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 APPROVED FOR RELEASE: 2009/06/16: CIA-RDP01-00707R000200090014-1

4. Logistics

Under the Chief of the Naval General Staff, the Chief of Logistic Support is responsible for all engineering and supply functions required to operate the navy. These functions are divided among the three directorates included in his bureau -- Naval Military Construction (construction and maintenance), Supply and Transportation, and Research and Development.

The technical services of the Directorate of Naval Military Construction (Hull and Machinery, Electricity and Electronics, Weapons, Naval Shore Installations, Weights and Measures and Calibration, and Utilization of Machinery) develop new projects and program and control construction and repair of ships, equipment, and naval facilities. Direct supervision is given to naval bases (arsenales) and shipyards (astilleros), and inspections are made as required at all levels.

In the Directorate of Supply and Transportation, the supply services (Munitions, Fuel, Stores (spare parts), Clothing, and Subsistence) are responsible for the inventory management and distribution of assigned materials, while the Transportation Service is responsible for administration and accounting for utilization of various means of transportation used by the navy, including all automotive material.

The Directorate of Research and Development is responsible for basic and applied research to insure the continued technical improvements required by a modern naval force. The Center for Research and Development in Madrid is under this directorate.

The various naval bases perform support functions for the navy under the policy guidance and direction of the Chief of Logistic Support. Ship repair, building, and supply facilities are concentrated at El Ferrol del Caudillo, Cadiz, and Cartagena. The various repair branches of the naval bases perform minor repairs to ship hulls, machinery, electronics, and ordnance. Spain has the capability to construct submarines and surface combatants up to destroyer size, and to overhaul all ships in its naval inventory, however, these activities are limited by an austere budget and the need to import material and technical aid. Spanish naval units are built and repaired at the three government-controlled Bazan shipyards adjacent to the aforementioned bases. The Bazan and privately owned shipyards build small naval ships and craft, small tankers, and training ships for export, principally to Portugal and Latin America.

Phase I of the current in-country naval shipbuilding program includes the construction of five US DEG-7 (Modified Brooke) class guided missile destroyer escorts (DEG) and four French-designed Daphne-class submarines (SS). All five DEG's have been launched; the first was commissioned in September 1973, and deliveries on the others will continue through 1975. The first SS was commissioned in May 1973, and the remaining three should be operational by the end of 1975.

The Phase II shipbuilding program, to be implemented over the next 10 years, calls for the construction (in Spanish shipyards) of three guided missile destroyers (DDG), 10 destroyer escorts (DE), two Daphne-class submarines, six missile-equipped patrol boats, and numerous auxiliary and service vessels. In addition, the five DEG's now under construction are to be updated. This program will depend heavily on foreign technical and financial aid which is now being actively sought from the United States, France, and West Germany.

The supply system is weak because of the low level of economic support and the small industrial base for production of complex, modern naval ships and equipment. The widely scattered supply facilities are handicapped by a poor transportation system. Crude oil and high-grade metals must be imported. Storage facilities for petroleum products are adequate, but stocks are usually low. Although the present supply system meets the peacetime requirements of the navy, it lacks depth of stores and the means to move them rapidly for wartime needs; underway replenishment is limited to one oiler (AO). The navy is attempting to update its supply organization by adopting methods used by the US Navy, and significant improvements are being made. A centralized inventory control of all supply facilities has been set up in Madrid to coordinate the stocks at each of the three main naval bases. The ships' spare parts stock level is now probably sufficient for 18 to 24 months at present peacetime usage rates.

5. Naval infantry

The Naval Infantry Corps (Cuerpo de Infanteria de Marină), whose traditional function has been the protection of naval installations, is an integral part of the navy and has undergone a reorganization to provide a highly-trained and effective amphibious warfare force. The Commanding General of the Naval Infantry Corps, under the Chief of the Naval General Staff, is responsible for personnel, training, and organization to enable the corps to meet the operational requirements established by the Naval General Staff. The corps consists of the Regiment of the Fleet (Tercio de Armada -- commonly called the Fleet Marine Force), defense and security forces, and

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APPROVED FOR RELEASE: 2009/06/16: CIA-RDP01-00707R000200090014-1