Lt. Col. Mel Nickell (left), First Army Division West Intelligence director, discusses mentoring strategies with Maj. James Faircloth, an observer coach/trainer with the Mission Command Training Program's Operations Group Delta, during Warfighter 15-...
FORT HOOD, Texas -- Staging the largest exercise of the U.S. Army is no small task. It requires more than a year of preparation, both for the participating units and the thousands of personnel who stage the battle.
Warfighter is a division-level, mission command training exercise with the battle staff of several brigades joining in the fight. First Army provides the framework and exercise direction for Warfighters involving Army National Guard and Army Reserve units in partnership with the U.S. Army Combined Arms Center's Mission Command Training Program staff.
First Army is an executive agent of U.S. Army Forces Command that is mission-focused on the readiness of all Army National Guard and Army Reserve units. The MCTP provides scenario design, world-class opposing forces and a cadre of expert observer coach/trainers to cover down on every warfighting functional area of each unit participating in the exercise and to mentor Soldiers within each command's staff groups.
Warfighter 15-5, held at Fort Hood June 3 -12, showcased the Army's Total Force Partnership Program, which helps transition units into the available pool for deployment as part of the Army Force Generation cycle. Warfighter 15-5 featured the Texas Army National Guard's 36th Infantry Division at the center of the battle, with eight additional brigades or subordinate units from across the United States, including the active-duty 101st Airborne Division Artillery; the U.S. Army Civilian Affairs and Psychological Operations Command, which is primarily Army Reserve; and the California Army National Guard's 40th Combat Aviation Brigade.
More than 2,800 Soldiers participated in the Warfighter 15-5 training audience. They were supported by an exercise staff of nearly 2,000 personnel working in the exercise design, simulation and response cells to facilitate the battle observed by OC/Ts.
This Warfighter was so big, some participants were located at Camp Atterbury, Ind., and Fort Leavenworth, Kan.
"This is a complex and resource-intensive experience for training audience commanders and their Soldiers," said First Army Division West commander, Maj. Gen. Jeffrey N. Colt. "This gives them a multi-echelon experience, and I have seen the 36th Division and their subordinate units make tremendous strides and grow in their confidence over the course of the exercise."
Colt offered high praise for the partnership between First Army and the MCTP.
"We are a training team that is complementary of what our mission focus and organizational skills sets bring to the table. There is training synergy among us here, and together we make this the centerpiece of ARFORGEN," he said.
Col. Edward Bohnemann, commander of the MCTP, also sees the value of the teamwork with First Army.
"This partnership is building leadership readiness of our Guard and Reserve units. Together we are creating better readiness across the board of the total Army," Bohnemann said.
Another example of the total Army commitment to the Warfighter exercise was demonstrated by the active-duty Soldiers of the 3-1 Cavalry Squadron, who worked in the response cell to keep actions moving in the battlefield.
"The [active component-reserve component] cooperation is crucial for these exercises. The 3-1 Cav Soldiers did such a great job here that they have established a new model to follow," said David Ruggere, a First Army exercise specialist. "The partnership demonstrated at Warfighter proves that ARFORGEN and the total Army is working."
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