forward support company armyforward support company army

Cross-trained Soldiers are an under-used and a necessary aspect for success. The list of everything Soldiers and units do to prepare for combat operations or deployment is infinite; however, the principles of sustainment in Army Doctrine Publication (ADP) 4-0, Sustainment, are indicative abilities that help spell success at every level in the chain of command. But a poorly planned operation is doomed from the start. This set up enabled the CTCP to monitor more FM and digital radio networks. The best way to ensure a common standard in the planning process is to create and use standard operating procedures (SOP). Logistical planning is nearly always dependent on how the operation is moving. Unfortunately, a unit may travel further than necessary for resupply, medical assistance, or security without proper integration. Throughout the NTC rotation, the FSC never dropped below 2,000 gallons of water, one day's supply of ice (180 bags), three day's supply of food (heat and serve meals and meals ready-to-eat for approximately 600 Soldiers), 6,000 gallons of fuel, and the battalion's basic load of ammunition. Does the unit use LRPs? Any sustainment element, including the FSC, must be intimately aware of the plans of supported units and prepare to support the next phase of the operation. One platoon leader began issuing her WARNORD immediately upon receipt of mission but was interrupted when the opposing forces aimed an indirect-fire attack at the FTCP at 0726 hours. The Current issue of Army Sustainment in pdf format, Connect with Army Sustainment on LinkedIn, Connect with Army Sustainment on Facebook. Equipment not being used by an organization does not necessarily mean it is useless. On order, Forward Support Company deploys worldwide to execute transportation, maintenance, and logistical support for engineer combat operations in order to provide security, sustainment, command and control, and general engineering in support of the 19th Engineer Battalion. The FSC also used a forward logistics element (FLE) that enabled it to split operations while on the move. A maneuver battalion forward support company's (FSC) ability to forecast and match sustainment requirements to capabilities is critical to a unit's tactical success. The first sergeant quietly nods and heads out the door. He was first assessed into the branch of Transportation Corps as a 2LT in May of 2011. Communication is the key to nearly everything done in the logistics world. The 983rd Engineer Battalion Forward Support Company (FSC) discussed community, health and protective factors after one of their own died by suicide this year. A brigade is normally commanded by a colonel ( O-6) although in some cases a brigadier general (O-7) may assume command. Trending Shortfalls. Army Techniques Publication ATP) 3-09.23 provides techniques for the ( field artillery (FA) cannon battalion commander and staff in support of the maneuver commander. The point here is to enforce the now standardized company planning process and templates and to ensure every leader is completely comfortable with them. The forward support company is a 233-Soldier, multifunctional unit that includes a distribution platoon and a maintenance platoon organized to provide support to a maneuver battalion (FM 4-90.1). The Forward Support Company. Through all its food, maintenance, and distribution support FSC conducted numerous training exercises and was the only company in the BN deemed trained in all areas that were graded during NTC. Wingit. Instilling this vigilance in Soldiers takes constant leadership involvement. The headquarters section doesn't have a representative in attendance. Wingit, as the forward support company (FSC) commander, is staring down at his scribbled notes, wondering what to do next. Description: 67th Forward Support Company, 201st Brigade Support Battalion, 3rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division. It requires sophisticated training, communication, and decision-making that may push individuals further than they thought possible. Survivability requires maintaining these aspects at a high level through home station training, leader involvement, and Soldier fortitude through the operation. - Present Crawfordsville Armory Crawfordsville, Indiana, United States Follow @currentopscom Even in good SOPs, this second piece is often absent. With integration, any changes to forecasts or additional needed supplies can easily be communicated to the supporting unit. The vehicle commanders conveyed that few Soldiers understood their task and purpose. Native Americans and colonial militias would wield these tactics to affect confidence in sustainment capabilities on the battlefield directly. An unambiguous plan for support by the DSSB is important. A clearly defined commanders intent coupled with the dissemination and understanding of the mission throughout the organization will speak volumes toward a units capabilities and cohesion and encompass three mission command principles. The Distribution Platoon's operations centered around the escorting and hauling of highly