Photo By 1st Sgt. Mark Hanson | Lt. Col. Kevin Fujimoto, operations officer, 35th Infantry Division, briefs soldiers...... read more read more
Soldiers of the 35th Infantry Division completed one more phase of ongoing training Feb. 16 in preparation for their deployment to the Persian Gulf later this year.
Warfighter 17-3 at Fort Bliss, Texas, a three-week exercise, was part the Mission Command Training Program, which trains brigade-, division- and corps-level headquarters on their mission-essential tasks needed to support Unified Land Operations overseas.
The intent of the training is to challenge staffs to exercise all warfighting functions simultaneously as they face off against an enemy in a complex environment.
The Soldiers and staff of the 35th Infantry Division prepared for the complex environment of Warfighter 17-3 at two smaller-scale exercises, Command Post Exercises I and II, in December 2016 and January 2017. A major difference between the command post exercises and the warfighter exercise was the incorporation of the 1st Armor Division.
“[The warfighter] really raised the bar from the training we completed at CPX I and II,” said Col. Timothy Bush, 35th Infantry Division chief of staff. “It added another level of complexity, where we had to synchronize our operations with other elements who were trying to accomplish the same thing that we were. It challenged us as a staff to make sure that the effects of our operations were synchronized with a partner division.”
As an additional test, the warfighter incorporated a second new variable, the participation of III Corps, the higher headquarters unit.
Whereas previous exercises had only a notional higher headquarters, the real headquarters element at Warfighter 17-3 was able to think and make unanticipated decisions on its own, making it a much more realistic – and challenging – training environment.
“The Warfighter tests you and it makes you better by pitting you against the toughest, most challenging environment and a free-thinking, near-peer enemy,” said Bush. “By challenging yourself in that way, it forces you to refine your own processes and your own mission command procedures.”
However, the division arrived well-prepared and determined to meet those challenges head-on.
“I’m very proud of the division, proud of the staff,” said Bush. “I think the best thing about this staff is that there’s no quitting. All the way from day one of CPX I to the last day of Warfighter 17-3, every day we were trying to get better in every aspect.
“That is the most impressive thing about this division. It’s not just about what we have accomplished, but about how we accomplished it. It’s about the people who are part of the team.”
The division already has their sights set on the next hurdle, Command Post Exercise III, which takes place in May. While previous training scenarios exercised offensive and defensive operations, CPX III will test the staff’s ability to conduct stability operations, mimicking what the division will be doing as part of Operation Spartan Shield.
“We have already proved that the 35th is capable and competent in synchronizing the warfighting functions,” said Bush. “There is no doubt in my mind that we are one of the best divisions in the Army right now. This next phase is going to cause us to become even more adaptive, to be agile, and to take the great training that we have done and apply it to the area in which we are about to operate.”
| Date Taken: | 02.16.2017 |
| Date Posted: | 03.15.2017 22:13 |
| Story ID: | 226981 |
| Location: | TX, US |
| Web Views: | 101 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
This work, 35th ID meets training challenges head on, by MAJ Margaret St. Pierre, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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