U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Joel De La Cruz, an infantryman assigned to the 10th Mountain Division, Task Force Armadillo, briefs his soldiers prior to training Syrian Free Army (SFA) soldiers at a combat outpost in the Deconfliction Zone, Syria, on Feb. 7, 2025. Coalition Forces assessed the SFA’s outpost’s conditions and trained SFA soldiers in personnel and vehicle searches, as well as checkpoint operations. The Coalition is dedicated to advising, assisting, and enabling partner forces to defeat ISIS and maintain regional security and stability. (U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Fred Brown)

CAMP BUEHRING, Kuwait – While deployed to the Middle East in support of Combined Joint Task Force - Operation Inherent Resolve, two Soldiers got the chance to live a week in each other’s shoes. An attack helicopter pilot from Task Force Pegasus, 101st Combat Aviation Brigade (CAB), 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) traded places with a ground mechanic from Task Force Guardian, 1st Brigade Combat Team 10th Mountain Division, as both units actively conduct combat operations to prevent the resurgence of ISIS. While deployed to Iraq and Syria, the units launched the Air-to-Ground Initiative on June 1, 2025, in alignment with the U.S. Army Transformation Initiative. The exchange program aimed at helping both organizations deliver critical warfighting capabilities faster.

“We are not just exchanging Soldiers, we are accelerating the development of warfighters who think, plan, and execute as one,” said Col. Tyler Partridge, commander of 101st CAB. “TF Pegasus and TF Guardian are forging a more integrated, ready, and lethal fighting force. 101st CAB aviators will know firsthand the instinctual resolve offered to the ground force by the sound of friendly rotor blades overhead.”

For the program, Task Force Guardian sent Staff Sgt. Shaquille Wisdom, a wheeled vehicle mechanic, to embed with Charlie Company ‘Phantoms’, 5th Battalion, 101st Aviation Regiment. At the same time, Warrant Officer Colton Francis, of TF Pegasus, was attached to Delta Company, 1st Battalion, 32nd Infantry Regiment ‘Chosin’. During the cooperative exchange, both troopers recognized the deliberate planning measures that ground and air personnel took to ensure mission success.

“Everything they do lines up with an Army standard operating procedure,” said Francis. “From operational orders to communications plans, personnel charts, route plans, and contingencies. It all has a purpose.”

“Everybody’s on the same page,” said Wisdom. “Every flight we go on, there are briefs. Everyone is tracking what is being carried and what we’re going to do at every stop.”

U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Shaquille Wisdom, temporarily assigned to Charlie Company “Phantoms,” 5th Battalion, 101st Aviation Regiment (Air Assault), poses next to a UH-60M Black Hawk helicopter at Erbil Airbase, Iraq, on June 6, 2025. Wisdom participated in the Air-to-Ground Initiative between Task Force Guardian and Task Force Pegasus, a joint effort aimed at building interoperability between aviation and ground forces to deliver critical warfighting capabilities more rapidly. (U.S. Army photo)

During the program, Wisdom experienced the duties of both UH-60 crew chiefs and CH-47 flight engineers, and he shadowed a senior lift pilot. His experience with the aviation company culminated in his flying as an extra crewmember on two combat air missions, an experience that taught him the value of cross-communication.

“It was amazing,” said Wisdom. “Especially the communication between the different pilots and different platoons. How they worked together when they went on missions was really cool.”

Wisdom was chosen in part because of to his willingness to learn. He recognized it was an important trait to have while working away from his assigned unit.

“It’s a learning experience,” said Wisdom. “It’s like school every day – something new. You have to be open to understand it all and open to learn from everyone.”

Capt. Madison Maguire, Phantoms company commander, mentioned she enjoyed having Wisdom on her team and expressed that the AGI helped both units grow their mutual respect.

“It gives people more of an appreciation of what we do on a daily basis, and also what the ground soldiers do,” said Maguire.

U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Shaquille Wisdom, temporarily assigned to Charlie Company “Phantoms,” 5th Battalion, 101st Aviation Regiment (Air Assault), shakes hands with Capt. Madison Maguire, commander of Charlie Company, next to a UH-60M Black Hawk helicopter at Erbil Airbase, Iraq, on June 6, 2025. Wisdom participated in the Air-to-Ground Initiative between Task Force Guardian and Task Force Pegasus, a joint effort to build interoperability between aviation and ground units and accelerate the delivery of critical warfighting capabilities. (U.S. Army photo)

While integrating with TF Guardian, Francis, an AH-64 Apache pilot, observed the final operation order brief for a logistical supply movement before executing. He then joined an infantry platoon as a gunner for a tactical convoy to an outstation in Syria. Francis noted the exchanged helped him learn valuable lessons about the sacrifices made by frontline Soldiers.

“When I got back to my unit, I was able to explain a lot of different things,” said Francis. “Now, I understand what goes on, on the ground and some of the challenges the ground Soldiers face. These guys have more miles and time outside the wire than anybody else. They have long drives, long days, little sleep, and terrible food. We traveled more than 1,000 miles in a few days – and they are still out there getting after it.”

As a former infantryman, Francis was impressed by the sheer firepower a single infantry unit could bring to bear and the wide variety of lethal effects available to them.

“They had the big Maxx Pro MRAP (mine resistant ambush protected) trucks with a gun in each turret,” said Francis. “Each vehicle is well armed and had at least six personnel per vehicle. In total, you got a platoon worth of Soldiers, each armed with weapons from an M17 to a .50-caliber machine gun.”

U.S. Army Warrant Officer 1 Colton Francis, temporarily attached to Delta Company, 1st Battalion, 32nd Infantry Regiment, conducts a patrol inside a MaxxPro Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) vehicle during the Air-to-Ground Initiative between Task Force Guardian and Task Force Pegasus. The initiative enhanced joint operational capability by improving interoperability between aviation and ground forces, enabling the faster delivery of critical warfighting capabilities across the theater. (U.S. Army photo)

Francis hopes the program will continue for attack aviators with no previous ground experience.

“I think this program would be extremely beneficial to people who have not had a combat military occupational specialty,” said Francis. “It will make them appreciate the hard work these Soldiers do day in and day out. It is important to see the long journeys and understand the details, planning, and operational knowledge that goes into these convoys that keep everything running.”

A key goal of the Air-to-Ground Initiative is to build a greater understanding of combined-arms operations between the air and ground forces to allow for a more seamless partnership.

“The integration of air and ground is critical to maximizing the lethality of combined arms maneuver,” said Col. Daniel Kearney, the commanding officer of 1st BCT and TF Guardian. “The combined efforts of Task Force Guardian, the ground component in OIR, and Task Force Pegasus, the aviation component of OIR, are creating a shared understanding of how we can leverage the total force to be lethal and ready to fight and win today.”

Both Soldiers found the swap incredibly rewarding and enjoyed being able to witness the camaraderie, tactics, and firepower of each other’s units firsthand. They noted the initiative was a deployment highlight they won’t soon forget.

“I had a blast hanging out with the guys,” said Francis. “Meeting the infantry Soldiers and getting to hang around them, reminded me where it all started.”

“This is the best experience I’ve had in my entire Army career,” said Wisdom. “I never got to do anything like this before, and they made me feel like I was a part of the team.”