News:  Chief of Infantry bids farewell to BenningThe U.S. Army Infantry School commandant said goodbye to Fort Benning on Wednesday. Military and civilian leaders " past and present " honored Brig. Gen. Bryan Owens during a command retreat ceremony at the Benning Conference Center. He departs for southern Iraq to assist with the country's transition back to Iraqi security forces control. The Army hasn't announced a replacement. "What a journey this has been," Owens said of his two years at Fort Benning, where he arrived in May 2009 as deputy commander and assistant commandant of the now-defunct U.S. Army Infantry Center but wound up the chief of Infantry as Maneuver Center of Excellence transformation took shape. Maj. Gen. Robert Brown, the MCoE and Fort Benning commanding general, called Wednesday a "bittersweet occasion." "It's a very difficult day as we say God's speed to Bryan as he heads out for his service in Iraq," he said. "He was specially selected for this very tough mission. ... He'll allow the division that's over there to essentially get out of Iraq as smooth as possible without having to worry about the transition there. "They've got the right guy to do it who's got great experience. It's getting across the goal line there to victory in Iraq and it can't be any more important." more ______________________________ 
Determination keeps Ranger on the 'line' Fort Benning's Sgt. 1st Class Joe Kapacziewski was deployed to Afghanistan when he learned he was one of two recipients of this year's Freedom Award. Gen. Raymond Odierno, commander of U.S. Joint Forces Command and President Barack Obama's pick to be the next Army chief of staff, was the other. Kapacziewski, a platoon sergeant with 3rd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, is the first enlisted Soldier to receive the award honoring the "sacrifices required to defend liberty, becoming selfless in the willing pursuit to deliver no greater sacrifice in the great cause of freedom," according to the award. Command Sgt. Maj. Chris Hardy, Maneuver Center of Excellence command sergeant major, said Kapacziewski is the epitome of the Army Values and Ranger Creed. Hardy has known the 29-year-old since 2007 when Hardy became the Regimental Special Troops Battalion command sergeant major and Kapacziewski was working in the arms room while undergoing physical and occupational therapy for the wounds he received in October 2005. more ______________________________ BRAC: On time and on target 
SAN ANTONIO, Texas -- The past 10 years have brought a great deal of change to our Army. Not only do our Soldiers continue to fight in two wars, but the Army is going through the greatest organizational change since World War II. Between instituting the Army Force Generation model, reorganizing around modular brigades and the Base Realignment and Closure process, our Army looks very different than it did 10 years ago. The BRAC process is a large part of that reorganization. With its completion on time and on target in September, the Army will have reshaped its infrastructure to better support Soldiers, Civilians and Families. The Base Realignment and Closure commission made recommendations about how to make efficiencies in the Department of Defense to the president, who presented them to Congress and those recommendations became law in September 2005. Of the 182 commission recommendations, 113 affected the Army. This BRAC is an important part of the Army's historic transformation and has affected many commands, including the Installation Management Command Headquarters in San Antonio, Texas. more ______________________________ First Armor BOLC slated to begin The first Armor Basic Officer Leader Course, taught at the Maneuver Center of Excellence, starts Thursday. In a welcome letter to Armor and Cavalry lieutenants, Lt. Col. Sean Barnes wrote that the mission of ABOLC is to provide the Army with confident, competent and agile Armor officers capable of conducting full-spectrum operations as part of the combined-arms team. Barnes, commander of the 2nd Squadron, 16th Cavalry Regiment, described the training as a combination of classroom, small group and practical exercises to leadership skills and warrior ethos. Staff Sgt. Raymond Whitener, operations NCO, said the 84 second lieutenants, including international students and seven Marines, will learn about basic rifle marksmanship, land navigation, M1 Abrams gunnery tactics and dismounted tactics during the 100-day course. Shoot, move and communicate is how Whitener described the course. "The rule in the Armor community is the only time tanks are in a defensive position is to prepare for the offense," he said. During a 10-day capstone exercise, the officers will divide into two formations " two tank platoons and one scout platoon, and two scout platoons and one tank platoon. Both formations bring different qualities (to the fight) " firepower and sneak and peek, Whitener said. The officers graduate Oct. 6. more ______________________________ 
Army meets public over expansion plans Fort Benning officials met the public Monday to discuss land in western and central Stewart County marked as the preferred alternative for possible acquisition by the Army.
