FORT HOOD, Texas (Nov. 30, 2015) -- A lot goes into sending a brigade to a month-long exercise at the National Training Center, or NTC, on Fort Irwin, California, the Army's most realistic environment for commanders and their Soldiers.
Having recently completed a successful NTC training rotation, the 3rd Armored Brigade Combat Team, or ABCT, 1st Cavalry Division is sharing lessons learned with its partner unit, the 155th Armored Brigade Combat Team of the Mississippi National Guard, which is preparing for a NTC rotation next year.
"In the near term, we have a large combined training exercise, the [Multi-Echelon Integrated Brigade training exercise], which sets the conditions for the 155th to go to NTC in the summer of 2017," said Col. Matthew Van Wagenen, commander, 3rd ABCT. "The common purpose in both of our formations is building readiness."
About 18 months ago, Van Wagenen and Col. Jeffrey Van, commander of the 155th ABCT, took the lead on the Army's Total Force Partnership Program, where both units would benefit from each other's support and integrate each other into training.
Recently, senior leaders with the 155th ABCT visited Fort Hood to scout the training areas and attended briefings on the 3rd ABCT's NTC rotation.
"We've done more combined operations together, not just planning or gaining [standard operating procedures] but actually working together in field operations and supporting each other in this endeavor," Van said.
But the unique relationship extends even beyond training.
"It's not about command relationships," Van Wagenen said. "We don't have any authority over them, and they have none over us. It's actually about relationships in command. It's about commanders thinking it's more than a profession. It's a friendship, and it's a common purpose."
The key for the partnership to last is continuity. The relationships have to remain intact even as leaders come and go.
"We have to put systems and tools in place to make sure this partnership doesn't die with the current chain of command," Van said.
In addition to higher commands forming and strengthening their bonds, it's just as important to spread the partnership to the lowest level possible.
"What we really need is to get relationships at the company and platoon levels so we can get an integrated approach to partnership and probably, more importantly, a friendship," Van Wagenen said.
He also said the next time the Greywolf Brigade deploys will most likely be with a National Guard unit, which is why the components must maximize their time together building strong bonds - both in and out of training.
"The 155th and Greywolf Brigade are the first to establish this deep of a partnership in regards to the Army Total Force policy," Van Wagenen said. "There's a deep partnership that I think is embedded in friendship that transcends anything that can be formalized on paper. That's what is going to make a difference on the next battlefield."
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