Photo By Maj. Bryce Gatrell | Soldiers from the 42nd Infantry Division, 36th Infantry Division, and 1st Armored...... read more read more
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Fort Indiantown Gap, Pa. — The chief of operations silences the whirling chatter with an authoritative announcement, “attention in the COIC.” Every Soldier in the Command Operations and Information Center freezes, and in unison echoes, “attention in the COIC.”
That phrase is all too familiar for the roughly 100 Soldiers assigned to the 1st Armored Division, Fort Bliss, Texas who are supporting the 42nd Infantry Division, New York Army National Guard and the 36th Infantry Division, Texas Army National Guard’s Warfighter Exercise 23-5 here from May 28 to June 11.
“It has been a real pleasure to work with the experienced 42nd and 36th Divisions,” said Brig. Richard Bell (UK), deputy commanding general of maneuver, 1st Armored Division. “We have learnt a lot and used our recent experience on Warfighter to build our shared understanding and training proficiency.”
A few weeks earlier, the 1st Armored Division successfully completed their own warfighter, WFX 23-4, at Fort Bliss, Texas. Because of this recent proficiency, Old Ironsides was selected to play the role of the higher command and replicate III Corps for the National Guard division’s WFX 23-5.
Bell explained, “Warfighter is the premier training event for divisions worldwide and it has been a privilege for the 1st Armored Division to participate.”
These exercises are crucial in training Army staffs at the division and corps level.
“Warfighters involve a collection of simulations designed to stress the staff and their procedures,” said the 1st Armored Division Simulations Officer, Capt. Weston Benson. “These types of exercises are an important part of how the Army prepares for large scale combat operations against near peer threats.”
Warfighters take months of planning to successfully accomplish. A key driver for an exercise’s success lies with the simulations officer, who can start planning up to a year prior.
“WFX 23-5 was especially challenging,” Benson said. “It included numerous National Guard units from several states, as well as active-duty units.”
A simulations officer specializes in creating realistic simulation environments where leaders plan, train, test, and experiment to support readiness, modernization, and decision making.
“The first step in planning out a warfighter is identifying the commander’s training objectives,” Benson said. “Recognizing what the commander wants to achieve shapes how the exercise will be constructed.”
Once a simulations officer receives the commander’s guidance, they start outlining the exercise. They must balance the technical requirements with the human touch points of the simulation.
“You have to get the right number of personnel in the right locations to effectively replicate the training,” Benson said.
Allocating the training staff with the appropriate personnel and resources makes or breaks a warfighter. The more complex a warfighter is, the harder it is to plan.
WFX 23-5 was especially challenging to plan because it involved numerous units throughout the National Guard Bureau, from several states, as well as active-duty units. Thanks in part of the contributions made by Soldiers like Benson, the 42nd and 36th Infantry Divisions successfully completed WFX 23-5.
“As intricate as WFX 23-5 was, I had a lot of fun planning it,” Benson said. “I’m proud to have played a role in training the 42nd and 36th Infantry Divisions and the 1st Armored Division.”
| Date Taken: | 06.11.2023 |
| Date Posted: | 06.15.2023 14:16 |
| Story ID: | 447305 |
| Location: | FORT INDIANTOWN GAP, PENNSYLVANIA, US |
| Hometown: | EL PASO, TEXAS, US |
| Hometown: | TROY, NEW YORK, US |
| Web Views: | 103 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
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