Sharpening the Edge: CMOC Training & Tactical Lessons Pt 1 (Ep. 28)
Off the Radar, Special Operations Training DetachmentShow Notes
This episode is focused on how Civil Affairs serves as theconnective tissue between the military and civil government during military operations. Civil Affairs engage and leverage the civil component or population of an area, region, or country. Civil Affairs operates during peace time operations, competition, crisis, and conflict by providing guidance and support to both the military and civil government. During rotation 25-02 at the National Training Center (NTC) a Civil Military Operations Center (CMOC), a Company level CA entity, executed SOF operations along side a conventional Brigade. This three part episode discusses the experiences that the CMOC had during that rotation.
About the Guests:
Jessica Lauder: MAJ Lauder is the CMOC Chief. Jess was anChemical Officer in the National Guard prior to switching to active duty Air Defense Officer prior to becoming SOF Civil Affairs. As a CA Officer, she has operational experience across CENTCOM.
Kevin: Kevin is the operations Sergeant for the CMOC. He hasover eight years of SOF Civil Affairs experience. Prior to becoming SOF CA, Kevin was a fueler. He has multiple conventional and SOF deployments to CENTCOM and AFRICOM.
About the OC/T:
Pat McCluskey: CPT McCluskey is the lead Civil Affairs Observer Coach-Trainer for Burro team. He served as the lead OC/T for this CMOC only rotation. Pat has operational experience in EUCOM.
About the Host:
CPT Weston Rich is a member of SOF Plans at the NTC andformer member of Burro Team, the Special Operations Training Detachment OC/T Team at NTC. Prior to his time at NTC, Weston served as a Detachment Commander with 1st SFG (A) and as an Infantry Officer with 3-509th IN (ABN)/4/25 ID (now part of 2/11 ABN DIV). Following his time at NTC, Weston will attend Carnegie Mellon University with a follow-on assignment to Army Futures Command.
This episode covers:
- How the CMOC prepared for their NTC rotation, through training at home station, using realistic military training, and operational deployments; starting to prepare as earlier as possible
- Training basics, such as convoy briefs to go to a team dinner,training focused on shoot, move, communicate, and medicate
- Managing operations when the headquarters is split
- Testing systems, processes, and set-ups through varioustraining and operations; seting up a TOC: figuring out what tents, vehicles, etc are needed to execute a mobile operations center
- Task organization of a CA Company
- SOF CA conducting non-kinetic / non-lethal targeting
- Reporting; reducing ambiguity in writing, issues clearguidance, ensuring down trace units understand guidance, and training down trace units to report in a clear concise manner
- Learning from the mentorship of the retired SOF role players
- Creating a shared understanding; getting the information out of your head and into a digestible format for others to understand and initiate action
- Communicating capabilities and intent and demonstrate value to conventional unit
- Providing recommendations not just data
Please like, subscribe, and share these episodes with ARSOF any conventional Soldiers and Leaders to spread the knowledge of ARSOF in LSCO.
To provide feedback please email the host, CPT Rich, [email protected].
Produced, edited, and sound engineering by Micah Popp ofSalty Sounds
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