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First Army commanding general visits 188th Infantry Brigade

  • Published
  • By Sgt. 1st Class Stephanie Widemond
  • 188th Infantry Brigade
FORT STEWART, Ga. --  Operation Bold Shift, a First Army initiative which shifts the training of national guard and reserve component Soldiers from post-mobilization training to pre-mobilization training, affects both Soldiers and civilians across the division. For the observer-coach/trainers of 188th Infantry Brigade, a tenant training brigade on Fort Stewart, this means growth is on the horizon. In addition to the two active duty battalions and three reserve battalions, the brigade will gain other support battalions, enabling the O-C/Ts to provide better coverage to the training units they advise and assist.

"For the past twelve years, you have had no effort in shaping the Soldiers training in pre-mob. We will be focusing exclusively on warfighters, XCTCs, and CTC rotations," said Lt. Gen Michael Tucker, First Army's commanding general.

Combat Training Centers and eXportable Combat Training Capabilities are programs designed to keep Soldiers, guardsmen and reservists trained and ready.

This was his eleventh stop, visiting 188th Infantry Brigade to impart knowledge about Operation Bold Shift, from which the training brigade stands to gain significantly.

"You are going to increase instead of being reduced," said Tucker. At other stops like Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst in New Jersey, the news was not as positive.

The growth means that many changes need to take place prior to FY17, when all the dust is settled. Currently, the 188th is transitioning into a new building to accommodate the increase in personnel. The 756th Explosive Ordnance Detachment Company is moving to the now deactivated 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, compound, and the 188th is moving to the EOD compound.

More support battalions means better skill set matching between O-C/Ts and the platoons being trained. This means engineers will observe engineers, and other military occupational specialties will see a similar pairing. As a part of the Total Force Readiness policy, having reservist and national guardsmen trained by a subject matter expert in their specific MOS means a more readily deployable force.

"Forces Command trains units, you train units. You are out there to enhance unit readiness as a part of the ARFORGEN cycle," said Tucker. He served as the G3 for 3ID from 1999 to 2001, and recalled the preparation for CTC rotations with Marne Focus.

The Army Force Generation cycle is a structured progression of unit readiness that ensures there is a ready pool of deployable units for any mission that may arise. The "available pool" is used to support a commander in an area of operation. The other two pools are "RESET" and "train/ready".

The 188th maintains an increased operational tempo in order to assist the training units with mission readiness. Over the past summer, the active duty battalions, 1-306th Infantry Regiment and 2-306th Field Artillery Battalion, have supported missions in Camp Grayling, Michigan, Camp Blanding Florida, and Fort Pickett, Virginia, as well other smaller missions. This summer, the focus is on the 86th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, Vermont National Guard; and the 116th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, Virginia National Guard. The training brigade also has support missions at Joint Readiness Training Center, Fort Polk, Louisa.

"A pacing item is a piece of equipment so integral to the unit, that without it you are unable to execute your mission. In First Army, our pacing item is the O-C/Ts. You are where First Army makes contact with the training unit," Tucker said.

With an op-tempo that continues to challenge the brigade and so many moving parts, it is necessary to have continuity in the brigade. Civilians provide that continuity.

"This is your current structure. You've got nine positions and you are growing to fifteen. Civilians add continuity to our force when we rotate out," said Tucker. The civilian force remains an integral part of the Total Army Force.

Operation Bold Shift helps achieve Army Total Force Policy needs and maintains a flexible, agile force necessary to provide training support at training centers and home stations. For all Army assets, it's a win-win situation.