Military Police contains information about military police functions in maneuver and mobility support, area security, law and order, internment/resettlement, and police intelligence operations.
Issue link: https://militarypolice.epubxp.com/i/567773
17 Fall 2015 By Captain Michael K. Huber and First Lieutenant Adam J. Berg C ombat training center (CTC) rotations serve as the premier Army training opportunities for brigade and smaller units. As deployments have drawn down, CTC rotations have become the only measure of unit per- formance. Military police units continue to participate as at- tached enablers to brigade combat teams (BCTs). However, after action reviews from the past 2 years of National Train- ing Center (NTC) rotations reveal that military police units have been arriving at NTC, Fort Irwin, California, inexpe- rienced and unprepared to accomplish assigned missions in support of the direct-action fght. This article explains how one military police company addressed this issue by embed- ding with its BCT partner and how future military police/ BCT relationships should be structured to ensure mission success. In June 2013, the 549th Military Police Company learned that 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team (ABCT), 3d Infan- try Division, would be attending NTC Rotation 14-09. The 549th Military Police Company began the long process of requesting training attendance through its chain of com- mand (385th Military Police Battalion, 16th Military Police Brigade, U.S. Army Forces Command). The 385th Military Police Battalion, Fort Stewart, Georgia, began the planning necessary to ensure that the 549th was attached to 1st ABCT for the rotation. The planning—which was conducted while also carrying out the Fort Stewart law enforcement mission; the deployment and redeployment of two companies; and defense chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, and ex- plosives force operations—needed to be complete in time for the 549th to plan and execute the training necessary for a successful mission. After much and long-range planning, the 549th Military Police Company was allowed a 6-week period (from February through March 2014) for training. While the training time was instrumental in the success of the 549th, it occurred nearly too far in advance— 5 months before NTC Rotation 14-09. Due to the summer permanent change of station wave, the company experi- enced a large turnover following the green cycle. However, based on the battalion operational tempo, this was a tactical risk the command needed to assume in order to maintain all assigned fscal year 2014 missions. This is the same chal- lenge facing all battalions, which is why commanders must select the right companies for the right missions. Military police battalion commanders are faced with the daunting decision of looking across their formations and se- lecting the right companies to represent the Military Police Corps at the CTC. After completing this process, the 385th Military Police Battalion discovered two major factors lead- ing to the current shortfall at NTC: • Army National Guard and U.S. Army Reserve units are being improperly selected for NTC rotations as part of their annual training. • Units are not properly preparing their leaders or Soldiers for the force-on-force fght. During NTC rotation 14-09, there were two military police units at NTC—the 549th Military Police Company and the 94th Military Police Company, Vermont Nation- al Guard. Army National Guard and Army Reserve units should be paired with Regular Army units in order for the brigade commander to use the strengths and weaknesses of the military police assets against the brigade lines of effort. This pairing will also improve the reputation of military po- lice among maneuver commanders. Green Cycle: Training on Military Police Tactical Tasks Home station training must be designed to match the de- mands of NTC. Once the 549th Military Police Company was approved for an NTC rotation, the company immediately be- gan to develop a training plan that would set the conditions for a successful rotation. Because the 549th was also tasked with the installation access control and law enforcement missions, a creative and intelligent plan was necessary. Locating and maximizing white space on the calendar are keys to meeting the NTC training requirements. The sched- uled company training consisted of rotational platoon green cycles from January to February while the company was in red and amber cycles, a 6-week company training cycle from February through March, and Raider Focus (a month-long 1st ABCT battalion external evaluation [EXEVAL]) in May. The platoon green cycles were carved out by using every roadworthy military police Soldier, freeing 4 weeks per pla- toon to concentrate on individual and team training. The 549th Military Police Company wanted green-cycle training to mirror the expeditionary mind-set and austere environment of NTC or other countries. That mind-set was kept at the forefront as the 549th conducted the mission-