Conducting Warfighting Experiments at the National Training Center
Abstract
The Army's Combat Training Centers (CTCs) were founded with a dual purpose: to provide the most realistic training exercises possible short of actual war and to provide 'lessons learned' to the Army. Although the CTCs have excelled in the first objective, they have been less successful in generating lessons learned. One reason for this is the absence of an analytic data base capable of establishing the magnitude of a range of problems and helping to determine how they may be solved. To provide such a data base, the CTCs have begun to conduct focused rotations (FRs) and advanced warfighter experiments (AWEs.) The National Training Center has been using FRs to get a detailed look at battle operating systems and at the effects that specific changes in doctrine, training, organization, leadership, materials, and soldiers (DTOLMS) have on BLUEFORCE performance. An integral part of Force XXI, AWEs have a broader charter to examine the effects of multiple DTOLMS changes. The NTC is an appropriate site for warfighting experiments. It provides an intense training environment in which units fight against a world-class opposing force (OPFOR). The NTC's operations group is able to perform independent performance assessments, with the help of extensive instrumentation. But the NTC is a complex laboratory, and tremendous care must be taken if meaningful experiments are to be performed there.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jan 01, 1995
- Accession Number
- ADA316665
Entities
People
- Jon Grossman
Organizations
- RAND Corporation