Soldiers of the 103rd Intelligence and Electronic Warfare (IEW) Battalion supported 1st Armored Division during Warfighter 23-04 at Fort Bliss, Texas from 9-28 April. Intelligence Soldiers assigned to the battalion are trained to conduct multi-disciplined intelligence analysis and collection in support of maneuver forces.
The training event involved III Corps, 1st Armored Division, 1st Cavalry Division, and 3rd United Kingdom Division as training audiences and included other enablers from across the Army. III Corps trained as the tactical headquarters, leading three divisions as units of action. The exercise simulated the complexities of conducting mission command, maneuver, fires, and intelligence operations in a large scale combat operations environment. Warfighter 23-04 allowed the Dagger Battalion to execute their mission of providing additional intelligence analysis and collection capability to a Division as the Army's unit of action in a Large Scale Combat Operations scenario, enhancing the overall capability of the Division's G-2 (Intelligence) staff and ensuring lethality of reinforced maneuver elements.
“The IEW Battalion provides an intelligence capacity required for multi-domain operations,” said Lt. Col. Meghan Cumpston, 1st Armored Division G-2 and Senior Intelligence Officer. “This training experience set the foundation for integrating the IEW battalion support 1st Armored Division will receive in the future.”
The capability provided to 1st Armored Division for the exercise consisted of a processing, exploitation, and dissemination (PED) element, battle damage assessment team, Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) assessment team, and mission manager support.
"The IEW Battalion contains an essential intelligence capability a Division commander and their G-2 require to execute effective intelligence operations when considering the complexity of large scale combat operations," said LTC Marcus O'Neal, 103rd IEW Battalion Commander.
This training event was Dagger Battalion's third major training exercise since its activation on September 16, 2022. The battalion previously supported 3rd Infantry Division's Warfighter 23-02 in November 2022, as well as 3rd Infantry Division's National Training Center Rotation in January of 2023.
“The training opportunity with 1st Armored Division provided our battalion with an opportunity to integrate with another Division and was instrumental in validating our operational concept of how we integrate with and support Division operations,” said Lt. Col. O’Neal. " I look forward to implementing lessons learned and adjusting our individual and collective training plans to be more prepared to support XVIII Airborne Corps and 3rd Infantry Division operational requirements."
Last year, the 103rd IEW Battalion reactivated as part of Army modernization efforts in support of a Division. Following Warfighter 23-04, 103rd IEW Battalion Soldiers returned to Fort Stewart, Georgia to continue training, readiness, and posturing in support of contingency operations.
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