Published in 2015, ‘When Failure Thrives – Institutions And The Evolution Of Postwar Airborne Forces‘ was the first imprint from Army Press.
Author Marc R Devore examines the post-1945 evolution of airborne forces the US, UK and USSR have ever accomplished their objectives at an acceptable cost.
Go ahead and read it, the arguments are always the same either way, but it’s worth knowing what gets put in from of decision makers.
Thanks to Mud!
Wearing Royal Thai Army (RTA) fatigues and black leather boots, a U.S. Army Green Beret wades waist deep through a swamp carrying a heavy rucksack and an old-fashioned Mannlicher M1888 bolt-action rifle. With soaked feet and pain spreading through tired muscles, there are still miles left to trudge.
The night prior, he slept an hour because of a successful patrol in the swamps. On nights where the patrols are unsatisfactory, he’s lucky for a half hour of uninterrupted sleep in the quagmire. Twenty-two hours out of the day are devoted to patrolling.
The other 72 days of the RTA Ranger School are just as relentless. Earning the Royal Thai Army Ranger Badge is a grueling effort, but high attrition rates are unusual for the course. The candidates rely on one another to push each other through to the end, whether it means carrying another’s rucksack for five weeks due to a broken ankle or a quick nudge to awaken a tired teammate. From Oct. 17 to Dec. 29, 2020, a Green Beret with 1st Special Forces Group (Airborne) attended the RTA’s Ranger School in the Kingdom of Thailand and earned the Thai Ranger Badge along with recognition as the course’s distinguished graduate.
Furthermore, he became the first U.S. servicemember to attend in more than 40 years, and the first to graduate the course in its modern form. Life changing is what Ranger School is, the Green Beret said. You can’t write or call your family back home; here, your family are your brothers and instructors.
The Green Beret was recognized as a valued teammate whom instructors came to rely on. As the course progressed, instructors placed him in key positions to facilitate the successful completion of missions within his platoon.
“It’s a lifetime bond here,” he said. “I will always remember these guys and I will always keep in contact with them. It’s like brother-to-brother mentorship.”
Ranger School consists of different phases: mountain, forest, swamp, maritime and urban combat. In each phase, a candidate is assessed on the positions of squad or platoon leader, medic, pace man and map, and compass man.
“As a Green Beret, we’re supposed to be masters of the basics,” the Green Beret said. “This course took me back to the basics. For instance, navigating off one map per platoon…In an [Operational Detachment Alpha], you have eight maps plus GPS.”
To pass RTA Ranger School, you must compose operations orders and lead squad or platoon-sized elements on missions. All interactions between teammates and instructors are in Thai.
“You have to be fluent in this language,” he said. “The instructors don’t speak English and there are no translators here.”
As well as being fluent in Thai, the Green Beret is U.S. Army Ranger qualified and drew a contrast between U.S. and RTA Ranger Schools. In U.S. Army Ranger School, a severe enough injury would result in a medical drop from the course, he said. At Thai Ranger School, instructors encourage Ranger Buddies to help one another by shouldering the weight of an injured soldier.
The course was comprised of students from U.S. Army Special Forces, Royal Thai Army, Royal Thai Police, Royal King’s Guards, and the Royal Thai Special Mission Unit. Of the 198 who started the course, 187 graduated.
According to the award write up given by the RTA, the Green Beret’s conduct demonstrates the value the U.S. Army places on equal partnership in support of the U.S.-Thai alliance. His performance set the example for future U.S. Army attendees to the RTA’s Ranger School.
“It’s not so much what he gives to my formation, but what he gives to our entire force at-large in that he is a tactical and cultural diplomat for our country and Army,” said the Soldier’s Company Commander from 1st SFG (A). “The skills that he comes back with and the relationships he forged while there will better prepare both countries to operate with each other for our mutual defense.”
Story by SGT Anthony Bryant, 1st Special Forces Group (Airborne)
Nothing could be more 2020 than the Air Force publishing a new version of AF Manual 36-2905 “Air Force Physical Fitness Program” on 11 December with a four component test, just four days after fundamentally changing the program by issuing guidance to eliminate the waist measurement component.
The test will still consist of a 1.5 mile run, 1 minute of pushups and 1 minute of situps. However, the composite score will be calculated with full points for the waist measurement portion until system changes can be made.
