Brigade 139, under Signal Corps, is a strategic-level signal unit tasked with organising training, maintaining combat readiness, and providing mobile communications support for leaders of the Ministry of National Defence (MND) in directing offices and units across the entire Military, as well as ensuring routine communications in Military Region 2 and part of the capital city of Hanoi, and performing other contingency missions.

Due to its task requirements and a high frequency of natural disasters posing risks to the safety and quality of communications networks, in order to maintain a seamless “lifeline” of communications, the Brigade has focused on building a mobile signal force that is “strong in politics, proficient in technology, disciplined, highly skilled, and modern” for all contingencies.

Field training activities

Building political steadfastness as the foundation

The mobile signal force is responsible for ensuring communications for combat readiness, exercises, disaster response, and other unexpected missions. As a result, the force often operates independently and far from their commands; their working and living conditions are harsh and hazardous; their duty is highly stressful, with demanding requirements. This requires cadres and soldiers to possess great political will, determination, and resilience to endure hardships in task execution.

Therefore, while consolidating its organisational structure, the Brigade has strengthened political education to make troops of its mobile signal detachments firmly grasp high-level resolutions, directives, and guidance, the traditions of the Signal Corps and the Brigade itself, and the hardships and dangers in their mission. This helps foster a strong sense of responsibility and determination to surmount difficulties and accomplish all assigned tasks. The Brigade has also vigorously implemented Directive 2423-CT/QUTW, dated 9 November 2023, by the Central Military Commission Standing Board, on “renewing and improving political education in the new period” via multiple practical measures. It has strictly maintained and flexibly applied forms and methods of political education, combining direct education with the use of television, online platforms of the Corps and the Brigade, and social media to increase the reach of propagation and education.

Besides, the Brigade has focused on enhancing the leadership capacity and combativeness of Party organisations, commands, and Party members of its mobile signal detachments. It has strictly maintained principles and routines of Party activities; resolutions and action programs have been concretised to match realities of each unit and task. It has required cadres and Party members, especially the key ones, to uphold exemplary conduct for their subordinates to follow. It has well implemented grass-roots Democracy Regulations and policy work to enable its officers and soldiers to keep their mind on their work. As a result, 100% of its cadres and soldiers have shown their firm political steadfastness and readiness to accomplish all assigned missions.

Streamlined organisation, proficient training, and high combat readiness

This is a key requirement laying the foundation for building “highly skilled and modern” mobile signal detachments. Based on the authorised organisational tables and the criteria for “highly skilled mobile signal detachments”, the Brigade has reviewed, adjusted, and consolidated its organisational structure in accordance with regulations, prioritising personnel for combat-ready units and key positions. It has regularly carried out inspection and accurately evaluated the qualities and capabilities of its officers, technical specialists, non-commissioned officers, and soldiers as the basis for assigning the right people to the right tasks and maximising the efficiency of available human resources. For tasks such as communications and teleconference support for the MND’s exercises and natural disaster response, the Brigade has proactively organised compact, multi-purpose, and highly adaptable mobile signal teams capable of operating effectively in all terrain, weather conditions, and unexpected situations.

There is a fact that the Brigade’s mobile signal detachments are equipped with many advanced and modern systems, such as operational-level mobile communications stations, television transmission vehicles, trunking vehicles, and VSAT vehicles. Thus, in addition to selecting personnel with great competence, experience, and adaptability to digital technologies, appropriate age, and physical fitness to ensure continuity and development, the Brigade has directed its affiliates to organise comprehensive but focalised training aligned with their particularities and missions. It has intensified training in mastery of equipment, developing its detachments’ ability to operate independently under different terrain and weather conditions, taking cadre training as the key, regarding technical staff training as the centre.

Training troops to deploy and withdraw mobile communications systems

For its technical cadres and employees, along with routine training, the Brigade has coordinated with Hi-Tech Information Technology Centre, Viettel Group, and Vietnam National Defence Television to hold training courses on technology transfer, new technical procedures, and modern equipment, including advanced mobile television systems. As a result, it has developed and maintained a “mobile training instructor team” consisting of highly skilled cadres and technical employees with hands-on experience and capabilities in both conducting training within their units and directly giving guidance to troops on mastering new equipment.