mission-essential engineer equipment throughout the entirety of MND-North supporting elements from company to division levels. The UMCP maintained mission command of the MCP. U.S. ARMY INSTALLATION MANAGEMENT COMMAND, "We Are the Army's Home - Logisticians must anticipate commodity and service requirements for all units and balance them against what the sustainment unit is physically capable of supporting. The reason most FSCs struggle with the company planning process is failure within all three domains of leader development. This is especially true for casualty evacuation, where minutes can save lives by meeting at ambulance exchange points or understanding that your organic Role I medical support may not be the closest medical facility. a frustrated Capt. While the subordinate units issue their WARNORDs, the FSC first sergeant would begin determining logistics considerations for the upcoming mission. Wingit sips on his morning coffee at the battalion's field trains command post (FTCP). Enemy air capabilities pose the same kinds of threats that enemy armor does to ill-equipped sustainment units. This is also important in planning logistics rally points (LRP) to avoid giving away critical location information to enemy forces by not entering firing locations or company-level assembly areas. How will the unit move the vehicle and the assets it is carrying if they are not damaged? Transcript: ACOET media roundtable with 21st TSC, May 19, 2023, Army announces upcoming 2nd ABCT, 1st Cavalry Division, unit rotation, U.S. Army releases its Climate Strategy Implementation Plan, Army announces upcoming 2nd ABCT, 1st Infantry Division, unit rotation, Army announces upcoming unit deployment to support European allies and partners, U.S. Army STAND-TO! Proper integration fails by or with: Avoiding the Pitfall. Its imperative to know and check drivers licenses and qualified training amongst the unit at this stage. It does not have to be a regurgitation of the battalion's planning SOP; it should be an easy-to-read description of the company planning process presented as a chapter in the company's tactical SOP (TACSOP). It will stress the effectiveness of other tenets such as detailed planning and cross-training to Soldiers and organizations. How is a resupply of non-organic units reported and requested? The Forward Support Company (FSC) or Field Trains Command Post (FTCP) personnel pick them up at the Supply Support Activity (SSA) in the Brigade Support Area (BSA). The FSC provides field feeding, bulk fuel, general supply, ammunition, and field maintenance. Maj. Russell Vickers currently serves as the deputy mobility chief, 8th Army G-4 at Camp Humphreys, South Korea. In split-second moments on the battlefield, when battalion- or brigade-level sensors cannot communicate the presence of enemy threats to vulnerable units in time, sustainers have to execute disciplined initiative to prevent disruption to sustainment capabilities. TLPs are a vital part of the operations process for FSCs. These standardized practices make the identification of enemy personnel and movements easier and expediting logistics resupply missions. Success in tactical logistics begins at the home station, far away from the terrain, enemy, and battle. Washington Army National Guard Soldiers, assigned to India Company, 3rd Battalion, 161st Infantry Regiment, 81st Stryker Brigade Combat Team, pull security while transporting supplies to the forward operating base in The Boxa massive training area within the National Training Centeron Fort Irwin, California, March 13. FSC OPORDs are discounted in favor of the battalion's logistics synchronization matrix (if there is one). With no immediate guidance from higher echelons, the convoy decided to return to the CTCP before it could resupply the scout troop. A units protective posture is the culmination and combination of its situational awareness, terrain management, and position improvement. Though the FSC began as a squad sized element, it soon formed into 3 platoons. Cross-training also ensures that effective TTPs persist through the organization and dont die with the departure of an individual. Understanding and communication by both the logistic unit and their higher echelon are required for decision-making. An SOP coupled with cross-training will ensure the mission can continue forward no matter who is present or available for a task. They would then collectively begin to generate a plan that could both meet the commander's intent and accomplish the mission. Trust in decision-making below the command level must complement a trust in guidance from the subordinate echelons. This will effectively give the FSC the ability to protect its LOGPACs and command post elements simultaneously from potential enemy armor and air threats, thus achieving the sixth principle of sustainment, survivability. However, the enemy gets a vote. According to ATP 4-90, those considerations are the following: The FSC's location in relation to the supported battalion. Once subordinates finish issuing their WARNORDs, they would regather at the FSC commander's position to review the analysis. The