On the upside, the AFMAN is only 77 pages instead of the 147 pages in the old Air Force Instruction issued in 2013. Hopefully, it won’t take another seven years to update the latest, outdated guidance.
MOODY AIR FORCE BASE, Ga. (AFNS) —
After nearly 14 years of service in the Royal Air Force, Flight Lieutenant Chris Bradshaw has traveled 4,300 miles from the Force Protection Force of the RAF Regiment to share his expertise with the 820th Base Defense Group at Moody Air Force Base.
As part of a larger exchange program between the RAF and U.S. Air Force that encompasses positions from the Pentagon down, Bradshaw currently holds the position of director of operations at the 824th BDS.
“The relationship that the Royal Air Force has had with the base defense group is longstanding because we are likely to operate together,” Bradshaw said. “Every year there is a tri-service exercise between the U.K., the French and the Americans. The position here is to help develop that exercising program to make sure relationships are maintained and that we can be interoperable as we move forward into next-generation warfare.”
The position is filled on a volunteer basis. Applicants volunteered about a year and a half early and the RAF chose from that list. After being chosen, Bradshaw still had to complete a number of tasks to secure his position in the 820th BDG.
“I’ve moved over my family as well,” Bradshaw said. “So to bring my wife, who is an active-duty Royal Air Force officer and my son – that was a bit more tricky, (but) fortunately, the (Royal) Air Force managed to give her a three-year career break. We had to jump through that hoop initially to make sure we could continue on the process.
“Then, it was all the visa applications, making sure that I came out here and got to meet who I was going to work for. Then, it was just bouncing back and forth to sort out schooling and education for my son. There was a lot, but it’s been worth it.”
The Force Protection Force’s role is to mitigate vulnerabilities and ensure end-to-end protection of air and space power, at home or deployed. Bradshaw previously worked in Train Advise Assist Command – Air, in the air-to-ground role as a joint terminal attack controller.
“(A few years ago), that’s what I did for (about) four and a half years,” Bradshaw said. “Having that experience and then working for the 93rd Air Ground Operations Wing, I understand what they’re talking about because I speak the language, too.
“I became the director of operations for the 824th BDS because they wanted to plug-and-play some experience of mine. I’ll sit in that position for 18 months. Then, the plan is to move up to the group where I’ll conduct work directly for the colonel in an area of his choosing.”
Bradshaw isn’t the only one bringing unique opportunities to the table. The BDG offers multiple capabilities such as air assault, airborne, ranger and jungle courses that Bradshaw will be able to participate in and learn from.
“That will be good for me operating as an entity on the ground, protecting and defending our RAF assets and infrastructure,” Bradshaw said. “To have that link would be quite beneficial. I’m not going to get the opportunity again and I need to prove the concept for future exchange personnel that it’s open; the door is there. You need to step in and jump out.”
The tactical skills Bradshaw has and will have learned are not the only things he’s taking away from his time with the BDG. Bradshaw says his favorite experience from the program has been seeing people from diverse backgrounds and he’s looking forward to meeting more as he moves to new positions.
“The U.S. is so huge compared to the U.K. that even at the squadron level, you’ve got people from so many different backgrounds, so many different life hurdles and obstacles they’ve had to overcome, that the breadth of individual is vast,” Bradshaw said. “I’ve been extremely well integrated, well looked-after. Everyone is extremely friendly. I still get treated equally, which is as expected.
“It’s been a big change for us having to come across to make this leap, but it’s been made easier by that fact that people have been so welcoming.”
By SrA Hayden Legg and A1C Taryn Butler, 23rd Wing Public Affairs
Generally, works of fiction about the future are considered science fiction and allow us to look at current issues by placing our minds in a “what-if?” environment. In some cases, science fiction is also used as a wargaming tool to consider what might be.
Army University Press sponsors a Future Warfare Writing Program – program which is worth checking out.
They offer both Fiction and Nonfiction versions of the program where would-be futurists take a look at trends in Warfighting.
Complex [environment] is defined as an environment that is not only unknown, but unknowable and constantly changing. The Army cannot predict who it will fight, where it will fight, and with what coalition it will fight.
