U.S. Armed Forces Archives

FM 03

The Army has crafted new combat operations doctrine designed to better position the service branch for the prospect of warfare against technologically advanced peer rivals.

The Army’s Field Manual (FM) 3-0 Operations marks the first major overhaul of the manual since 2011, and represents a shift in focus to adapt to fighting future potential enemies who are equipped with 21^st century capabilities.

Army Lt. Gen. Michael D. Lundy, the commander of the Combined Arms Center at Fort Leavenworth in Kansas, assisted in writing the eight chapter manual.

“As the Army and the joint force focused on counter-insurgency and counter-terrorism at the expense of other capabilities, our adversaries watched, learned, adapted, modernized and devised strategies that put us at a position of relative disadvantage in places where we may be required to fight,” said Lundy. “This is about thinking differently about warfighting than we have for the last 16 years and filling in our capability gaps,” he added.

Today’s operational environment presents threats to the U.S. Armed Forces that are significantly more dangerous in terms of capability and magnitude than those previously faced in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Adversaries such as China, Iran, North Korea and Russia continue to use all means available to gain strategic positional advantages. The manual emphasizes the need to adjust training at home and at regional combat training centers.

Lundy said that we must be ready to win with the forces we have, and having the right doctrine is a critical part of that readiness. The updated FM 3-0 provides the doctrinal approach for the U.S. military to address the challenges of shaping operational environments, preventing conflict, and prevailing during large-scale ground combat.

But also of great importance is leadership development. Building leaders and units that can prevail in the environment of large-scale combat operations requires tough, realistic, and repetitive training. FM 3-0 provides a roadmap to that end.

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assembly

By Debbie Gregory.

A proposal for new state legislation in California that will help confront the issue of veteran suicides has been introduced by Assemblyman Dr. Joaquin Arambula and Assemblyman Jim Patterson.

AB 242 would require death certificates to reflect whether the deceased person was ever a member of the U.S. Armed Forces.

Currently, details such as marital status, birthplace and occupation are required on death certificates, but military service is not.

“Getting ahead of the suicide, getting help when it’s needed, not after it’s too late, and I think this is a good first step,” said Patterson.

The bill would also require the California Department of Health compile a report on veteran suicides, beginning in 2019.

“As a physician, I know accurate data will help us better understand the full scope of the problem of veteran suicides in California,” Arambula said. “Tracking this information will help determine whether or not existing suicide prevention efforts are having a positive effect, if more attention to this matter is needed in the future and where to allocate existing resources for mental health funding.”

“I have no question this information will be very helpful,” said Sen. Jim Nielsen, who voted for the bill in the Senate Veteran’s Affair Committee. “To our various veteran operations in the area, we can identify and allot them resources they desperately need.”

If passed into law, Arambula, an emergency room doctor, said California will join 21 other states in implementing such an effort to better calculate veteran suicide deaths.

The legislation is to be heard before the Senate Appropriations Committee at the end of this month after the legislators return from recess.

Military Connection salutes and proudly serves veterans and service members in the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, Coast Guard, Guard and Reserve, and their families.