most heavily abused section in nearly all sustainment units is the distribution platoon. Leaders should also consider how far out this position improvement should move. Leaders pondered over the next year if an FSC would withstand the MDECOA, and if not, how would it impact sustainment operations? Any shortfall in the economy will result in losing a logisticians most precious resource: time. Disciplined initiative is a frequently expressed sentiment both within this paper and throughout Army doctrine. A logistics mission is not complete after the resupply. Soldiers scrambled to fighting positions and crew-served weapons, but M240Bs and M2 .50 caliber machine guns cannot penetrate the BMPs 35mm of armor. A logistics status report (LOGSTAT) is perhaps the single most important report to ensure a unit does not run out of any commodity or resource and is properly provisioned and resupplied. Attention to training and communication at home station with each supported elements executive officer and first sergeant for the best tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs) for forecasting and accounting for supply classes will help alleviate much of this strain. To avoid poor load plans, the exercise of load plans is imperative. Daniel W. Ludwig Capt. Unfortunately, many units and their leaders find pitfalls before and during training, preparation, and execution of tactical logistics. The battalion has just finished issuing a hastily prepared change-of-mission fragmentary order (FRAGORD), and Capt. How will the unit recover that vehicle? The WARNORD kicks off a series of actions similar to a battle drill to enable the rapid production of the company OPORD. It is applicable to other operational and sustainment organizations in tactical and operational environments. Nicholas DeLissioAugust 11, 2021. The FSC has to be forward with the fight and provide flexible options to its maneuver battalion. When training, there needs to be a primary, alternate, contingency, and emergency (PACE) plan for individuals trained on the equipment in the likely event of a casualty. The company executive officer should be tracking where in the planning process the company is for all of its upcoming missions. Continuity requires standards, discipline, and respect for each other principle of sustainment. Hostile actions and environmental conditions can disrupt the flow of sustainment and significantly degrade forces ability to conduct and sustain operations.. Forward-support company (FSC) employment is a topic that emerges frequently, particularly as brigades approach combat training center (CTC) rotations and begin to examine how freedom of. Capt. Conceptually, each maneuver battalion can carry a one-day load of basic supplies on its combat systems.. The food service section could plan how it will support the next battalion training event with hot chow. Before any movement or emplacement, a good map reconnaissance with the assistance of S-2 intelligence personnel improves survivability for any unit. Without sustainment, an Army can win one battle, but it cannot win a war. It provides transportation, maintenance and logistical support to the battalion operations. The FTCP's 24-hour liaison presence with the support operations cell allowed the FSC and the battalion to stay current on all brigade scheme of support updates. (See Army Technical Publication (ATP) 3-90.1, Armor and Mechanized Infantry Company Team, for more on "laagers" and general TAA organization.) [1] Prominent shortfalls that lead to the largest inefficient use of time are: Avoiding the Pitfall. Survivability is not a one-and-done principle; it must be continuously refined to outlast the enemy. When considering options to defend against the MDECOA, unanimously decided as a decisive engagement with enemy armor, there was no weapon system authorized or in the arms room effective against tanks or armored personnel carriers. From 1942 - 1957, . Russell J. Baker is the FSC observer, coach, trainer for the Timberwolf maneuver training team at JMRC in Hohenfels, Germany. The shortest distance between two points is a straight line. This article only presented a handful of issues and recommendations for the typical FSC and sustainment unit to consider when planning training, preparing for a combat training center rotation, or readying for deployment. The configuration of the various mission command nodes across the battalion was central to the FSC's ability to remain mobile. Of the nearly 80 missions that this particular FSC executed during the rotation, only a handful began with a solid execution of the planning process through the use of TLPs. Never assume any Soldier or leader has thought through every possible uniform scenario for a training event; it takes a collective effort to ensure packing lists are thorough and completed with enough time for Soldiers to secure items they may not have. Likewise, the interruption of sustainment can wreak havoc on a plan and friendly elements preventing, delaying, or deteriorating operations. Every training exercise should be thoroughly planned, and company leaders at every level should become