Warrior health is one of the foundations of national security
Research conducted by scientists on the health status of persons of military age, military personnel, rescuers, persons from special forces involved in anti-terrorist combat operations, revealed a decrease in psychophysiological reserves and a low level of adaptation mechanisms to the operational recovery of occupational health. This is not about painful conditions, but about the functional capabilities of the individual soldier. The decline in the level of professional health of a serviceman, that is, his compensatory, adaptive reactions to the effects of environmental, psychophysical, and socio-psychological factors, have an inadequate effect on the combat characteristics of a warrior. This is reflected in the reduction of motivation for military service, in the reduction of mental resistance to anti-army propaganda and the actualization of their professional capabilities, in public passivity. All this gives rise to apathy, the loss of the main volitional and personal core - its true self-sufficiency.This gave rise to the practical need for a new strategic orientation of military medicine, psychology, ecology, ergonomics, catastrophe medicine in the form of a shift of the disease-centrist paradigm, in the center of which is the patient, for the health-centric, with the health of a healthy person in the center. The purpose of this orientation is to preserve a healthy soldier, his psycho-physiological endurance and vitality to the conditions of military service and performance of soldier’s duty.
HEALTH IS ALSO A FACTOR OF CAPACITY
It should be especially emphasized that the time has come when the military doctrines of national security should more effectively include such a component of combat readiness as health. The health of a practically healthy soldier is supported by his goal-setting activity, professionalism in achieving combat results, the preservation of military equipment and his own life. It seems that such a question in the future will lead to the idea of creating medical troops. For health, as a biosocial factor for the longevity of a professional army, is not quite a “logistical function”, but a function of the combat readiness of troops, and therefore the national security of the Fatherland.
For example, military medicine in aviation - this is the development of medical and technical requirements for aircraft and weapon systems, for life support and survival tools, for professional selection, for training equipment, for methods and means of psychophysical training, for psychological support for retraining for new aviation equipment, for the development of a support system flight safety in all areas related to the human factor. Military aerospace and marine medicine ensures human safety in extraterrestrial conditions by participating in the formation of professional abilities, maintaining professional longevity, and military potential for 20–25 years. All this makes up the economy, as 4th and 5th generation aircraft will cost $ 30–40 million each, and training a high-quality pilot will cost $ 10–15 million. If military aviation medicine reduces the scientific level and its strategic potential, then there can be no doubt that combat effectiveness will be lower than calculated, since there will naturally be a gap between the tactical and technical capabilities of aerospace systems and the required level of professionalism and professional health.
For military personnel, psychophysical health realizes the ability to use knowledge, skills, and moral motivations to fulfill military duty — to protect the homeland. At the same time, let me emphasize that the performance of duty as an indicator of the spiritual and moral reliability of a serviceman is not identically simplified reflex performance.
From a socio-psychological point of view, duty, as a spiritual impulse, accomplishes the ascent of a warrior's personality from moral duties to a stable mental state of obligation. In this case, actions and actions are guided not only by the order, but also by the personal motive of the serviceman, permeated with responsibility and gratitude for the opportunity given to him to actively participate in the implementation of the military doctrine. With this judgment I want to highlight the idea that the military doctrine is addressed to the subject of military labor, shaping his mindset, beliefs, determining the highest meaning and his place in solving the tasks set. It is the socially experienced state of personal demand that forms in the self-consciousness of a person the essential interest in the improvement and growth of professionalism as an incentive regulating all military and spiritual activities. The psychological uniqueness of the service process in the army consists in the fact that the fact of submission for a warrior’s personality is not a volition, but volitional activity, organically included in the practical life of a serviceman.
I will dwell further on one of the leading components of the mentality - the spiritual condition of the officers.
ABOUT WARRIOR SPIRIT
Since the concepts of spirit, soul, attitude is different, I will briefly allow you to give explanations, naturally, in relation to dangerous professions.
Spirituality is a sensual mental state that reflects the integrity of the personality's personality, its genetic, cultural code in the realization of its maximum virtuous possibilities. The main difference between this state and the usual one is that the level of the working state is realized in the manner of the goal in achieving the result. The goal as a psychic education is immanently inherent in the personality; it is selected, controlled and corresponding to life.
