Logistic Support Head Office (JAL)
Force Support
The Logistic Support Head Office, under direct command of the Chief of the Spanish Navy, is the department in charge of all material issues.
Its tasks include the direction, management, administration and control of all Spanish Navy material resources: from the procurement and shipbuilding of naval units, aircraft, combat vehicles and shore facilities, to the maintenance and sustainment of all the equipment, transport and support and supply matters.
One of the activities with greater external projection of the JAL is the building of new ships on the part of Navantia Shipyards. One of the star projects designed in its offices was the aircraft carrier ‘Príncipe de Asturias’ which was the base design for the carrier ordered by the Thai Navy, the ‘Chakri Naruebet’. It was the only occasion where a shipyard built an aircraft carrier for another naval service, other than the Navy of its own country.
The shipbuilding of the AEGIS-equipped ‘Álvaro de Bazán’-class frigates (F-100) resulted in an export project of the modern F-310 ‘Fridtjof Nansen’-class frigates for the Norwegian Navy and the ASW ‘Hobart’-class destroyers for the Royal Australian Navy. Another shipbuilding project is the new S-80 submarine with innovative air independent propulsion system (AIP).
Another group of ships included the ‘Galicia’-class (amphibious assault ships) and the ‘Patiño’-class (logistic ships), built in collaboration with Dutch shipyards that built sister ships. In order to properly conduct its logistic support tasks, the JAL has a series of arsenals and bases to monitor shipbuilding projects, maintenance endeavors and supply and replenishment issues during the life-cycle of the different naval units and centers.
They are located all over the Spanish littoral: Ferrol and Las Palmas in the Atlantic Ocean, Rota and San Fernando in the Strait of Gibraltar and Cartagena in the Mediterranean Sea. There are also a series of minor naval stations with the same support tasks but at a smaller scale.
JAL’s Main StructureThe Logistic Support Head Office (JAL) is structured into the following departments:
- JAL Admiral’s Office
- Adjutancy
- Auxiliary Body
- NCO’s Office
- Naval Shipbuilding Directorate
- Maintenance Directorate
- Infrastructures Directorate
- Replenishment and Transport Directorate
- Peripheral Subordinate Organizations
These JAL subordinate organizations provide the necessary logistic support to the units and facilities within their competence.
- Cadiz Bay Head Office including the ‘La Carraca’ arsenal
- Ferrol arsenal
- Cartagena arsenal
- Las Palmas arsenal (Canary Islands)
With these facilities the Spanish Navy collaborates with other State security and constabulary forces with responsibilities in the maritime domain. Other missions include: fisheries control, scientific research, search and rescue (SAR) and fight against sea pollution.