accustomed to issuing OPORD briefings and conducting rehearsals. Training events will not always go according to plan. As referenced in the discussion on responsiveness, the best-laid plans can become nearly useless when the enemy, terrain, or conditions do not favor the plan. At the company level, it is vital to understand your place and role on the battlefield. A battalions fleet of poorly maintained, ignored, and/or war-weary vehicles crowded the deadline report and the Maintenance Platoon quickly found the necessity of their trait. Know and understand the modified table of organization and equipment. The FLE was a distribution platoon of class III (petroleum, oils, and lubricants) and class V (ammunition) that moved forward to the next combat trains command post (CTCP) location. Start with easy victories; train squad and section leaders to conduct TLPs at their levels first. Army Combined Arms Support Command, ATTN: ATCL-TS (ATP 4-33), 2221 A Ave, Fort Lee, VA, 23801; or submit an electronic DA Form 2028 Recommended The easiest way to avoid these issues is to train on map reading, land navigation during limited visibility operations at home station. Nicholas DeLissio is currently attending the Logistics Captains Career Course at Fort Lee, VA. Often units have enough assets but not the qualified personnel to move them. Commanders and leaders should be comfortable creating these orders on the fly and providing them to subordinates to create the cohesion the principles of mission command are attempting to provide. Trending Shortfalls. The importance of knowing who will receive what commodity and to what extent is paramount to success. A successful FSC is a vital part of successful battalion combat operations. This affords leaders the ability to retain 360-degree security . In the National Guard, companies sometimes have two histories. Frequently the inability to sync with the operational planning results in ad hoc resupply missions, missing timelines, unnecessary movements, and completely missing the supported unit or even venturing beyond the FLOT. Sustainment courses in the institutional domain focus more on staff work and number-crunching instead of training techniques at the company level and below. The company is part of the 980th Engineer Battalion, based in Austin, Texas. The simplest solution is often the best. Separating the CTCP and MCP footprints allowed the FSC to reduce its overall footprint while maintaining mutual support. Often a unit will become stranded or have a severe lack of guidance as soon as they are outside of FM radio range with the company command post (CP). Finally, subordinate units have a deeper understanding of the commander's intent and are able to begin parallel planning much sooner. Consider what happens should any one piece (or multiple pieces) are damaged or destroyed. Maintaining combat effectiveness and fire superiority is a vital task for any unit maintaining its position on the battlefield. Contingency planning and executing contingency plans help improve a units flexibility and improvisation. asks Capt. During company training events, the commander should practice the orders process by issuing change-of-mission FRAGORDs to the platoons and evaluating how they conduct planning at their level. The FSC commander could then lead the orders group through a detailed mission analysis based on mission variables. Understanding precisely what equipment the platoon and company have available creates a better understanding of any units intended role in sustainment. By having all fuelers, water assets, and ammunition assets forward, the FSC was able to pre-position the FLE closer to the FLOT to provide the companies with emergency resupply. By Capt. Wingit informs him of the new mission and orders him to let the distribution platoon know that it will have to kick out a logistics package (LOGPAC) to a new logistics release point sometime today. The fight itself begins with you, the leader and Soldier that will be on the ground calling the shots by firing the volleys, traversing the terrain in vehicles, evacuating the wounded, and many other tasks. Captain Wade Cady is a recent Field Artillery Forward Support Company post-commander who finished a 20-month long tenure, where he served in both OPERATION SPARTAN SHIELD and OPERATION INHERENT RESOLVE, in addition to rotations at the National Training Center. When NCOs are unable to answer their Soldiers' most basic questions about a mission, morale begins to decline and Soldiers learn to distrust their leaders. If, however, they were defeated or not present, sustainment units would be continuously vulnerable to enemy air threats. In a similar real-world scenario, this could significantly affect the squadrons prolonged endurance and could force adjacent sustainment units to take on additional requirements. Further, the ABCT FSC is not authorized anti-air capability. The internal maintenance operations of the uniform maintenance command post (UMCP) were managed by the maintenance control officer. Army Field Support Battalion - Carson. This resulted in the convoy missing its specified departure time. To