JDF flexes muscles with Bushmaster additions
Published:Tuesday | February 22, 2022 | 12:10 AM
With the acquisition of six Bushmaster protected mobility vehicles, the Jamaica Defence Force (JDF) has boosted its capabilities to conduct security operations in volatile situations and to rescue persons in the event of disaster.
The powerful armoured vehicles will also be deployed to support the operations of the recently established Joint Anti-gang Task Force.
Speaking on Monday at a ceremony at the JDF headquarters to commission the vehicles into service, Prime Minister Andrew Holness sought to dismiss claims that the Government has pumped more resources in the JDF than other security apparatuses in the country.
Holness, who is also the minister of defence, told a gathering of senior JDF officers that the Government was committed to making the necessary investment in the security assets of Jamaica.
Declaring that the resources allocated across the security forces were balanced, Holness said that the JDF played a supporting role in operations.
The prime minister argued that in building out the capacity of the JDF, the Government was also boosting the capabilities of its border security.
“You are building out the capacity of your internal security; you are building out your capacity for disaster response; you are building capacity for managing your airspace and cybersecurity. Investing in the JDF is investing in all areas of security for Jamaica,” the prime minister said.
Holness sought to dispel the notion that soldiers were at ease and in comfort at their headquarters in Kingston, noting that army personnel were stretched across the island carrying out various functions.
“Our forces are fully utilised,” he added.
Holness said the newly acquired vehicles would add significant capacity to the country’s disaster-response capabilities.
“They also give us increased visibility and presence in communities that are now challenged with high violence and crime,” the prime minister said.
Chief of defence staff, Rear Admiral Antonette Wemyss Gorman, said that the addition of vehicles to the JDF fleet will now increase the army’s troop carrier variants to 15, as well as three ambulances.
Wemyss Gorman said that the ambulances were built to accommodate casualties in different configurations up to a maximum of five, accompanied by medical personnel, a driver, and a co-driver.
“The introduction of this ambulance variant is critical to ensure that whenever necessary, we are able to safely and effectively transport not only our troops, but other personnel from a hostile environment, to a safe, secure space where additional medical treatment can be appropriately administered,” she said.
In 2021, the JDF had a total of 44,109 deployments on land and 7,764 year-to-date.
Ron Van Der Doorn, programme manager of International Support Vehicles and Tactical Systems in Australia, told The Gleaner that the armoured vehicles provide protected mobility for deployments with a high degree of certainty.