Expd Planning

A Brief Introduction To Expedition Planning

Afghanistan's Taliban regime has been deposed and the lofty peaks of the Hindu Kush beckon. So, fundamentally, what do you have to do in order to organise and lead a AAA expedition? Well, you need to:

  • Come up with an expedition concept
  • Contact the AAA Expedition Member
  • Put the expedition concept down on paper (ideally just a couple of pages) and write up the Expedition Leader's climbing/trekking/ski-touring CV
  • Obtain the AAA Committee's endorsement of the concept and of the Expedition Leader
  • Commence the planning and preparation for the expedition
  • Draft an Adventurous Training Proposal (ATP)
  • Obtain the AAA Committee's approval of the draft ATP
  • Submit the ATP to HQ TC-A (at least six months in advance of the expedition's planned start date)
  • Obtain HQ TC-A's approval-in-principle for the expedition
  • Finalise the planning, carry on with the preparation
  • Draft a Mounting Instruction (MI) (as soon as possible after the expedition's plan and nominal roll of participants has stabilised to a reasonable degree)
  • Obtain the AAA Committee's approval of the draft MI
  • Submit the MI to HQ TC-A (at least three months in advance of the expedition's planned start date)
  • Obtain HQ TC-A's approval to run the expedition
  • CONDUCT THE EXPEDITION!
  • Write a (very brief) interim Post Activity Report (IPAR) (within seven days of the expedition's conclusion)
  • Submit the IPAR to the AAA Committee and HQ TC-A
  • Complete all post-expedition adminIncluding articles for the Service newspapers and the AAA Newsletter
  • Draft a Post Activity Report (PAR)
  • Obtain the AAA Committee's approval of the draft PAR
  • Submit the PAR to HQ TC-A
  • Follow-up the PAR recommendations as necessary
  • Consolidate all expedition documentation (including digital imagery) and send it to the AAA Expedition Member for inclusion in the AAA's permanent record
  • End ex

Typically, this whole process takes about 12 months from go-to-whoa for an international mountaineering expedition. Just to get you started, an expedition concept should address the following points:

  • What do you intend to do?
  • Where are you going to do it?
  • When are you going to do it and how long do you expect it to take?
  • Who is going to do it?
  • Numbers and the level of skill and experience they are likely to require
  • How are you going to do it?
  • 'Getting there and getting back', acclimatisation, climbing style, route/s, etc
  • How much is it likely to cost?
    • In cash (e.g. less than $1,000 a head, $1,000 - $2,000, ?.., $5,000+, etc)
    • In AAA resources (e.g. patrol rations, climbing equipment, etc)
  • What resources might have to be forecast for?

More information is available from AAA Expedition Member.