On 19 February 2019, a multinational EATC team led by Major General Laurent Marboeuf, Commander EATC, and his deputy Brigadier General Francesco Saverio Agresti, visited the French Air Defence and Air Operations Command (CDAOA) in Lyon. The visit to the CDAOA concluded the roadshow to the French military authorities. This roadshow takes place in the framework of a global process of the Commander EATC to visit to the seven member nations and aims at better satisfying the nation’s needs.
The EATC delegation was warmly welcomed by Lieutenant General Jean-Christophe Zimmerman, Commander CDAOA, and his chief of staff, Major General Luc De Rancourt. The Commander CDAOA appraised EATC’s continuous efforts to enhance interoperability among its member nations. EATC’s seven member nations are present in common operational theatres. Every effort towards improved interoperability increases the effectiveness and augments safety in operations.
The generals also approached French contribution to EATC’s multinational fleet. French air transport assets, such as the C130, C160, CN235 and A400M, are by default under operational control of EATC. Assets prepositioned on operational theatres however are under operational control of the CDAOA. Therefore it is essential to have a good understanding of mutual interests and processes, to entertain strong bilateral relationships and guarantee a smooth transfer of operational control when required and best optimisation of our capabilities.
In addition, the delegation had the opportunity to visit the French JFAC Africa (Joint Force Air Component Africa) and the French National Air Operations Center, securely embedded in the hills surrounding Lyon.
