FORT BENNING, Ga., (March 9 2016) -- Commemorating the 25th anniversary of Operation Desert Storm, four commanders reunited in Marshall Auditorium Feb. 26 to recount the trials and triumphs of leading Soldiers into battle.
The event was part of the Maneuver Center of Excellence Leader Development Program. In introducing the speakers, Col. Patrick Donahoe, MCoE chief of staff, said it was a chance for Soldiers to learn more about the joint combined arms maneuver, which led to the successful liberation of Kuwait.
"They will lead us through an examination of their lessons and the enduring nature of warfare as they pass the torch from their generation to the oncoming generation that sit in the seats with us today," said Donahoe.
Speaking at the event included retired Col. Robert Botters who commanded the 1st Battalion, 18th Infantry Regiment; retired Maj. Gen. Ronald Richard, 2nd Marine Division commander's assistant, retired Lt. Gen. John Sylvester, commander of the 1st Brigade, 2nd Armored Division and retired Maj. Gen. Walter Wojdakowski, commander of 3rd Bn., 41st Inf. Regt.
Operation Desert Storm, the combat phase of Operation Desert Shield, was a U.S. led effort involving 34 nations to oust Saddam Hussein's Iraqi forces from Kuwait and marked the first victory after Vietnam.
While all of the officers played a different role in the success of Desert Storm, their advice focused on a similar theme: training.
"As leaders in the Army, your challenge is going to be to provide good training every day, all day. That's a challenge, you know that," said Wojdakowski.
Sylvester echoed a similar opinion, emphasizing that training doesn't stop during deployment.
"Even out in the middle of the desert when you're not at war, you best be preparing for it. Every single day, day in and day out," said Sylvester.
This dedication to training helped forge a new chapter for an Army that 15 years prior was at the bottom of the public's sense of trust after leaving Vietnam in '72, said Brig. Gen. Scott McKean, Armor commandant, who set the scene before the officers spoke.
"We had to train our forces so they were ready to fight in any environment, especially in the central plains of Europe. So we opened the National Training Centers and other training centers to start getting after these competencies," said McKean.
This training led to an Army that was at the pinnacle of readiness in 1990, said McKean.
While success was declared quickly in Desert Storm, with Kuwait liberated 100 hours after the ground attack commenced, being prepared to expect the unexpected is important, said Wojdakowski.
"What we do is really hard, and because it's so hard things don't go really smooth all the time," said Wojdakowski. "We need to be ready to react to that."
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