Active duty, National Guard units partner together

By Sgt. Brandon BanzhafAugust 4, 2015

Active duty, National Guard units partner together
1 / 5 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Maj. Gen. Michael Bills (left), 1st Cavalry Division commanding general, shakes hands with Col. Jeffrey Van, commander of the 155th Armored Brigade Combat Team, after visiting the training lanes Aug. 2 at Camp Shelby, Miss. Bills spent the day travel... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Active duty, National Guard units partner together
2 / 5 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Two M1A2 Abrams tanks with the 1st Battalion, 12th Cavalry Regiment, 3rd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division travel through a field during a "move to contact" lane Aug. 2 at Camp Shelby, Miss. The battalion is going through different la... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Active duty, National Guard units partner together
3 / 5 Show Caption + Hide Caption – An M1 Assault Breaching Vehicle simulates firing a mine clearing line charge across a mock minefield during a combined arms breach Aug. 2 at Camp Shelby, Miss. The 1st Battalion, 12th Cavalry Regiment, 3rd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Div... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Active duty, National Guard units partner together
4 / 5 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Lt. Col. Chris Alfeiri, commander of the 1st Battalion, 12th Cavalry Regiment, 3rd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division briefs Col. Matthew Van Wagenen, commander of 3rd ABCT, and Col. Jeffrey Van, commander of the 155th ABCT, along with... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Active duty, National Guard units partner together
5 / 5 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Col. Jeffrey Van (left), commander of the 155th Armored Brigade Combat Team, Mississippi Army National Guard, and Col. Matthew Van Wagenen, 3rd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division commander, observe a combined arms rehearsal during the ... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

FORT HOOD, Texas - Almost two years in the making, a multi-component partnership set out to execute a new idea.

The 3rd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division is working with its partner unit, the 155th Armored Brigade Combat Team, Mississippi Army National Guard in a large training exercise at Camp Shelby, Mississippi.

As the units progress through multiple levels of training during the Exportable Combat Training Capability (XCTC) exercise, the 1st Battalion, 12th Cavalry Regiment, 3rd ABCT will even operate as one of 155th ABCT's units.

Participants are operating according to the U.S. Army's Total Force Policy, which encourages National Guard and active duty units to train to one common standard to maximize effectiveness as a total force.

"The 1-12 Cav's mission here is to partner with the 155th Armored Brigade Combat Team in support of Army National Guard training objectives to complete the XCTC, which is their preparation for their MBTE [Multi-echelon integrated Brigade Training Exercise] at Fort Hood, with a follow on mission to the National Training Center in 2017," said Command Sgt. Maj. Ronald Graves, a Tipler, Wisconsin, native and senior enlisted advisor of 1-12 Cav.

With a successful decisive action NTC rotation in the 3rd ABCT's rear view mirror, the brigade has strived to take what they learned and use it alongside its partner, the 155th ABCT, to strengthen the cohesion of the two units for upcoming missions.

Knowing that the units could be working together in the future, Col. Matthew Van Wagenen, 3rd ABCT commander, and Col. Jeffrey Van, commander of the 155th ABCT, met multiple times throughout the past year to discuss options and plan the execution of the exercise.

About 500 Soldiers from 1-12 Cav and other sister battalions came to Camp Shelby to train with the 155th ABCT during the XCTC, an exercise focused on executing operations from the level of the individual Soldier through the brigade.

"It has opened the relationship to share techniques, tactics and procedures among the units," Van said. "The guard, reserve and active [components] have come together as a common element during this exercise."

Following the XCTC, the units will complete the MBTE, an exercise that puts a magnifying glass over the companies to evaluate how they operate, at Fort Hood next year.

The two field training exercises allow valuable home station training, which gives both units a wide range of diverse training objectives, while simultaneously minimizing costs.

Upon completion, the units will then head to NTC at Fort Irwin, California, which tests the participating units all the way through brigade level.

During the exercise, the 1-12 Cav "Chargers" will be operating within the 155th ABCT as a supporting unit throughout their missions, building the partnership to a point where the units can coexist and work fluidly together.

As the 1-12 Cav arrived at Camp Shelby, the unit quickly learned how to resource the support of 155th ABCT, which has led to even greater integration and has strengthened the relationship between the units.

This close partnership will increase the cohesion between both units, which will help when 155th ABCT trains with 3ABCT next year at Fort Hood.

"We learned a few things and will establish better TTPs [tactics, techniques, and procedures]," said Graves. "It's about building the relationships and TTPs so that it's a reverse effect when the 155th is at Fort Hood in 2016."

Graves said his Soldiers are taking on a number of different roles within the Mississippi training exercise, including setting up training lanes and role playing, which will mutually assist both units to refine their tactical operating procedures.

"I think our Soldiers are performing outstanding," said Graves. "There are different sets of conditions. One of the challenges is the heat condition, but we piled on some of our own takes like small arms training and drivers training. We are improving our training simultaneously while supporting the 155th."

There are observer controllers that evaluate both the 155th ABCT and 1-12 Cav as they conduct their missions and complete their training objectives. After everything is over, the observers will perform multiple after action reviews that will give input on how the units went about accomplishing their tasks, and provide insight on how to improve.

"This is a tremendous opportunity for both units to operate together in a stressful, yet safe environment; we are mutually building capacity," said Van Wagenen. "While we cannot predict when we will need to answer our nation's call to action, exercises like this XCTC help ensure we are ready to work alongside one another as a fully-integrated, effective and lethal force."