In the training of its detachments, following the motto of “basics, practicality, solidity” and taking the criteria for “highly skilled mobile signal detachments” as its training goal, the Brigade has trained members of these detachments to not only master their own positions, but also undertake 1 - 2 other positions. It has also trained its troops to deploy, connect, and withdraw networks, stations, and command posts on various scales, under night-time and complex terrain, weather, electronic warfare, and hi-tech warfare conditions. It has aligned basic training programs with direct training in task execution. It has intensified training for its vehicle crews and drivers to improve their handling of situations during long-distance marches, on mountainous terrain, and under limited visibility, as well as their field living skills, and physical fitness.

In the process, the Brigade has required its mobile signal detachments to make thorough preparations for training, step up decentralisation and delegation of authority, and closely associate commanders’ responsibility with their units’ training outcomes. It has strictly maintained training discipline, intensified the organisation of competitions and contests at grass-roots level, taking part in competitions held by higher echelons, regularly carrying out inspection, re-inspection, and review to draw lessons and correct shortcomings. At the same time, it has continually reviewed, adjusted, supplemented, and rehearsed its communications assurance plans in accordance with real-world situations. It has proactively grasped and forecasted missions early, especially developments relating to storms and floods, strictly maintaining combat readiness, ensuring sufficient personnel, equipment, and reserve materials as required. As a result of those measures, the quality of training and combat readiness of its mobile signal detachments has considerably improved. Notably, the Brigade’s mobile signal force has excellently provided communications and television services for major national and military political events, such as A50, A80, for disaster response and rescue missions, and for numerous large-scale exercises, thereby earning high appreciation and commendation from the MND and Signal Corps.

Ensuring logistics and technical support for manoeuvre in all situations

To enable its detachments to be deployed immediately upon receiving orders, the Brigade has placed emphasis on logistics and technical support. Regarding technical support, it has strictly implemented regulations on maintenance, preservation, storage, repair, and service-life extension of its equipment, while ensuring adequate technical reserves in accordance with established plans. To facilitate its detachments’ long-term independent missions, the Brigade has prepared sufficient stocks of spare parts and materials and intensified training courses to improve mobile technical teams’ skills, especially in rectifying faults in both authorised and newly-issued equipment systems, thereby ensuring rapid troubleshooting and stable, reliable operation across the entire network. Additionally, it has fostered technical research, initiatives, and innovations to raise the quality and effectiveness of mobile communications and television support.

Concerning logistics support, the Brigade’s mobile signal detachments often operate independently and far from their headquarters. Therefore, apart from close coordination with local units and authorities, the Brigade has required its detachments to maintain sufficient logistics reserves, prepare logistics support plans for extended field missions, and improve their troops’ skills in field living and on-site resource utilisation. Thanks to those synchronised measures, the Brigade’s mobile signal detachments have always been ready to “depart immediately for missions - ensure seamless communications upon arrival”, successfully accomplishing all tasks in all contingencies.

Strict discipline, absolute safety

This is both a task requirement and a condition to ensure that the mobile signal force will be truly standardised. While educating its troops on higher echelons’ regulations and directives regarding regularity building and discipline management to raise their awareness of the State’s law and the Military’s discipline, the Brigade has required its detachments to strictly maintain daily and weekly routines, encourage self-management and self-improvement, and seriously handle disciplinary violations.

The Brigade has paid special attention to ensuring safety, especially during missions and participation in traffic. Under the motto “beginning a shift is equivalent to entering a combat position”, the Brigade has directed its offices and units to strictly enforce communications discipline, remain vigilance during equipment operation, and prevent information leaks or procedural violations. It has also strengthened education on traffic safety laws. As a result, since 2021, it has recorded no serious disciplinary violations; the rate of minor violations has been below 0.2%. It has maintained absolute safety in all operations.

Bringing into play its achievements and experience, Signal Brigade 139 will continue further increasing the adept of its mobile signal detachments to contribute to advancing the Brigade towards modernity and meeting its task requirements in all contingencies.

Col. VU THANH TRUNG

Commander of the Brigade