The spirit is a real experience of the sublime mental state of the soul of the subject of labor (soldier, rescuer, another person of a dangerous profession) in understanding the meaning of his life and profession. Meaning is the highest goal, that is, holiness, that is, that which cannot be changed and cannot be betrayed. The goal is formed by the tasks of labor, and the meaning - by faith! The goal, though dynamic with its motives, is always determined by the specific task of the present or future. Meaning, like thought, is eternal. The spiritual component of the meaning is the truth about what you really imagine, what is good for you. And this is spiritual work on oneself. The humanized sense is the source of the attainment of truth, goodness and freedom. It is the spirit and contributes to overcoming obstacles to the achievement of these beneficial goals.
In my opinion, the geopolitical doctrine of any content in the military field should state in the preamble the following set of wording such as: the army is the face of a state whose conscience, that is, responsibility, in serving the Fatherland, society, a citizen, whose honor is in the welfare of its citizens, whose spirit meets the aspirations of his people. An unshakable legal aspect must be spelled out in military doctrines: the process of reforming the country's Armed Forces within the stipulated time frame must maintain a parity level of military potential, ensuring full-fledged combat training in the entire infrastructure of the troops.
In aviation, especially air defense, where combat missions are likely in peacetime, a reduced air raid on 80 – 90% of the required conditions creates a real threat of loss of flight personnel due to loss of professional skills. In the recent past, another phenomenon emerged in domestic aviation: experienced flight personnel were unable to pass on their flight experience in difficult situations in non-design cases, that is, to increase the psychological and professional readiness of combat personnel. By the way, according to the results of scientific research, in order to maintain the required level of professionalism in flying combat duties of fighter aviation, a general and special 120 – 160 hours flight is required.
But there is also a psychological side. Pilots always have an exceptional motive for flying. This is not only his professional need, but also his vital attitude. Only in flight is formed, maintained, strengthened morale. In the case of interruptions in flights, say, in adverse weather conditions over 2 months, the likelihood of physiological spatial disorientation leading to accidents increases. The vestibular and motor analyzers, muscular sense, sense of time, conjugate actions, decision-making process are especially sensitive to breaks in flights. Breaks in flights over 3 – 4 months are accompanied by subconscious anxiety, and sometimes open fear for the outcome of the flight.
It is necessary to note the psychological moments as the reasons for the decline in the level of fighting efficiency, generated by a low patina. Its essence is as follows: psychological and professional unpreparedness for quality flight performance and the complete lack of the ability to eliminate it make professional life morally flawed. All this is deeply and nervously experienced as a humiliation of personal dignity. Naturally, the motive for flight work is reduced. But there are more significant losses, I would say of a strategic nature. This concerns the redistribution of values, the loss of benchmarks. In particular, the lack of regular flights for five years steadily formed a social negative in the form of aversion, mistrust of the goals and productivity of military reforms. Political maturity, fighting spirit, social aspiration lost their importance in shaping the flight direction. The army elitism as a self-awareness of self-sufficiency has disappeared, the personality of the serviceman was destroyed, as it was decomposed in a depatriotic society.
CAUSES AND CONSEQUENCES OF LOW EMERGENCY
I gave private examples, but if you summarize all the disposable material, there is reason to formulate a psychological pattern: the lack of adequate support for combat training disarms, demoralizes troop activity, and forms a stable negative attitude towards continuing military service.
I will cite the data of the Institute of Military Medicine, which studied the reactions of the organism and the personality of the involved military pilots to combat operations during counterterrorist operations. Around 50%, after the third combat flight, marked fatigue was noted. After flying in adverse weather conditions (SMU) for actual bombing, more than 20% of crew members were diagnosed with asthenic conditions (sleep disturbance, fatigue, headache, etc.). By the end of the month of participation in combat missions, mental demobilization develops against the background of anxiety in more than half of the crews. In real combat operations, the group of risk of reduced efficiency and mental maladjustment are young pilots (more than 50% - up to 25 years). In subsequent months, the level of adaptability increases to 1,5 – 2 months.For reference: professional health is the main psychological and biological basis for the formation of professionally important qualities. The most versatile flight abilities are at the age of 29 – 35 years. These data suggest that the lack of full-fledged combat training for more than 3 – 5 years practically makes them insufficiently effective for use in hostilities. This is so little perceived truth that there are combat flights for VKS and in peacetime.
