CAMP CASEY, South Korea: The 2nd Infantry Division recently became the first U.S. Army division to use the Warfighters’ Simulation system during a command post exercise in South Korea.
Training with other units from the 8th U.S. Army and Republic of Korea Army, the 2nd ID used the WARSIM system during Warpath II/III Oct. 5 – 16 and Nov. 6 – 19, respectively.
“The division was chosen, first and foremost, because Korea is one of the premier locations where we focus on full spectrum operations,” said Lt. Col. Irvin Pete, exercise chief for 8th Army’s Training and Exercises directorate. “Integration of simulations into our training plan is not only a good idea, but has always been a necessary tool used to drive both joint and Army command post exercises.”
During the exercise, the WARSIM system was distributed to the Camp Casey Warrior Training Center from Fort Leavenworth, Kan., and Fort Lee, Va.
The WARSIM system was developed to train Army and joint commanders and their battle staffs for operations during war, conflict and peacetime.
“WARSIM is designed to support the full spectrum of conflict, from low-intensity irregular warfare capabilities through high-level intensity heavy metal combat,” said Mike Haddad, assistant project manager for WARSIM at the Army’s Program Executive Office for Simulation, Training and Instrumentation in Orlando, Fla.
As the first division to use WARSIM, the 2nd ID was able to evaluate the system and make suggestions to enhance it. According to Pete, the process will help to drive improvements in the system.
“An extremely large amount of effort went into improving WARSIM after the initial validation for version 5.5 in May 2009 at Fort Leavenworth,” said Pete, originally from Lake Charles, La. “Warpath II/III was the driving force behind getting improvements completed.”
Pioneers in innovative training methods, the 8th U.S. Army and 2nd Infantry Division often employ live, virtual and constructive training methods to ensure their Soldiers stay ready to fight and win.
Since they face an enemy across the world’s most militarized border, 2nd ID Operations Officer Lt. Col. Richard Creed said the division always welcomes the opportunity to train its Soldiers in a variety of challenging scenarios.
“Having a reliable and realistic simulation that supports our training for major combat operations is critically important to our division’s war-fighting readiness,” said Creed, a native of Arlington, Va. “Anytime we get the opportunity to exercise our battle command functions with our subordinate units, as we have during the Warpath III exercise, we come out more capable to fight tonight.”
