Joint terminal attack controllers and joint Fires observer with the Michigan National Guard's C Company, 125th Infantry Regiment, perform tactical movements for a close air support training mission at Grayling Air Gunnery Range, Mich., during Northern Strike exercise. (Master Sgt. Scott Thompson/U.S. Air National Guard)
For joint Fires observers to be effective in the cross-domain fight, they must evolve sequencing processes, synchronize with maneuver and joint assets, and standardize training.
Lt. Col. Nick Sargent, Army Multi-Domain Targeting Center joint integration chief, saw a demonstration of the current Army process during Field Artillery Basic Officer Leaders Course and Joint Fires Observer Course simulation events. A surfaceto-air threat was suppressed with artillery and then students brought in aircraft to accomplish air-to-surface Fires.
“That's inefficient. You’ve got to do it simultaneously to really get after what this is trying to say,” said Sargent pointing to the definition of cross-domain Fires. “This is synchronizing effects in time and space and that's the next level from the JFO perspective. At the moment they're good at doing one or the other separated by time as opposed to massing and then doing things at the same time.”
Massing effects
He presented the Marine Corps’ tactics, techniques and procedures to the Directorate of Training and Doctrine as a lesson learned to improve JFO effectiveness.
“There's a transition that is occurring as large-scale combat operations become the norm. We still have a generation of people who are teaching at the school house here who only know stability ops and [counter insurgency operations]. Therefore it's kind of do one thing and then the other because they've been able to get away with it in a permissive environment. You won't be able to get away with that going forward when the environment is contested or highly contested. You have to synchronize and mass your effects to be successful.”
Sargent said the Marine Corps as a service is more comfortable with cross-domain Fires because of their culture and command structure.
This story is from the March - April 2018 edition of Fires Bulletin.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the March - April 2018 edition of Fires Bulletin.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Learning To Speak Maneuver
I am not what you would consider to be a “car person” which means that I usually pay for maintenance and don’t look under the hood unless I see smoke.
The 2017 Knox, Hamilton And Gruber Awards
The U.S. Army Field Artillery School has announced the winners of the 2017 Knox, Hamilton and Gruber awards for excellence within the field artillery branch. These awards are presented annually and recognize excellence by unit (active and National Guard) and individual. Congratulations to the 2017 award winners.
Head, Heart, Gut
A personal, ethical decisionmaking methodology
E-62nd Thaad And Patriot Interop Success
During their first ever Missile Defense Agency Flight Test, Soldiers from Battery E, 62nd Air Defense Artillery Regiment, 69th Air Defense Artillery Brigade and 4th Battalion, 5th Air Defense Artillery Regiment, 69th Air Defense Artillery Brigade conducted a Congressionally mandated interoperability test between the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense and Patriot weapons at White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico April 6, 2018.
Paratroopers Train To Jumpwith Stinger Missiles, Defend Against Air Threats
FORT BRAGG, N.C. – Conducting static-line airborne operations with non-typical weapons systems requires specialized training and equipment due to their large size.
ADA Modernization Team Seeks ‘Quick Wins' On Goals
Two of the six modernization priorities that Army Chief of Staff Gen. Mark A. Milley set forth last October directly affect Fort Sill and the Fires Center of Excellence.
Air Defense Artillery In World War I
This year marks the 100-year anniversary of the U.S. participation in World War I. It was in 1917 that Gen. John Pershing and his American Expeditionary Force embarked onto the shores of France to begin training and readiness into what became known globally as The Great War. As America entered World War I, new technologies from the Industrial Age were introduced into combat.
What Is Old Is New Again
Field artillery in megacities
Emerging Air Defense Challenges
Unmanned aerial systems
Hello From The 53rd Commandant Of The U.S. Army Field Artillery School
Never for a second did I ever expect to become the 53rd Chief of the Field Artillery and Commandant of the United States Field Artillery School. Having said that, I am thrilled and humbled to serve our Army and our branch in this capacity.