It was the first of four "open house" sessions across the Chattahoochee Valley this week. The group went to Russell County High School in Seale, Ala., on Tuesday and is scheduled to hit the Josh Gibson Center today in Buena Vista, Ga. That will be followed by the Community Center in Waverly Hall, Ga., on Thursday. The times are 4 to 7 p.m. each day.
The Army released a draft environmental impact statement last month and is conducting a 45-day comment period in which the public can express concerns and ask questions about the land targeted for potential use. More than 200 people turned out at the Richland Hotel for Monday's kickoff.
"We decided we needed to come here first because their anxiety level is a little higher than the other more ______________________________ Home of future Armor and Cavalry Museum marked Groundbreaking remains a few years away, but Fort Benning has christened the site of the future National Armor and Cavalry Museum. Post leaders and several VIPs attended a ribbon-cutting ceremony Thursday at the two tank display pads on Benning Boulevard at what will become an entrance to the museum coming here as part of the Armor School's move from Fort Knox, Ky. The event preceded the Gulf War 20th Anniversary National Tribute and Memorial Day commemoration later that morning at the National Infantry Museum and Soldier Center. "The Armor community has been so warmly welcomed here at Fort Benning," said retired Gen. Ron Griffith, who led the 1st Armored Division during the Gulf War and later served as Army vice chief of staff. "Those in Armor leadership are committed to providing a great facility to complement the National Infantry Museum. ... But it's been a gracious welcome and wonderful reception for us here." An opening date hasn't been announced for the future National Armor and Cavalry Museum. The location sits near Access Control Point 2. Officials said the project is in the fundraising stage right now. The Armor museum has had six homes in its history. This will mark a second time at Fort Benning, where the Army Tank School operated from 1932 to 1938. more ______________________________ 
Combined operation expands security in rural Afghanistan WARDAK, Afghanistan - As helicopters lifted off the moonlit field, Soldiers blended into the surrounding landscape. Slowly, each infantryman rose to his feet and scanned his sector of fire. As platoon leaders motioned to move out, night-vision optics revealed the flashing infrared lights attached to each Soldier as they formed a single line. Soldiers of Blackhawk Company, 2nd Battalion, 4th Infantry Regiment, 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division, Task Force Warrior, and Afghan National Army troops moved though orchards and farmland toward the Chak district center, unaware of the fierce enemy opposition they would encounter during the 48-hour Operation Compass, May 15-16, 2011.
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Army launches new 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' repeal website WASHINGTON - In preparation of the repeal of the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy, the Army has launched a new website to provide servicemembers and their families the most up-to-date information about the change. The website features current news articles, key facts, frequently asked questions and additional resources. It is just one of the many training resources the Army implemented to educate the force and minimize misconceptions about the repeal. "It's a way for the Army to provide the latest and greatest information about the repeal to Soldiers, family members and the public," said Lt. Col Timothy M. Beninato, public affairs advisor to the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Manpower and Reserve Affairs and Army G-1. more _____________________________ 
Gates Thanks Troops for Afghan Service FORWARD OPERATING BASE WALTON, Afghanistan - Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates, paying his final visit to Afghanistan before his June 30 retirement, told troops on the front lines today that it's tough for him to say goodbye. Gates visited this base in Regional Command South and Camp Dwyer in Regional Command Southwest to speak to and thank the men and women who carry out the mission every day. "I've come out here to thank you for the last time for your service and for your sacrifice," he said. "More than anybody except the president, I'm responsible for you being here. I'm the person that signed the deployment papers that got you here. And that weighs on me every day." About 200 soldiers waited here for the secretary under an awning, as the temperature already was over 100 degrees when he arrived. Gates answered questions on various topics -- such as the situation in Libya and how to get stateside training for service members who drive and work on mine-resistant, ambush-protected vehicles -- before presenting each with a commemorative coin. more _____________________________ Click here to read more news | 
