant Officer or from 2007 stay in the Army as a professional private".
This means, using myself as an example, that I started out as a common soldier. During my conscript service year (1982-83), I showed enough quality to end that service a corporal and squad leader. I was later to become a sargeant and dep. platoon leader after I had done some larger (field traing) war exercises. My service marks were good enough to enable me to apply for OTC (Officers Training Course) which I started in 1990. Finishing that, I was commisioned as a 2nd Lt. Having a system with no NCOs, it were the 2nd and 1st Lt's that conducted most of the basic military training for that years conscripts (being platoon commander or instructor at a platoon). After a couple of years doing this and getting to know every weapon and others aspects of the unit you served in, and if you were good enough, you could continue to the next school to become captain and company commander of that unit and so on.
What I'm saying is that in my unit, disbanded due to defense cuts in 2004, I had gone all the way from a conscript soldier up to dep battalion commander. Having gone all the way through the ranks, I knew all the tips and tricks of the trade.
Ok, with that said, I must also admit that I get a little aggravated sometimes when I meet officers (and NCOs) from other countries. Some of those officers have shown absolutely no attitude of wanting to know how things works at the lower level of their unit, which is completely foreign to me. At the same time, NCO's from those same countries often assume that just because of my rank, I know nothing about life in the unit, or that I shouldn't concern myself with it. Nothing could could be more wrong, having gone all the way it's now in my genes wanting/having to know ...  At the same time, I'm often confused and dubious as to how your system works.
Heh, I guess this is my longest post ever at these forums. 
Having said that, I must also admit, that after my unit was disbanded and I became first a staff officer at the swedish high command, and then a teacher at the national defense college, I now have a greater tendency to "slack off" ...  
Ah, but I sure miss the good old days at the unit.
Thanks for info per!
BTW, you are colonel now - right?
Leo "Apollo11"
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