LEAVENWORTH, Kan. - Soldiers of the 35th Infantry Division, from the Kansas and Missouri Army National Guards, continued preparations for their upcoming overseas deployment during two separate five-day command post exercises (CPX) held at Camp Clark, Missouri.
"One of the commander's training objectives is to centralize operations and to be expeditionary," said Col. Jeff Van, 35th Infantry Division deputy commanding general operations.
The 35th Division left the comfort of Leavenworth and deployed its mobile command post to Camp Clark. The reason to conduct the CPX at Camp Clark as opposed to Leavenworth, was to better simulate a real deployment, where both states could combine to accomplish a shared mission to enhance the overall collective readiness of the unit and Soldiers.
"We decided to change what's been normal in the past of doing the collective training at Fort Leavenworth," said Van. "And instead deploy our headquarters to a centralized site that would be easily accessible for both States to enhance collective training and better support."
The exercises, held in both December and January, are a continuation of training efforts built from lessons learned at last summer's warfighter exercise held in Leavenworth, Ks. As opposed to a large-scale warfighter exercise, which included multiple elements from various Active, National Guard and Reserve units across the country, these CPXs consist only of 35th Inf. Div. Soldiers.
"The CPXs serve to establish a baseline of division readiness that allow us to tailor training for future command post exercises," said Col. Timothy Bush, 35th Infantry Division chief of staff. "It's really an incredible opportunity that allows us to go through multiple repetitions of a specific battle drill and better familiarize all staff personnel with their individual functions."
The first CPX, conducted in December, gave the Soldiers of the 35th the opportunity to fine tune those individualized practices while simultaneously creating a more cohesive team.
"Information in this environment does not just flow vertically up and down the chain-of-command - it has to flow laterally to each section that might benefit from that information," said Van. "If you don't exercise this, it won't just come over night."
Taking what was learned from the experiences of the first CPX, 35th division leadership had a better idea of areas needing focus as they moved into the second CPX in January.
"We took the smaller pieces that needed work, and went through a crawl-walk-run process," said Van. "This allows us not only to better ourselves through individual functions but be able to re-evaluate ourselves and improve our overall process as we move forward."
Moving forward requires 35th division Soldiers to remain not only tactically proficient in their professions, but to become their very best. Leadership within the 35th has managed to spearhead this challenge by incorporating an aggressive and comprehensive training plan that includes extended drill periods, language courses and increased communication within the organization itself.
The continuity in training and increased frequency in practice have been staples in the division's success, allowing for accelerated learning.
"Repetition is key," said Van. "And these efforts will be seen when we arrive overseas and are ready to tackle a 24-hour cycle of supporting those brigades that we're commanding."
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