Strengthening Joint Leaders and Teams- A Combined Arms Imperative
“Today's national security challenges come from a combination of strong states that are challenging world order, weak states that cannot preserve order, and poorly governed spaces that provide sanctuary to extremists who seek to destabilize world order. From China's actions to militarize the South China Sea ... to Russian aggression in Eastern Europe ... to Iran's continued malicious activity ... to nuclear aspirations of an increasingly unstable North Korea ... we have returned to the era of state-on-state competition even as we counter violent extremism in the Middle East, prevent its spread to other regions, and disrupt attacks worldwide.”
- Gen. David L. Goldfein, Air Force Chief of Staff (2016)
“We stand at an inflection point in our Nation, where the challenges from strategic competitors will place ever-increasing demands on our Air Force. The strength of our force, our people, remains unmatched; however, our adversaries seek to challenge that. We need Airmen who can understand the complexity of the strategic environment, think critically through challenges, and provide real-time solutions across the domains of air, land, sea, space, cyber and information. In order to outpace emerging threats, we must deliberately develop our Airmen to ensure they remain our strongest competitive advantage. To overcome these challenges, we need a united path forward, where technical proficiency intersects with character and leadership development, guiding us to a future where the best and brightest of our great Nation are called to serve in its defense. Our Air Force cannot build this path forward without a strong “Blueprint.” Just as we build the leaders of today to develop the Airmen we need tomorrow, so must we strategically develop all Airmen to take up the mantle of service that so many have before them. This is not a path we walk alone, or a challenge we face in isolation. We all have a stake in this, and we will all play a part in ensuring that we remain the world’s greatest Air Force.”
- Enlisted Force Development Blueprint, 2022
By the end of the exercise, students should be able to:
- Utilize joint lesson concepts to think critically and develop a strategic level awareness.
- Demonstrate problem solving skills using realistic scenarios based on real-world events.
- Reflect on lesson concepts across the NCOA curriculum.
Note: There is no student preparation for this lesson.
Exercise Intent:
As outlined in the CSAF Action Order Competition, the USAF must develop a force with the competitive mindset required to accrue a warfighting advantage, enhance deterrence, and drive competitions to areas of U.S. advantage. This exercise was developed to subject the students to a difficult situation in which they will be required to make decisions on the planning, acquisition, and organization of various resources in support of a realistic operationally based scenario. The purpose is to introduce the students to the various aspects that go into planning for an operation to increase their awareness of DoD planning efforts, introduce them to the complexities of planning, and to develop the thought processes that lead to a strategically competitive mindset, not to make them expert operation planners.
Throughout this exercise, each flight room will be considered a Commander's Action Group (CAG) where students will be required to collaborate as a flight to ensure the proper alignment/planning of resources and sound justification for their decisions. While a typical CAG has a variety of responsibilities, in this exercise the CAG is responsible for the planning and research necessary to support an operation.
References for this lesson: