Private Military Company

Many people ask me all sorts of questions about Private Military Companies (PMC). Things such as, what is a PMC? What do companies such as AeroBase Group sell to them?

Today in this article I am going to answer many of these questions, and give us a basic overview of a PMC and what role they play today.

What is a Private Military Company?

A private military company is exactly what it sounds like. PMC’s can be many different types of companies, for instance one may specialize in training dogs for police officers or military use. Others may specialize in weapons development, while others may specialize in body guard training. PMC’s can be of great service, especially to smaller countries where there military may not be as well trained, or even to larger countries. 

Many larger countries such as the United States use PMC’s because of their specialized skills.

What does AeroBase have to do with PMC’s?

Companies as AeroBase Group (ABG) is especially important to PMC’s because AeroBase is able to provide parts that PMC’s generally cannot find, or do not have access to. These parts are generally for fleets or aircraft's. Many times PMC’s find that their production is halted because they do not have these parts, this is when places such as ABG come in handy, as they are able to supply these items.

Examples of some of the aircraft that AeroBase has supported include: MH-6 Little Birds, Casa 212 and 235, Bell 212, 214, 407, 412 and 429 Helicopters, Eurocopter SA 330 and AS 332, and more.

How PMC’s can help

Many times PMC’s are able to help, and do things other military organizations are not able to do. A PMC could be compared to a mercenary, however, there are some legal differences that allow governments to employ them. Because of this, they generally have more legal protection, and freedom, in comparison to other government military agencies.

How PMC’s helped in Iraq

PMC’s were widely used in Iraq. In fact it was estimated that there were over 100,000 contractors working under the US Department of Defense as PMC’s. Why was the US using so many PMC’s?

One of the big things with PMC’s was that Iraqi law does not hold over contractors. This means that certain laws that kept PMC’s from being able to carry weapons, did not affect PMC’s.

Another huge advantage is the cost, PMC’s are generally highly skilled, and are more cost effective as opposed to other alternatives. Their highly trained skills kept casualties down as well. In fact many of the vital weapons systems that were used to invade Iraq came from PMC’s. They provided everything from VIP bodyguard protection, to guard installations, combat training, escort supply convoys, and more. Their skills were highly called upon since they were vital to the war effort.

What are some of the big PMC groups?

Blackwater Worldwide 

Blackwater is a company owned by Erik Prince. The company is no longer known as Blackwater and since then its name has been changed to “Xe Services” and now “Academi”. Blackwater played a large role during the war in Iraq.

Blackwater offers many different services, including a state of the art United States Training Center, K-9 training, security consulting, and more.

Executive Outcomes

Executive was a PMC until it got merged into Strategic Resource Corporation. Executive Outcomes was designed to provide military personnel with training as well as logistical support. However, they only worked with recognized official government entities.

During 1995 Executive Outcomes was credited with rescuing the government in Sierra Leone against the Revolutionary United Front (RUF). This was due to the highly trained and skilled work of the employees that worked for Executive Outcomes.

Triple Canopy

Triple Canopy was formed back in 2003 by various Special Forces veterans. They are well known for their professional staff, and professional training.

Triple Canopy played a large role during the war on Iraq. They were well known for the security that they provided, especially while guarding the Coalition Provisional Authority headquarters throughout the country.

DynCorp

DynCorp international started out as an aviation company. Since then they have moved into the PMC line of work as they provide more and more air operations support, training, and other facilities to the U.S. Government.

DynCorp offers various services to the U.S. military, which include but are not limited to: air operations and support, training and mentoring, intelligence training, contingency operations, as well as maintenance of land vehicles.

Aegis Defense Services

Aegis Defense Services is a British PMC with offices located overseas in various countries. These countries include Afghanistan, Bahrain, Iraq, Kenya, Nepal, and the United States. Aegis Defense services has been around since 2002 when it was founded by Tim Spicer.

Vinnell Corporation

The Vinnell Corporation is a PMC that is international, however, it is based out of the United States. Vinnell specializes in military training, as well as logistics, and weapon maintenance. They are well known for their training of different portions of the Saudi Arabian National Guard. The Vinnell Corporation was also given the initial contract to work on recreating the new Iraq Army.

SCG International Risk

SCG was founded back in 1996. Their purpose is to provide training, as well as logistic services, helping in domestic and international security. They work with both government, and private sectors.

SCG played some major roles during the Iraq war. This included the training of Iraq’s new army as well as police force. The company has now been bought by a private company, and moved to Abu Dhabi, where they specialize in anti-piracy, as well as foreign military training, and security and intelligent contracts.

What is a Private Military Company Copyright - 2014 AeroBase Group Inc.