SIXTY YEARS OF THE MILITARY TECHNICAL COURIER

 

In 2012, the Military Technical Courier, a scientific journal of the Ministry of Defence of the Republic of Serbia, marks the 60th anniversary of its regular and continuous publishing.

 

The Military Technical Courier was founded by a decree of the Chief of the General Staff of the Yugoslav Army in August 1952 in order to continue the tradition of five reviews of military branches and services (Artillery Courier, Tank Courier, Military Engineering Courier, Courier of Engineering and Chemical Units of the Yugoslav Army, Courier of Communications and Logistics and Support of the Yugoslav Army) which had been covering tactics and technique issues from 1947 to 1952. According to the founding act, the main tasks of the Military Technical Courier were “to consider and study issues regarding armament, technical and other material equipment of the branches and services concerning the knowledge of the materials, their handling, application, effects, storage, repair and upgrading as well as to deal with technical issues of the organisation, war experience of logistic services and military traffic and evacuation.” Chief of the General Staff’s decree of 16th December 1952 founding the first editorial board that “has a directive to be responsible for the review editing” was followed by the first issue of the Military Technical Courier in January 1953.

 

The Military Technical Courier will pay special tributes to the military technical publications published in our country before 1945 (in the Kingdom of Serbia, Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenians and later the Kingdom of Yugoslavia). The following reviews represent the foundations of the Serbian military technology reasoning: Artillery and Engineering Courier (1905-1906), Artillery Courier (1926-1932), Infantry and Artillery Courier (1933-1941), Engineering Courier (1929-1940), Aviation Courier (1927-1941) and Nautical Courier (1933-1940). There is no doubt that their quality and professional profiles paved also the way to today’s Military Technical Courier; however, unfavorable historical reasons pushed them unfairly into the background of our memories.

 

We are proud to continue their tradition as well.

 

The journal has been publishing papers dealing with military technical resources and provisions as well as with development, production and exploitation of weapons and military equipment, enhancing its reputation in both military and civilian structures. The journal has developed from a publication for the education of officers in the period of scarce adequate military technical literature to a professional and scientific journal presenting scientific and technical achievements and information important for the development, production and exploitation of weapons and military equipment.

 

The journal’s structure, sections and areas of interest have changed with respect to the Army’s technical and organizational development and modernization, following the journal’s conceptual and editorial policy. 

During its 60 years of existence, the journal has been changing its characteristics, form and content, aiming to meet the requirements of both practice and science. From 1952 to 1961, it was a professional review for weaponry, military equipment and supply; until 1966, it was a professional review of the YA branches and services and a YA professional journal onwards.

 

Owing to its editorial policy, the journal continued to improve its conception, orientation, quality and position thus becoming a scientific and professional periodical highly regarded not only in military circles but in academic and scientific circles in the country as well. It has held the title of a professional and scientific journal since 1989.

According to the Opinion of the Ministry of Science and Technological Development No 413-00-1201/2001-01 of 12th September 2001, the Military Technical Courier is a publication of special interest for science.

 

Being classified as a scientific journal of national interest by the Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic of Serbia, the Military Technical Courier is today a scientific journal publishing scientific and professional papers from the following categories: mathematics, information science and mechanics, electronics and telecommunications, mechanical engineering, materials and chemical technologies, industrial software and information technologies, geosciences and astronomy.

 

 The journal is in the Serbian Citation Index – SC index and is constantly monitored depending on the impact within the base itself and on the international (Thompson-ISI) citation indexes. Since 2011, an electronic edition of the Military Technical Courier has been available at www.vtg.mod.gov.rs in Serbian, Russian, English, German and French.

 

As a unique and competent publication on a national level, the Military Technical Courier publishes and verifies scientific and professional papers, those of the members of the Ministry of Defence and the Army of Serbia in particular, who thus have the opportunity to quantify their scientific and research results. 

The Military Technical Courier will continue to represent the scientific potential of the Army of Serbia and the Ministry of Defence of the Republic of Serbia and to support the efforts of institutions and individuals aiming at solving existing problems and making improvement in all areas of military technical science. 

Nowadays, the Military Technical Courier is not only an institutional resource being developed within the defence system from 1952, but also a brand of national interest. 

 

It has therefore become an open forum for the publication and stimulation of innovative thinking about all aspects of science and technology, coming from not only the Army and MoD members, but from the national and international community as well.

 

Editor

Nebojša Gaćeša