Army JTAC training—the way ahead

FA Journal, March-June, 2004 by Steven P. Milliron

As the Army transforms, one of the key challenges will be to train and qualify a core of Soldiers to employ joint surface-to-surface and air-to-surface supporting fires. These personnel will be integral to the Army's new modular organizations and must be skilled in delivering artillery, naval surface fire support (NSFS), attack helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft, the latter providing close air support (CAS).

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As the Chief of Staff of the Army stated in the white paper, "An Army at War--A Campaign Quality Army with a Joint and Expeditionary Mindset" (March 2004). "All of our modular solutions depend on enabling even our smallest combat formations to leverage joint fires through ... 'joint effects control teams.' To facilitate more effective employment of close air support in a noncontiguous battlespace, we need universal standards for observation, designation and target acquisition."

Effective 3 September 2003 with the publishing of Joint Publication (JP) 309.3 Tactics. Techniques and Procedures (TTP) for Close Air Support, the joint community codified the requirements for an individual to direct the actions of combat aircraft engaged in CAS and other air operations. This position, called a "joint terminal attack controller," or JTAC, was created to standardize the certification and qualification process for terminal attack controllers to ensure a common capability across the services. The Army needs to develop Soldiers who, from a forward position, can deliver joint indirect fires and direct the actions of joint combat aircraft engaged in operations in close proximity to friendly forces.

The training and development requirements set forth in JP 3-09.3 and the soon-to-be-signed JTAC Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) between the Army and Air Force are clear: a JTAC candidate must complete the service academic and practical training requirements of a core JTAC curriculum and undergo a comprehensive evaluation.

To begin training Army JTACs, we will have to leverage one of the established JTAC schools: the Air Ground Operations School (AGOS) at Nellis AFB, Nevada; Expeditionary Warfare Training Group Atlantic Fleet (EWTGLANT) at Little Creek Naval Amphibious Base, Virginia; USMC Expeditionary Warfare Training Group Pacific Fleet (EWTGPAC) at Coronado Naval Amphibious Base, California; and the Naval Strike Air Warfare Center (NSAWC) at Fallon Naval Air Station, Nevada.

The Army must establish a standardization program, build an Army JTAC curriculum, identify the Army candidates to become JTACs, equip Army JTACs and provide resources to the school that will train Army JTACs. This article addresses those requirements for creating a core of Army JTACs--which is the way ahead.

Army JTAC Standardization Program. Before the Army qualifies its first JTAC, we must have a document that establishes the regulatory requirements for Army JTACs. At a minimum, it must address personnel entry qualifications; content and maintenance of individual JTAC training records; the certification, qualification, currency and proficiency training to attain and maintain JTAC status; and the process to be certified as a JTAC instructor. The document must be similar to the "Air Force Instruction 13-112 Terminal Attack Controller Training Program" to ensure consistency of JTAC training and development cross the services and provide the appropriate policies and responsibilities to enable Army JTAC training.

Army JTAC Curriculum. The curriculums at the four established school-houses train personnel who are already familiar with CAS operations and the terminal control of CAS aircraft. These are Air Force enlisted terminal attack controllers (ETACs) and special tactics team personnel; Marine Corps flight officers serving as ground forward air controllers (FACs); Navy Sea, Air and Land (SEAL) personnel; and Air Force. Navy and Marine Corps forward air controllers (airborne), called FAC(As).

Currently, none of these curriculums are sufficient to qualify Army JTAC to serve as a terminal air controller. We must create a new curriculum to supplement the Army JTAC candidate's knowledge in the CAS mission area.

Terminal Attack Controller's Course (TACC). This three-week course at AGOS provides academic and hands-on instruction to Air Force JTAC candidates. The training consists of classroom instruction on service doctrine, the theater air-ground system (TAGS), CAS mission planning and control, integrated combat airspace command and control, aircraft capabilities and limitations, weapons effects, suppression of enemy air defenses (SEAD) and other subjects. It also provides simulation training in terminal control, as well as a minimum of four live, graded controls at the National Training center (NTC), Fort Irwin, California.

But TACC is only one part of a three-part training regimen for Air Force JTACs. Air Force JTAC candidates progress from Initial Qualification Training (home station and TACC) through Mission Qualification Training (home station) to Combat Mission Ready status. The Air Force JTAC receives his home station training under the supervision of a terminal air control instructor (TAC-I) during both Initial and Mission Qualification Training in accordance with the tasks listed in "Air Force Instruction 13-112" (See Figure 1 on Page 52). The Air Force JTAC eventually is rated as Combat Mission Ready when he passes a formal performance evaluation conducted by a TAC-I and is signed off on by the JTAC's unit commander signs.