Army Chemical Review

SUMMER 2012

Army Chemical Review presents professional information about Chemical Corps functions related to chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, smoke, flame, and civil support operations.

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The Army's Unit Training Strategy W By Captain Todd R. Ruggles hat is CATS? Ninety percent of the U.S. Army's leaders who were surveyed answered this question in one of the following three ways: Ɣ "I don't know." Ɣ "It's another Army acronym." Ɣ "It's a small, furry, four-legged mammal that chases mice." CATS is another Army acronym; it stands for "Combined Arms Training Strategy." And CATS should be an instrumental component in the professional toolbox of every Army leader and trainer. This article serves as an introduction to CATS and explains how leaders can use CATS to simplify the develop- ment of unit training plans. Types of CATSs There are two types of CATSs: Ɣ Unit CATS. A unit CATS, which is based on tables of orga- nization and equipment, is unique to unit type. Ɣ Function CATS. A function CATS addresses functional capabilities common to multiple units and echelons. The development of a unit CATS takes several items (doc- WULQH WKH XQLW RUJDQL]DWLRQDO VWUXFWXUH WKH VSHFL¿F XQLW WDVN OLVW of the higher headquarters, and the mission-essential task list [METL]) into account to organize the unit's collective tasks in an Army forces generation-supporting strategy that provides a FUDZO ZDON UXQ WUDLQLQJ SDWK IRU DFKLHYLQJ WDVN SUR¿FLHQF\ $ unit CATS contains a menu of task selections that provide unit commanders with a base strategy for the preparation of train- ing plans. Functions required for readiness reporting are inte- grated, and resources required to support event-driven training and provide commanders with a methodology to train all tasks are estimated. A unit CATS provides commanders with the tools necessary to plan, prepare for, and evaluate unit training. A function CATS, which supplements a unit CATS, may VXSSRUW IXQFWLRQV WKDW DUH QRW XQLTXH WR D VSHFL¿F XQLW W\SH² RU LW PD\ VXSSRUW WKH WUDLQLQJ RI ZDU¿JKWLQJ IXQFWLRQV RU missions that support operational Summer 2012 themes. It contains most of the same data elements as a unit CATS. Sustainment and protection CATSs are examples of function CATSs. A group of collective tasks that are trained together in one or more events constitutes a task selection; a number of task selections, in turn, constitute the training strategy for a particular unit. Importance of CATS readiness. Commanders and trainers are provided with a task- based, event-driven training template designed to train the unit to execute its core capabilities and table of organization and equipment missions. Every CATS contains a menu of doctrinal HYHQWV DQG UHFRPPHQGDWLRQV IRU² C Ɣ Tasks to be trained. Ɣ The training audience. Ɣ Training gates. Ɣ Training aids, devices, simulators, and simulations. Ɣ Frequencies of events. Ɣ Durations of events. Ɣ Multiechelon training. Ɣ The purpose. Ɣ The outcome. Ɣ Execution guidance. Ɣ Resource requirements. A CATS serves as a comprehensive, single-source training strategy. It acts as a training template that provides a start- ing point for the development of the unit training plan. CATSs contain unit-speFL¿F WUDLQLQJ VWUDWHJLHV WKDW FDQ EH HDVLO\ PRGL¿HG WR PHHW WUDLQLQJ UHTXLUHPHQWV EDVHG RQ WKH unit mission and the commander's assessment. They effec- tively support the Army forces generation training model and METL-based training and readiness reporting. Unlike the old PLVVLRQ WUDLQLQJ SODQV ZKLFK RQFH SULQWHG ZHUH GLI¿FXOW DQG impractical to change, the digital CATS provides units with 21 ATSs are proponent-developed, Army-approved strat- egies that effectively describe the ends, ways, and PHDQV RI DFKLHYLQJ DQG VXVWDLQLQJ XQLW ZDU¿JKWLQJ

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