Time to Call In the (Armored) Cavalry
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Maj. Nathan A. Jennings
Friday, January 13, 2017
As the U.S. Army withdrew from Iraq in 2011, it eliminated its final deployable armored cavalry regiment in order to achieve standardization and modularity across the force. This change culminated a six-year process during which the land power institution reorganized two cavalry regiments and 10 cavalry squadrons that had long supported corps and divisions in favor of a larger quantity of squadrons assigned directly to brigade combat teams. The new reconnaissance and security structure resulted in a diverse array of armored, Stryker and motorized scouting formations more narrowly equipped to fight for information and provide freedom of maneuver.
Modularity also produced battlefield surveillance brigades designed to allow two- and three-star commands optimized capacity to collect information and enhance situational awareness. Unfortunately, they were “not adequately manned, organized, trained and equipped to fight for information, nor were they capable of conducting reconnaissance and security operations under all conditions of battle all the time,” the Army’s chief of armor, Brig. Gen. John Kolasheski, said recently.
To this end, the Army has since reorganized its active component battlefield surveillance brigades into enhanced military intelligence brigades while leaving a capabilities gap.
https://www.ausa.org/articles/time-call-armored-cavalry
