The commander of the Combined Security Transition Command – Afghanistan told military and industry leaders at the Association of the United States Army’s Institute of Land Warfare breakfast meeting June 9 that we must make the investment we are putting into transitioning the Afghanistan National Security Forces to assume the full security lead in that country last.Lt. Gen. William B. Caldwell IV, who has also commanded the North Atlantic Treaty Organization Training Mission – Afghanistan since November 2009 asked: "What’s the way ahead; what’s in store for the future [in Afghanistan]?"The goal...
Thanks to the tremendous progress U.S., coalition and Afghan troops have made, the United States will draw down the number of troops in Afghanistan by 10,000 this year and 33,000 by the end of summer 2012, President Barack Obama said June 22."The tide of war is receding," Obama said during an address to the nation from the White House. "Fewer of our sons and daughters are serving in harm’s way."In a statement released by the Pentagon following the announcement, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said the president’s decision capitalizes on the security successes."Over the past 18 months our...
The Army is finding the use of smart-phone devices, such as an Android or iPhone, lead to an increase in "SPOT" reports, where soldiers share tactically relevant information across the force in real-time, service officials said.Through a series of ongoing evaluations called "Connecting Soldiers to Digital Apps" – an initiative which places smart phones and PDA-like devices in the hands of soldiers in mock combat operational scenarios – Army officials are learning that sharing data, images and even video instantaneously can potentially provide a tactical advantage on the battlefield."Think of...
Two vehicles used by multiple units in the military to assist in clearing routes and marking improvised explosive devices have made their way to the 2nd Brigade, 1st Armored Division, Special Troops Battalion, Fort Bliss, Texas.The unit is using these vehicles in various training exercises during the Army’s six-week Network Integration Evaluation, or NIE, at White Sands Missile Range, N.M.The Husky Mounted Detection System, a vehicle with ground penetrating radar capable of detecting buried improvised explosive devices, or IEDs, and anti-tank land mines, and the Buffalo Armored Vehicle, a mine...
The Network Integration Evaluation (NIE) is the first in a series of semi-annual evaluations designed to integrate and mature the Army’s tactical network and is a key element of the Army’s emerging Network Strategy.The exercise is a six-week event conducted in June and July 2011 and will involve all 3,800 soldiers of the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Armored Division.Its primary purpose is to conduct parallel Limited User Tests of several Army programs of record.A secondary purpose is to less formally evaluate developmental and emerging network capabilities. The exercise will also assess non...
The Army is immersed in an ambitious Network Integration Evaluation exercise at White Sands Missile Range, N.M., designed to simultaneously test programs of record and assess a host of emerging network technologies, Army senior leaders said.The Network Integration Evaluation, or NIE, is a key part of the Army’s network strategy, and includes five programs of record going though formal limited user tests, as well as a host of other technologies.The evaluation began to assess the scope and readiness of these emerging technologies the first week of June and runs through mid July.At the heart of...
The Army chief of staff, Gen. Martin E. Dempsey, addressed his plans on how he intends to develop the Army of 2020 for the nation at the Association of the United States Army’s Institute of Land Warfare (ILW) breakfast May 5 in northern Virginia."I’m a little short of a month in my new job, and I’m trying to feel what the Army is all about," Dempsey said, adding that too much time is spent trying to understand the Army when what really makes the Army is the way soldiers feel about themselves.Showing a video, he used the song in the video to illustrate one of the ways he reaches out to the...
For the second year in a row, Jason Siegel is the grand prize winner in the annual Army Ten-Miler T-shirt Design Contest.After an online voting competition, Army Ten-Miler officials announced June 22 that the Hicksville, N.Y., native submitted the award-winning design for the 2011 Army Ten-Miler.According to race officials, "His creative design will be featured on more than 30,000 official runner and volunteer T-shirts for the Army’s annual race."Adding, "Jason will also receive an Adobe® Creative Suite® CS5 Design Premium software for Mac, an Apple iPad2 and five official race shirts...
I often request that organizations with whom we work on behalf of Army families provide us with articles about their programs and new initiatives.The following article, written by Tom Luce, CEO of the National Math and Science Initiative and a former assistant secretary of education, is an example of one of these great programs.Hopefully it will encourage others to advocate bringing the National Math and Science Initiative to their schools.*****Ethan Nakamura knew what his father would ask first when he called home from Iraq: "My Dad would always ask, ‘How are you doing in school?’ And I would...
House Appropriations Committee: Some DoD efficiencies ‘unrealistic.’ As AUSA NEWS goes to press, the House Appropriations Committee is marking-up their version of the defense spending bill.The report that accompanies the spending bill contends that the Pentagon’s proposal to save billions of dollars in the next several years on what it terms efficiencies is "unrealistic.""While the committee applauds the department’s attempt to reduce costs through efficiencies, the committee finds that the majority of these savings have been taken in the broad categories of better business practices and...
Secretary of the Army John M. McHugh has approved the Gunston location of the Fort Belvoir, Va., North Post as the official site of the National Museum of the United States Army after the completion of a comprehensive and thorough site selection process that concluded with a favorable environmental assessment of the area.McHugh’s announcement came on June 17, rounding out the week during which the United States Army celebrated its 236th birthday."In presenting the Army’s storied 236-year history, this long overdue facility will offer the American people a unique opportunity to connect with our...
Three authors of Association of the United States Army books have been honored recently.Madame Genevieve de Galard was elevated to the rank of Grand Officer of the Legion of Honor by President Nicholas Sarkozy in a ceremony June 6 at the L’Hotel National des Invalides in Paris.De Galard was awarded the medal for her life-long work and advocacy for the care of wounded veterans.She was originally made an officer of the Legion of Honor on the field at Dien Bien Phu, Vietnam, an episode covered in her book "Angel of Dien Bien Phu" published last year by the Naval Institute Press as an AUSA book.De...
Raising more than $2,500 for the Wounded Warrior Project, nearly 130 people from all branches of service rallied together to support the 2011 Robot Trot, June 10 in Selfridge, Mich.The top runners will run as members of the Detroit Arsenal Team in the 2011 Army Ten-Miler Oct. 9 in Washington.The Robot Trot, championed by the Robotic Systems Joint Project Office, or RS JPO, and the Army’s Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation Program, is an annual event that provides service members, civilian employees and their families with an opportunity to participate in a 5K walk or run."The event was...
Sgt. Maj. of the Army Raymond F. Chandler and Command Sgt. Maj. Marvin L. Hill, the senior enlisted member for the International Security Assistance Force and U.S. Forces – Afghanistan, met with soldiers from the 170th Infantry Brigade Combat Team and their U.S. Army and international partners at Camp Spann, Afghanistan.Chandler and Hill started their tour of the camp by recognizing soldiers from the U.S., German, Croatian and Afghan armies. Select soldiers, picked by their leaders for excellence, were awarded coins by the most senior enlisted adviser in the Army.After the tour, Chandler...
AUSA, in its signature event on the Hill, recognized Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., and Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, as its Outstanding Legislators for 2011 in a ceremony held on Capitol Hill on June 8.Murray received the award based on her long-time and strong support for the Army as a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, Defense Subcommittee; the Military Construction Subcommittee and the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee where she serves as chairman.In presenting the award, AUSA President Gen. Gordon R. Sullivan, USA, Ret., said Murray "is known as one of the most knowledgeable...