Ohio National Guard News

38th Infantry Division rocks Warfighter 19.1

Story and photos by Master Sgt. Jeff Lowry, 38th Infantry Division Public Affairs

Soldiers with the 38th Infantry Division erect their main command post Oct. 9, 2018, at Camp Atterbury near Edinburgh, Indiana.

Maj. Gen. Gordon L. Ellis, commanding general of the 38th Infantry Division, headquartered in Indianapolis. Ellis is a former Ohio National Guard member and, in his civilian occupation, is the sheriff of Brown County, Ohio, about 50 miles east of Cincinnati.

A 38th Infantry Division Soldier guides a Humvee Oct. 9, 2018, at Camp Atterbury near Edinburgh, Indiana, during the unit’s nine-day warfighter exercise. The 38th Infantry Division, headquartered in Indianapolis and known as the Cyclone Division, is one of the 18 divisions of the U.S. Army, and one of eight National Guard divisions. It contains Army National Guard units from Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky, Delaware, Michigan, Tennessee and West Virginia.

INDIANAPOLIS (10/14/18) — Veni, vidi, vici.
The 38th Infantry Division came, saw and conquered.

The Soldiers of the 38th used their real-world skills in virtual battlefield scenarios to defeat an enemy during a nine-day warfighter exercise at Camp Atterbury in October.

“We achieved our goals and won the war,” said Maj. Gen. Gordon L. Ellis, the division commanding general, during the after-action review. Ellis is a former Ohio National Guard member and, in his civilian occupation, is the sheriff of Brown County, Ohio, about 50 miles east of Cincinnati.

Ellis incorporated training objectives and training outcomes for his Soldiers during the warfighter exercise. The objectives and outcomes included conducting reconnaissance operations at the division-level; utilizing a distributed command post and maintaining communications throughout the exercise; refining staff products and procedures to provide subordinate brigades with timely information; coordinating multiservice munitions delivery: logistic support and consolidation throughout the division’s operation.

“The proficiencies that we gained here, we cannot lose,” Ellis said. “We seized some objectives, but we still have a way to go.”

In addition, the division Soldiers had to accomplish all these objectives while in an austere setting to meet the intent of Army Chief of Staff Gen. Mark A. Milley — to train as an expeditionary force. A notional chemical environment required the division Soldiers to move their command posts during the exercise and settle into bivouac sites.

“Gen. Milley, has told us to be ready to ‘Fight Tonight,’ said Command Sgt. Dale A. Shetler, the division’s senior enlisted adviser. “Maj. Gen. Ellis has therefore put an emphasis on being an expeditionary division. This increased agility will allow us to move quickly and be self-sufficient in times of crises.”

Shetler explained some of the aspects the division Soldiers performed to be an expeditionary force.

“To that end, we performed our warfighter with Soldiers sleeping in tents, our maintenance crews working on site, and our cooks using our mobile kitchens, and smaller and more mobile command posts,” Shetler said. “This is a change in philosophy from previous warfighter exercises, but it is a needed change. After this exercise, I feel more confident than ever that our Soldiers are ready to answer the call if needed.”

The battlefield scenarios of this warfighter exercise tested the division staff in six functional tasks: command and control, movement and maneuver, intelligence, targeting processes, sustainment and protection.

Aside from 38th ID Soldiers communicating and coordinating among themselves in their staff roles, they also had to communicate and coordinate with a higher headquarters and other divisions across the globe.

“You guys did a great job,” Milley said via video teleconference toward the end of the warfighter review. “The planning, the synchronization and the integration — you guys are at the top of your game. You’ve gone from good to great, but you’ve got to sustain that.”

Now the division Soldiers stand ready for their next command-post exercise slated for March.

The 38th Infantry Division, headquartered in Indianapolis and known as the Cyclone Division, is one of the 18 divisions of the U.S. Army, and one of eight National Guard divisions. It contains Army National Guard units from Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky, Delaware, Michigan, Tennessee and West Virginia.