It is worth noting another pernicious consequence of the low level of combat training, especially when counter-terrorism operations are conducted. In the specific case, poor visibility, small-sized landing sites from helicopters at high altitudes, flying in turbulent conditions at low altitudes, in conditions of intense shelling from all types weapons. However, the combat regulations do not provide for flights under extreme conditions dictated by the combat situation. At the same time, the operational situation forced us to send helicopters in conditions below the established minimum of weather, which resulted in at least a flight incident. I dare to think that the inertia of peacetime in the field of combat training was stereotypically transferred to the conditions of real combat activity. We studied in battle, showing heroism and paying with losses.
In the process of conducting combat operations, a special stressful role is played by such a psychological property, as an attitude to the task that a warrior performs. In this case and in this matter not everything was well. This refers to opportunistic coverage of events in the media, shameful sanitary and hygienic life, incomplete understanding of the general armament chiefs of flight work, weakly active support and support from research and testing centers and design bureaus. Sluggish analytical work to summarize the positive and negative experience of the combat work of all flight and support services. Of course, in the end, much was corrected and implemented. In particular, the State Institute of Military Medicine and its Center for Aerospace Medicine managed to develop and test diagnostic methods for assessing the early manifestations of psycho-traumatic reactions and mental exhaustion, as well as appropriate equipment and means of promptly restoring occupational health for successful combat missions lasting up to 30 days.
Additional requirements have been developed for the composition of NAZs, for jobs in the cockpit, and a structure has been created for medical centers for the rehabilitation treatment of combat psycho traumas and post-traumatic disorders in aviation hospitals and sanatoriums. Much attention was paid to the development of new psychophysiological requirements for the selection, examination and psychophysical preparation for military operations, as well as the formation of specialized guidance documents governing the medical and psychological support of aviation operations.
FOREIGN EXPERIENCE
Returning to the topic of military doctrines, apparently, it is necessary to touch upon the question of taking into account the military potential of neighboring states, or members of NATO. In 2001, I was able, as part of the military delegation, to visit a number of research institutions and combat application and training centers for the US Navy and some NASA research centers. I will give a summary of the results of the visit analysis.
Center for the military use of naval aviation. Specialists develop automated systems for monitoring the state of a person in flight, and as a result, they receive data on the tolerance of extreme loads, similar to combat stress. They work out the system of connection of protective equipment with a message to the crew members about their functional state. Objective data is used to standardize combat loads. Microelectronic sensors are mounted in flight equipment. The methodology of medical research is viewed as a new principle of "unified control of armaments through the state of man."
Center for Technical Control Systems fleet (San Diego). The ideology of military doctrine is to dominate any adversary in providing communications and intelligence. The center developed satellite information for all types of aircraft, created satellite communications covering the entire globe for reconnaissance and cartography. Scenarios are being developed for providing information on combat control systems on land, on water, under water and in space for the 110st century. Funded by XNUMX scientific programs.
3440 specialists work in the intelligence and communications center. Of these, 1780 is a research staff. Budget 1 billion 233 million dollars a year!
As a result, the author made the following general conclusions:
- in the USA, the tendency of increasing military potential is maintained due to an increase in information technology, accumulation of a database and knowledge of military content about other states. The command and control of troops is computerized, forecast models of combat scenarios are created with the calculation of forces, assets and mobilization reserves. Features of military doctrine: there is no specific enemy, there are national interests of the United States. A high level of achievement is ensured, taking into account the developing civilization, technical and social culture in the world;
- research in biology, physiology, psychology focused on the subject of hostilities in the geographical and ecological environment of various theaters of operations. There is an intense accumulation of a database of the physical, psychological, and cultural components of the draft age of all the satellite countries of the United States;
- scientific research concerning the means of life support protection, survival of pilots, sailors, marines, paratroopers are universal and constantly improved.
A special place is given to information support for decision-making on board aircraft and ships, to creating means of bringing medical and psychological assistance directly to the combat area with the maximum speed of evacuation.
AND AGAIN ABOUT THE FIFTH GENERATION
In conclusion, I will dwell on complex issues related to the development of weapons in aviation, specifically on the 5 generation.
