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How US Army trains for a different kind of war
Counterinsurgency tactics put a big premium on winning hearts and minds. For soldiers undergoing training at Fort Polk, La., it seems to be sticking.
from the June 20, 2007 edition
Page 2 of 4
Bringing up a new kind of soldier
But evidence is growing that the military's fundamental approach to warfare may be changing, perhaps for good.
At Fort Polk in any given month, thousands of soldiers undergo "force-on-force" training that trainers here say is as realistic as it gets. There are the usual scripted events that simulate car bombs and suicide bombs – and that teach must-have tactics to cope with the horrific violence that still ravages parts of Iraq.
But increasingly, the emphasis here and at other training centers in California is on teaching the full spectrum of operations in the war on terror, from humanitarian assistance to full-on combat. For a military steeped in the traditions of gun battles and "kinetic" action, it is the focus on the finer points of security and stabilization that get the most play here.
When he came through Fort Polk earlier this year, Army First Lt. Chad Nakamura, a member of the Third Brigade of the 101st Airborne, realized that the tactical stance he used as he held his gun was too threatening. So he changed it. He says he has also worked to develop his interpersonal skills, anticipating his first tour in Iraq. Lieutenant Nakamura, previously an enlisted soldier with nine years of service under his belt, now a trainer at Fort Polk, believes he'll take a different approach when his turn in Iraq comes.
"Let's fix it," he says, referring to Iraq. "But it doesn't have to be in a violent way or a threatening way."
Meet Fort Polk's commander
Army Brig. Gen. Daniel Bolger leads the charge at Fort Polk as both its commanding officer and the commander of the Joint Readiness Training Center there. General Bolger has helped to create a training environment where soldiers participate in sophisticated scenarios in which their actions produce effects that resemble real-world situations. In this world of make-believe with life-or-death implications, a corporal who uses the wrong hand to wave or a commander who ignores the request of the local sheik to fix a school's roof could have negative consequences and lead ultimately to those role-players setting up a car-bomb attack against the "friendly forces" being trained.
The training at Fort Polk replicates to the degree possible the situation on the ground, where Iraqi police and Army units play a larger role than they once did. The training also quickly incorporates tactical changes by the enemy in Iraq. For instance, earlier this month insurgents began blowing up bridges in Iraq. Within a day or so, the trainers at Fort Polk began using the same tactic against soldiers undergoing training.
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