MI Is Out Front In Army Transformation - Military Intelligence Corps of the Army

Military Intelligence Professional Bulletin, Oct-Dec, 2000 by John D Thomas, Jr.

The key to successful transformation remains our soldiers and civilians. We must continue to develop their basic intelligence skills of analysis, collection, and integration. None of these initiatives in any way reduces the requirement for first-class individual intelligence skills capable of operating in the digital environment of the information age. Our military occupational specialty (MOS) structure needs critical examination to ensure it provides the commander with the expertise and flexibility to operate in the 21st century and also assures rewarding career opportunities for our soldiers. Strong leadership by our officers, noncommissioned officers, and civilians will be required during this period of unprecedented change.

Conclusion

Our organizations, equipment, doctrine, and training will change, but the result will be the provision of improved intelligence as part of the combined-arms team. It is important that we all understand the mission and environment of today's Army and move out to continue our tradition as the best intelligence service in the world.

ALWAYS OUT FRONT!

Major General John D. Thomas, Jr., enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1968. He received his commission following graduation as a Distinguished Graduate from the Field Artillery Officer Candidate School, and his initial positions were in the 7th and 2d Infantry Divisions and command of an AIT (advanced individual training) company His past intelligence and electronic warfare assignments included Field Station Augsburg; the Combined Forces Command and U.S. Forces--Korea; the Department of the Army Staff; Deputy Chief for Intelligence, Special Technical Operations Division, J3, Joint Staff; and Associate Deputy Director for Operations (Military Support) at the National Security Agency (NSA) and Deputy Chief, Central Security Service (CSS). MG Thomas has served in many command positions including C Company (Guardrail), 15th MI Battalion (Aerial Exploitation (AE)), 504th MI Brigade; 3d MI Battalion (AE), 501st MI Brigade; 111th MI Brigade (Training); U.S. Army Intelligence and Security Command (INSCOM); and the U.S. Arm y Intelligence Center and Fort Huachuca. He became the fifth Chief of the MI Corps in June 1998. He is a graduate of the Armed Forces Staff College and the National War College. MG Thomas is a Master Army Aviator rated in both fixed-wing and rotary aircraft and is a fixed-wing instructor pilot. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in History from Wilkes College in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, and a Master of Arts degree in International Relations from the University of Southern California.

JCF-AWE on Employment of the Light Legacy Forces

This issue of MIPB focuses primarily on the Army transformation and developing the medium and objective forces but advances and changes continue in our legacy forces as well. Our first digital division, 4th Infantry Division (Mechanized), is preparing for major experimentation and training in early 2001.

Recently, MI tested new equipment and procedures as a part of the Joint contingency Force--Advanced Warfighting Experiment (JCF-AWE) at the Joint Readiness Training center (JRTC) in Fort Polk, Louisiana. The AWE's focus was employment of a digitized, light infantry brigade task force (from the 10th Mountain Division (Light)) equipped and trained to execute contingency force operations. Some of the military intelligence objectives in this experiment were to--