Historically, our parity after the creation of the 4 generation of aircraft with the United States actually became equal. From a psychological point of view, the 4 generation of highly mobile fighter aircraft, helicopters, strategic airline complexes met an educated, motivated, healthy society of aviators. For the first time, when they were created, conditions were provided for tight military-scientific support, including in the field of military ergonomics and psychophysiology. The ideology of interfacing a person with automation has been worked out. We developed a special protective anti-overloading equipment, a profile of training on a centrifuge, complexes of physical exercises. Created ground equipment to predict the pilot's portability of large and long overloads during a high level of maneuvering. They substantiated and implemented the norms of flight loads and health requirements. For the first time, jobs, armament consoles on MiG-29, Su-27 aircraft and their naval modifications met ergonomic requirements.
The overall result: both during the development period and during operation compared with 3 generation aircraft, the number of pilot errors due to accidents and catastrophes decreased by 4 – 5 times, and the number of catastrophes decreased by 6 times. However, it is necessary to note the following important circumstances.
The highly maneuverable aircraft began to “select” health with more and more confidence. One of the reasons rooted in poor physical training of flight personnel, in reducing the educational level among the teaching and teaching staff. As a result, it was necessary to limit the maneuverability of the aircraft, that is, to operate the aircraft not in full its flight performance. Accordingly, flight methodical documents began to resemble the standards of the security service. As a result, the operational and tactical art of the combat use of 4 generation aircraft did not fully take into account their main advantage over the 3 generation - super maneuverability and thrust-to-weight ratio. In many respects, they continued to be guided to a certain extent by the standards of peacetime.
It should be emphasized that it is unacceptable to transfer the success of demonstration flights at an air show to the daily practice of the troops. I say this because for the safe operation of the 5 generation aircraft in the future, much remains to be done. First of all, we need fundamentally new sets of anti-overload suits with special automatics of oxygen breathing under increased pressure. For the security interests of maneuverable flight with high overload, 9 – 12 g, with its increase gradient over 1 – 3 seconds, require the creation of an automatic control system for the level of consciousness, and in case of the threat of its breakdown, automatic horizontal flight. Currently, the process of introducing such systems.
The use of helmet-mounted sighting devices, night-vision devices, target indications mounted on the pilot’s head is not indifferent and even dangerous for the cervical vertebrae, for the brain’s blood circulation, for lateral overloads during engine thrust control. And especially dangerous are the special kind of illusions and disorientations when piloting at high angles of attack and gliding.
According to my ideas, in order to ensure the whole system of health preservation and high human performance during the operation of 5-generation airplanes in the entire LTH range, 5 – 7 will require years of intensive work of specialists with ergonomic and psychophysiological profiles. The parity state of the 5 generation of airplanes with any aviation power is not only a successful war, it is above all a stable reliable world.
In the coming years, the targeted R & D and ROC should be increased by means of medical protection, technical means: training, rescue, life support, the creation of a new generation of Yak-130 training aircraft, new onboard computing weapons control systems.
In recent years, there have been many positive changes in the field of health preservation and in the military security system. First of all, new instrumental methods of diagnosing occupational health levels are adopted and formed in aviation, computer networks for accumulating databases and health knowledge are being created, reformed in hospitals and sanatoriums of the Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, automated advisory systems are being tested to control and manage load rationing. The development of nanotechnologies regulating mental endurance and the formation of new functional systems that alter the stereotype of homeostasis, taking into account the specific effects of stimuli on the target organ, began. The principle of forming reserves “from survival to creation” is being introduced, using the properties of physical matter of wave nature and energy fields of Universe space. Science is not in place. It is desirable to strengthen the humanitarian sections of military doctrines, including the introduction of a number of provisions on health as the leading component of combat readiness and combat capability. We really need such legislation on labor, on military service, on rescuers, on activities in extreme conditions that would make it impossible to achieve success at the cost of losing the health of our citizens. This is not a myth, since health preservation is the reproduction of a new Russia.
At the same time, it is necessary to adopt legislation that in ensuring the mental and physical health of the nation there is no alternative to state priorities and responsibility for national policy. A healthy person is not so much defensive, adaptable, closing, as an open system with the won right to choose an independent decision, to permanent spiritual enrichment, to increase the potential of its capabilities.
A truly healthy person not only reflects the world and its conditions, but also creates them himself.
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