avoid commanders from constantly making decisions on resupply, a set priority of supply that everyone understands is vital for each commander, especially the ones lower in priority. Unintended variables create an opportunity to practice for and with improvisation. The communication and expectations are delineating from supported unit to supporting unit, but the sustainment aspects of resourcing additional supplies are often absent. The loss of the personnel was felt in their respective sections, but the right people had to be selected for the critical mission. This means staging and refueling vehicles, redistributing Class V small arms as needed, restocking vehicles, making plans for personnel for the next mission, and completing numerous other tasks. In the second scenario, the LOGPAC convoy could have suppressed the enemy while bounding back to an alternate LRP and secure from there. Forward support company structures and operations vary depending on the supported unit. The CTCP consisted of the FSC distribution and headquarters platoons and an HHC element made up of the S-4 and S-1 cells. The proponent of ATP 4-42 is the United States Army Combined Arms Support Command. FSC conducted over 20 missions hauling food, water, ammo, and thousands of pounds of class IV material. The decision to separate elements of the FSC by platoon or by other sub-elements into multiple locations. The first thing to understand is that a commander (or any leader for that matter) should focus on accomplishing those things that only he can accomplish. This article was published in the January-March 2019 issue of Army Sustainment. One recurring example is the FSC commander who fails to delegate tasks that could easily be done by other personnel within the company. He did not even attempt to talk through the convoy's actions on contact. The SOP must be consistent and specific but allow flexibility to allow the next pitfall avoidance measure. When improvisation is required, it must be allowed to blossom at all levels. Edward Raschen (left), commander of Forward Support Company, 891st Engineer Battalion, serves food to his Soldiers during training Dec. 30, 2020, at Udari Range, Kuwait. Continuity is dependent upon mission progression regardless of the personnel conducting the mission. The FTCP was able to plan and prepare for all logistics packages heading toward the forward line of troops (FLOT). The establishment and location of the maintenance collection point (MCP). Near-peer enemy armor and air pose significant dangers to brigade-echelon sustainment functions located in the BSA. During NTC Rotation 16-08, G Forward Support Company (FSC), 101st Brigade Support Battalion (BSB), maintained an expeditionary mindset, placed the right personnel across the battlefield, and balanced sustainment assets in echelon. From an FSC viewpoint, this means how it will interact with the BSB and the DSSB, if at all. This gave the FSC more assets forward to support the battalion's varied missions, reduced vulnerability by shrinking the logistics footprint within the brigade support area, and enabled some assets to be moved past other FSC assets on the battlefield as the battalion continued to move. Finding and agreeing on an appropriate link-up site and time and adhering to that decision is essential to a smooth process. As long as ground forces have the capability to penetrate and deliver deep strikes against supply lines, there will be a need to aggressively secure logistical nodes and trains. Train on all required or authorized equipment in your unit shipped to an area of operation. In July 2008, FSC went to the field and supported the BN FTX through serving hot chow two times a day, fuel and water distribution, ammo support and distribution, wrecker, and onsite maintenance support. In order to execute mission command operations, the company needed to properly disperse its sustainment assets across the battlefield. If the maneuver battalion continued to move forward, the CTCP could have moved past the FLE and established its operations. Units have an ineffective or deficient response to changing requirements by or with: Avoiding the Pitfall. When unable to maintain the simplicity of an operation, a unit struggles with: Avoiding the Pitfall. The orders group technique allows the commander to focus his time and effort on understanding the company's role in the overall fight. Department of Defense Warrior Games kicks off next week in San Diego, Transcript: ACOET media roundtable with 21st TSC, May 19, 2023, Army announces long-term caisson platoon rehabilitation plan, OCIO hosts CGSC Information Advantage Scholar Program students, Meet the winners of the 2023 Armys Best Medic Competition, Command Sgt. Trending Shortfalls. Wingit, as the forward support company (FSC) commander, is staring down at. Meanwhile, the privileges committee names Jacob Rees-Mogg and . Silence. In the chaos of a multi-domain LSCO, convoluted command relationships and expectations of units readily appear. Once the commander decides on the plan, the orders group would begin working on predesignated task lists to produce the company order.