ASSOCIATION OF THE UNITED STATES ARMY

The Army is in the midst of a generational transformation to ensure it maintains the capability and capacity to deter adversaries, campaign effectively, respond to crises and, if required, win decisively in combat. This transformation to a multidomain-capable force will change not only how the Army fights, but also what it fights with and how those future systems and equipment will be sustained and maintained in a contested environment.

The materiel enterprise is at the forefront of transformation efforts, rethinking how the Army provides logistics and sustainment support, to build the...

World War I is often considered the first modern conflict; its combatants employed modern technology, including machine guns, armored vehicles and aircraft. Interestingly, the most spectacular victory in that bloody conflict was not won through use of those new and potent weapons. The Battle of Tannenberg, fought from Aug. 26–30, 1914, in what is now Stebark, Poland, was won through exploitation of an opponent’s information and communication network.

At the start of the war, before the Western Front settled into trench warfare, a German force of 150,000 faced an invasion from the east by...

World War I is often considered the first modern conflict; its combatants employed modern technology, including machine guns, armored vehicles and aircraft. Interestingly, the most spectacular victory in that bloody conflict was not won through use of those new and potent weapons. The Battle of Tannenberg, fought from Aug. 26–30, 1914, in what is now Stebark, Poland, was won through exploitation of an opponent’s information and communication network.

At the start of the war, before the Western Front settled into trench warfare, a German force of 150,000 faced an invasion from the east by...

After Congress created the Naming Commission to rename Army posts that honored Confederate officers, commissioners this past May recommended changing the name of Fort Benning, Georgia, to Fort Moore. The recommendation to honor both Lt. Gen. Harold “Hal” Moore and Julia “Julie” Compton Moore makes sense: The couple defined the role of command team long before family support groups became the norm.

In November 1965, then-Lt. Col. Moore commanded the 1st Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment, during the first pitched battle of the Vietnam War, in the Central Highlands of South Vietnam. Moore and...

In 2018, I was assigned to a two-star headquarters in the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility. From this perch, I was able to observe firsthand a trend that had become apparent to all students of global American military intervention over the arc of the long war.

Even then, before the U.S. agreement with the Taliban and eventual withdrawal from Afghanistan, it was apparent that American military involvement in the Middle East was in a slow and steady decline.

American focus was shifting to the Far East and Europe, and this was painfully obvious to the U.S. generals responsible...

He was the fifth and last member of the U.S. Army to achieve five-star rank, a distinguished soldier who served as a senior officer in World War II. Known as “the GI’s  General,” Omar Bradley accomplished much in his life. He also had a sterling reputation as leader of the 12th U.S. Army Group in the liberation of Europe, commanding 1.3 million troops at the conclusion of World War II.

One of Bradley’s major deeds, little known to the public, was his service as administrator of the Veterans Administration, now known as the Department of Veterans Affairs, at a time when millions of military...

Soldiers Find Healing in Medal of Honor

Remember the Ramrods: An Army Brotherhood in War and Peace. David Bellavia. Mariner Books. 384 pages. $29.99

By Edward Lengel

Several Medal of Honor recipients who went above and beyond the call of duty in Iraq and Afghanistan have written powerful memoirs. These include Clinton Romesha and his Red Platoon: A True Story of American Valor; Dakota Meyer (and Bing West) and his Into the Fire: A Firsthand Account of the Most Extraordinary Battle in the Afghan War; and Flo Groberg (and Tom Sileo) and his 8 Seconds of Courage: A Soldier’s Story...

I was one of the first women to serve in combat arms units in the 1980s, with service in Germany and Korea. I had the opportunity to build and lead great teams, and to learn from commanders from the brigade level up through four-star headquarters. I saw far too many examples of counterproductive (or toxic) leadership. Thankfully, I experienced even more examples of positive leadership in my 22-year Army career.

As a military professional, I read articles, sat through classes and discussed counterproductive leadership. Field Manual 6-22: Developing Leaders defines counterproductive...

At the U.S. Army Reserve’s 7th Intermediate Level Education Detachment, 7th Mission Support Command, in Grafenwoehr, Germany, we practice the concepts of “truth to power” and “ground truth,” both in the unit and in the classroom. These two models are critical to success as a military organizational leader.

The 7th Intermediate Level Education (ILE) Detachment develops and educates U.S. and NATO partner and ally senior military leaders across Europe, Africa and the Middle East to build and lead effective military organizations capable of winning America’s wars. The curriculum includes...

Among a galaxy of famous Civil War generals, one has been all but forgotten. His story has much to teach us: about leadership, about character and about soldiering. As we mine the history of America’s Army for insights into command, in peace and war, we can learn much from the story of Maj. Gen. C.F. Smith.

Charles Ferguson Smith was born in 1807 in Philadelphia, the son of an Army surgeon. Graduating from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York, in 1825, at age 18, he was commissioned in the artillery.

In a time when many graduates left the service quickly for more lucrative...

The Army is facing an unprecedented recruiting crisis. The service missed its recruiting target by about 15,000 new soldiers for fiscal 2022, coming up 25% short of its goal.

When I reflect on my 20 years of military service, I ask myself how this can be possible. Then I remember the wide range of officers I worked for and how their leadership styles affected my choices concerning my military career.

I recall having a couple of toxic leaders who made me seriously question if I wanted to remain in the Army. These officers showed little to no interest in my aspirations, needs or concerns...

Recently, my 8-year-old son and I were reading Who Was Abraham Lincoln? by Janet Pascal during one of our pre-bedtime rituals. In terms both a child and a professional soldier can understand, Chapter 8 speaks of the significance of the words delivered by a president during a time of war, dedicated to the preservation of the Union.

As the story retells the events surrounding President Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address, it says, “The Union was fighting to keep the United States united [and] Lincoln, in two minutes, had gotten to the heart of the subject.” Lincoln’s remarks remain one of the most...

The mentor-mentee relationship is one of the most productive ways of learning. Those with mentors are more likely to stay in their career field and have measurable advantages over their peers who receive no mentoring. Soldiers often talk about professional development as a top priority, yet there is no system for facilitating mentorship across the Army.

The Center for the Army Profession and Leadership continues to find in its annual survey of the Total Army, including civilians, that “Develops Others” is the lowest-rated competency in the Army’s leadership requirements model. A mentoring...

Guidons and flags waved gently in the breeze as senior leaders from across the Army prepared to address the gathered soldiers. On June 6, nearly 80 years after D-Day and the invasion of Normandy, France, Army Chief of Staff Gen. James McConville presided over the activation of the Army’s first airborne division in decades—the 11th Airborne Division—and laid out its mission to the hundreds of soldiers in attendance:

• Live up to the legacy of the 11th Airborne Division.
• Master Arctic warfighting.
• Innovate and define the future of Arctic operations.

While the mission may seem like a tall...

For decades, the U.S. Army’s advantages in both lethality and protection largely guaranteed overmatch to units conducting counterinsurgency operations. These operations in Iraq and Afghanistan relied on small units, principally at the company level and below, to accomplish tactical, operational and even strategic objectives. Divisions and corps in both theaters relied on these small units for both operational understanding and situational awareness.

Conversely, the success of small units rarely required those higher echelons to mass effects to support their operations. This will change as...