Military Review English Edition January-February 2017 | Page 87

DIGITAL LETHALITY

A 1st Infantry Division battle captain uses Command Post of the Future during a division command post exercise 27 January 2016 at
Fort Riley, Kansas. (Photo by Master Sgt. Mike Lavigne, 1st Infantry Division PAO)

Building Digital Lethality
Capt. Jonathan Stafford, U.S. Army

T

he staff’s primary means to affect the battlefield is
not with an M2 heavy machine gun, M4 carbine,
or Bradley Fighting Vehicle. Instead, the staff
brings to bear intellectual skills and experience enhanced
by a mix of digital systems to aid the commander in the
exercise of mission command.
While there are many differences between traditional
lethal weapon systems and digital systems, a key distinction is that there has not been a program established for
digital systems to take untrained individuals and train
them to operate to standard as a crew, section, and unit.
MILITARY REVIEW  January-February 2017

To remedy this gap, the Mission Command Center of
Excellence (MCCoE) at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, developed a framework of ten digital training tables. The 1st
Infantry Division (1ID) took these tables and created a
“digital gunnery” program that led to a drastic increase in
the unit’s ability to support the commander’s exercise of
mission command. The plan received strong command
emphasis and fostered an environment that encouraged continuous and integrated digital systems use in
training to prepare for operations. The training significantly enhanced 1ID’s proficiency in mission command
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