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3rd ID testing new 'unit of action' at NTC
By Gary Sheftick
April 6, 2004

FORT IRWIN, Calif. (Army News Service, April 6, 2004) - How can fewer tanks, fewer Bradleys and fewer howitzers add up to a more lethal unit?

That's what the Army's first "unit of action" set out to prove at the National Training Center March 26 to April 10.

In the first field test of the new brigade structure, the 2nd UA of the 3rd Infantry Division is also training to return to Iraq. This time last year, many of the Soldiers were charging their armored vehicles victoriously into Baghdad as the 2nd Brigade Combat Team of the 3rd ID.

One difference between the BCT and the new unit of action is the addition of assets that previously belonged to the division. Field artillery, signal, chemical and engineer units that once supported the brigade are now permanently assigned to the UA. Capabilities such as counter-intelligence, human intelligence, and electronic warfare have been moved down to the UA.

"This organization has injected a lot more efficiencies with us and that makes us a lot more combat effective than what we were," said Col. Joseph DiSalvo, 2nd UA commander. "And we were pretty damn combat effective before the reorganization."

Restructuring as a UA brought about a significant change in task organization, DiSalvo said.

Instead of three maneuver battalions, now there will be only two in the UA. The UAs will be modular - each with one infantry battalion and one armored battalion.

As it restructured, the brigade lost a battalion of armor, and that means 44 fewer M-1 Abrams tanks. But a cavalry squadron was added to the UA, and it will eventually become a reconnaissance, surveillance and target acquisition squadron, or RSTA. It will replace the brigade reconnaissance troop with more than three times the force.

The1/9th Field Artillery is also permanently assigned, minus a battery of Paladins that used to support the BCT. The brigade also lost a battery of air defense artillery as it transitioned to a UA.

In the brigade support area, the 26th Forward Support Battalion and elements of the 10th Engineer Battalion are also now assigned to the UA. In the past, the FSB and engineers supported the brigade in combat, but now they're permanent UA assets.

"With people staying here and working here for an extended period of time, you get a good team, a really good team going," said Staff Sgt. Kirk Hill, a communications NCO with the 26th FSB. "Continuity-wise, I know how the other guy works and he knows how I work."

It all adds up to a more self-sufficient and cohesive team, according to a division operations officer. He said UA commanders should have more flexibility and the capability to maneuver elements faster.

A signal company and military intelligence company is also part of the UA. A four-person public affairs section will be part of the UA, and the headquarters will be beefed up by a total of 58 additional personnel.

DiSalvo said the indirect fires of the field artillery combined with intelligence assets make the UA more lethal.

"With these assets, there's a better chance we'll collect the information," DiSalvo said, adding that new equipment such as unmanned aerial vehicles, sensors and communications suites will be fielded with UAs in the future, to further improve combat effectiveness.

As for now, DiSalvo and the UA are focused on Iraq. "This is part of our training for OIF-3" he said. "We can't squander it, we only get 14 days."

Army officials announced last month that a newly restructured 3rd Infantry Division would return to Iraq for the next rotation, possibly as early as November.

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I assume this means there will be more O-6 Colonel openings, since there will be 4 UAs per division as opposed to three manuever brigades the previous way.

The article didn't mention what vehicles, and what digital capability the RSTA will have.

Also, the FSB in each UA I assume is enlarged in size. Before there was a division-level MSB supporting the combat support units, but I guess about a company-size element from the MSB has been integrated into each of the three FSBs to support the combat support units within the UAs.

Further, despite the whole "infantry-centric" concept surrounding this Army transofmration, if each UA has a MECH battalion and an Armor Battalion, then the 3rd MECH will have as many Armor battalions as it did before (four in both cases) but one less MECH battalion (four compared to five previously) if my understanding is right. Armored Divisions would be the opposite; same amount of MECH battalions, one less armor battalion. Pehraps they have changed the structure of the battalions and opened up more infantry billets within them, but my perception is the amount of infantry battalions hasn't increased.

Also, there was no mention of a Police unit within the UA in the article. I guess the MP company will remain a division-level unit.

Another interesting statement was that a battery was being removed from the FA battalion. I assume this is because there are only two manuever battalions in these new UAs, though the RSTA squadron is a battalion-sized unit. I wonder if the battery is being deactivated, with the personnel being redistributed and used for other units, or whether there will be a division-level General Support Paladin battalion formed by the subtraction of a battery from each of the three Paladin battalions.



Edited by - ViperTTb on Apr 15 2004 3:34 PM

I still say the only difference between a modern UA vs a WWII combat command(organizationaly) is the addition of the intellegence company.

You look as lost as a bastard child on Fathers day.

_________________
\"One of you is gonna fall and die, and I'm not cleaning it up\"

I forgot to add that the XVIII Corps attack regiment and aviation brigade are being disbanded, with their helos going to the divisions. 18th Corps will have no corps-level avi assets apparently.

Edited by - ViperTTb on Apr 17 2004 6:41 PM

Stinger:

I admit I'm ignorant when it comes to WWII force structure; don't know much.

What was a Combat Command? Is it like an MEB in the Corps?

Edited by - ViperTTb on Apr 17 2004 7:49 PM

A typical Armored Div. would have three Combat Commands as opposed to actual brigades. CCA (combat command A) CCB(combat command B) and CCR(combat command R[eserve]) or in some cases (3rd AD being one) CCC. CCA and CCB we the striking units while CCR was used mostly to replinish losses for CCA and CCB. A combat command generaly had 1 tank Battalion 1 Armored infantry battalion and one engineer battalion or another Infantry Battalion, plus supporting maintanance and Signals units. Each CC was to be able to operate independently of the division if neccassary. They were not quite as independant as the so called UA's but they were close enough that whats being touted as "new" is in my mind an evolution of a 60 year old idea

You look as lost as a bastard child on Fathers day.

_________________
\"One of you is gonna fall and die, and I'm not cleaning it up\"

Cool. Thanks for the info