Going Tactical: Seeing the operations center in action

Photo By Staff Sgt. Anthony Jones | Staff Sgt. Eran Harrill, the Joint Multinational Training Group - Ukraine staff simulation noncomissioned officer in charge and a member of the 45th Infantry Brigade Combat Team from Oklahoma City, writes down information relayed by Staff Sgt. Thomas Brumley, a 45th Soldier from Stillwater, Oklahoma, during a tactical operations center demonstration for Ukrainian staff officers from the 79th Air Assault Brigade and trainers from the Yavoriv Combat Training Center held at the Yavoriv CTC on the International Peacekeeping and Security Center, near Yavoriv, Ukraine, on May 12. (Photo by Sgt. Anthony Jones, 45th Infantry Brigade Combat Team)  

YAVORIV, UKRAINE

05.12.2017

Story by Sgt. Anthony Jones 

45th Infantry Brigade Combat Team

U.S. Army Soldiers assigned to the Joint Multinational Training Group-Ukraine demonstrated a NATO-style tactical operations center for staff officers from Ukraine's 79th Air Assault Brigade at the Yavoriv Combat Training Center on May 12.

"Today was a demonstration of a tactical operations center at the battalion level," said Capt. Kurt Jarvis, JMTG-U's simulations mentor who led the demonstration.

Jarvis, an officer with the 45th Infantry Brigade Combat Team from Edmond, Oklahoma, said Ukrainian TOCs are traditionally smaller than NATO-based operations centers and this display shows the number of people it takes to run a larger TOC effectively.

The demonstration provided both the 79th Air Assault Brigade, whose 1st Airmobile Battalion is at the CTC training, and the CTC staff a look at how a NATO-based TOC functions, a key element in building interoperability with NATO forces.

This provides the CTC with a better understanding of the NATO style TOC, enabling their trainers to teach the structure and staff functions to future battalions that will train at Yavoriv, Jarvis explained.

"The Ukrainian army wants to reflect a NATO tactical operations center, and that requires adding more people," Jarvis said. "This shows them a way to man the TOC and how NCOs can support it."

During the demonstration, Jarvis initiated several scenarios that put the U.S. staff to the test. Each staff section ranging from personnel and supply sections to the intelligence and fire-support sections were represented.

At the center of the action was the battle NCO.

Jarvis said the demonstration was designed to highlight the importance of having an NCO in the operations center to assist the battle captain, the officer in charge, in filtering information and making decisions.

As information came in through radio calls, the battle NCO took that information and provided it to the battle captain while updating maps and critical information tracking sheets and took direction from the battle captain on what actions needed to be taken.

"This shows NCOs are critical to operating a tactical operations center," Jarvis said. "This was tailored to show the battle NCO assisting the battle captain in the TOC."

Staff Sgt. Eran Harrill, the JMTG-U staff simulations noncommissioned officer in charge and a 45th IBCT Soldier, acted as the battle NCO and said the demonstration ties into the training units receive at the Yavoriv Combat Training Center.

"This helps involves products from all sections and gives a visual of what that looks like," Harrill said. "[It shows] how everything comes together in TOC operations."

• Date Taken: 05.12.2017
• Date Posted: 05.12.2017 12:11
• Story ID: 233609
• Location: YAVORIV, UA
• Hometown: EDMOND, OK, US
• Hometown: NORMAN, OK, US
• Hometown: OKLAHOMA CITY, OK, US
• Hometown: STILLWATER, OK, US
• Hometown: TULSA, OK, US