TRADOC Pamphlet 525-3-1; The U.S. Army Operating Concept: Win in a Complex World 2020-2040, 31 October 2014
Although it’s a few years old, the U.S. Army TRADOC Mad Scientist Initiative is my favorite.
Everything is available at www.armyupress.army.mil/Special-Topics/Future-Warfare-Writing-Program.
Two years ago, John Spencer wrote an article titled “A Soldier’s Urban Warfare Christmas Wish List” for the US Military Academy’s Modern War Institute. As the chair of urban warfare studies at MWI, he had spent a lot of time thinking about tasks soldiers would be required to perform in urban environments, but didn’t have the right equipment for. Here’s the list of the 10 items, but not the explanations. Visit the link for that.
1.) Industrial foam thrower
2.) Speaker drones
3.) Keys to a mining robot
4.) Rapid barrier emplacement wheels
5.) Grenade launcher–deployed curtains
6.) Tear gas
7.) Ballistic Shield
8.) Car battery recharging cable
9.) Disposable drone swarms
10.) A credit card and an amazon prime account
This year, he took another swing at it. While some of the items are still material in nature, they run the gamut of the DOTMLPF capabilities. He also upped the number to 12 capabilities.
I’ll share the list but not the discussion. Once again, for his reasoning, you should go read Spencer’s article.
1.) City watchers
2.) Warfare Watchers
3.) Google War
4.) Assistant company commander, platoon leader, and squad leader
5.) Body and vehicle cameras
6.) Remote, persistent, on-call mentor
7.) Tear gas
8.) Flamethrowers
9.) Winches on all vehicles
10.) Lightweight persistent smoke generator
11.) Dismounted remote firing stations
12.) Urban training battle effects
On Christmas Day, MWI released a podcast to discuss the list. You can find it on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify, or TuneIn.
This article is almost a year old and discusses United States Air Force participation in a Royal Canadian Air Force program to train personnel to serve as links between service members and the Royal Canadian Chaplain Service in order to combat suicide. The RCAF has about 1400 Sentinels out of just 14,500 active service members. That’s quite an investment.
The goal of the Sentinel Program, a growing initiative within the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF), is to use wingmanship and tactical-level supervisors as mental health advocates. The program is designed to empower junior leaders to be the first line of defence against real and serious threats such as mental stress, work-centred exhaustion, and suicide.
Staff Sergeant Sierra Rathbun, Technical Sergeant Sheryl Ubando and Master Sergeant Jonathan Miller are the first United States Air Force (USAF) members to have completed the Sentinel Course. They were nominated for the training by their leadership to represent the USAF and build relationships, bringing our two countries closer together.
“I am honored to have a chance to serve side-by-side with my Canadian military family,” said Master Sergeant Jonathan D. Miller, a Detachment 2, First Air Force, operations superintendent. “This opportunity is truly unique, one that I will cherish for years to come. This training opportunity is a bridge between the USAF Resiliency Program and the CAF Sentinel Program, and is a huge step toward bi-national integration.”
Offered by the 22 Wing/Canadian Forces Base North Bay, Ontario, chaplains, “The Sentinel course is a valuable asset for strengthening the spiritual resiliency of our forces,” explained Captain Justin Peter, a wing chaplain.
During training, the volunteers were asked to remember how important it is to “just listen”, to ask open-ended questions, and to be an extension of the chapel as “eyes in the lines”.
The Sentinel Program was introduced at 22 Wing in 2018 by Lieutenant (Navy) Timothy Parker, also a 22 Wing chaplain. Currently, the wing boasts 66 trained Sentinels who must undergo a full day of training every year to maintain their readiness.
By Staff Sergeant Patrick Bisigni
Staff Sergeant Patrick Bisigni serves as public affairs representative and unit photographer with Detachment 2, First U.S. Air Force Unit.
HOT OFF THE PRESS. The Army’s ‘staff smart book’. Introducing ATP 5-0.2, Staff Reference Guide, Volumes I and II. These manuals provide Soldiers with a reference guide and consolidated location for key planning tools and example techniques to help staff members perform their duties. Volume I is open distro and Volume II is CUI.
Check it out at armypubs.army.mil/epubs/DR_pubs/DR_a/ARN31193-ATP_5-0.2-1-000-WEB-1
