HOHENFELS, Germany — A Texas-based brigade used the rough terrain and rainy weather at the Army’s training grounds in Bavaria to test new battlefield tactics that combine scouts and tanks.
The Combined Resolve 18 exercise marked the rollout of the armored cavalry troop concept by the 2nd Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division, which is based at Fort Cavazos, formerly known as Fort Hood.
The exercise, which just wrapped up, involved the U.S., the U.K. and 14 other European allies and partners over about three weeks.
Soldiers from 2nd Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division’s Troop D assemble their Bradley Fighting Vehicles as part of Exercise Combined Resolve 18 on May 21, 2023 at the Joint Multinational Readiness Center in Hohenfels, Germany. (Michael Slavin/Stars and Stripes)
The concept uses smaller reconnaissance units composed of Joint Light Tactical Vehicles and Bradley Fighting Vehicles, with the firepower of M1 Abrams tanks backing them up.
“What's really different is the actual (smaller) size of the unit and how closely we work with scouts,” said Sgt. 1st Class Wesley Moore, tank platoon leader, on Friday. “The scouts' job is to go out and find the enemy and we come and destroy them.”
Training with international forces that might join them in the event of a conflict helps build trust and adds to the exercise’s value, Moore said.
The new fighting method will continue to be tested by the 1st Cavalry Division.
“We are still getting our feet under us,” said Troop D commander Capt. Robert Waugh. “Each report we have will help drive the development of the armored cavalry troop concept.”
