Call Forward
The CALL FORWARD (CF) exercise is the only exercise that simulates the actual mobilization of the Individual Ready Reserve (IRR). It occurs annually in April, May or June, and is 15 days in length
America's Army includes USAR and ARNG component soldiers by design. In the event of a presidential-directed mobilization, USAR and ARNG forces around the country may be federalized for deployment. These soldiers, like their active duty counterparts, must be totally ready and prepared to fulfill their mission, wherever it may be.
Department of the Army planned and conducted a series of mobilization training field training exercises given the designation CALL FORWARD (CF). CALL FORWARD exercises are FORSCOM-managed MOBEX which focus on the FORSCOM mission of mobilization/deployment of RC units. USAR Div(IT)s are not involved in support of the unit mobilization/deployment mission (FORSCOM mission). When CALL FORWARD exercises are conducted at TRADOC installations, TRADOC also incorporates training base expansion [TBE] play, which involves participation by the installation's supporting USAR Div(IT).
Schedules for CALL FORWARD exercises will be developed by FORSCOM with TRADOC, USARC, CONUSA, USAR Div(IT), and host installation input. Mission assignments will be made 2 to 5 years prior to start of exercise (STARTEX) when possible, and will include the designation of participants, sites, and other mission details. Task organization and plan development. Development of CALL FORWARD task organization and initiation of operations plan (OPLAN) should begin no later than 2 years prior to STARTEX. Working closely with Headquarters USARC, CONUSA, TRADOC, and host installation, the staff of the designated USAR Div(IT) will develop plans and establish a milestone timetable. Details will be closely coordinated with all principal participants.
TRADOC played no real role in CF94, held at Fort Lewis, Wash., since the command's only mission at this non-TRADOC post was establishment of a CONUS replacement center, which had been tested the year before, and because another test was scheduled for FY 1995.
TRADOC's intended participation in CF 95, scheduled for July 1995, was limited to Fort Bliss Tex., which planned to fold a retiree recall exercise into mobilization and deployment tests. In anticipation of future mobilization and rapid deployment from within the state of Alaska, exercise Call Forward '95 served as a capability test of the active duty Army garrison support units at Fort Richardson to provide mobilization processing services to Alaska USAR and ARNG soldiers.
The time of year chosen for this exercise (25-28 February) was intentional. Arctic weather predominates from November through March and this would potentially maximize the logistical and environmental "stress" on all participating units. Fort Richardson, just north of Anchorage and co-located with Elmendorf Air Force Base, was selected as the mobilization site for preparing these soldiers for further deployment. Activated soldiers came from Anchorage, Wasilla, Kenai, Soldotna, Fairbanks, Bethel, and Nome. These soldiers arrived by air/ground transportation at Fort Richardson for 2 weeks of active duty for training. The initial 4 days were dedicated to Call Forward processing, as if they were being prepared to deploy on a worldwide mission.
The Call Forward billeting locations on Fort Richardson were several miles from the centralized Mobilization Unit In-processing Center (MUIC) site. This situation required special coordination for transportation and messing, effectively "fencing off" certain availability times for dental processing activities. The U.S. Army Alaska Headquarters (HQ) provided succinct "rules of engagement" for the garrison support units during Call Forward: "Don't waste the soldiers' time." Activities to be accomplished during the Call Forward period included dental, medical, personnel, and legal processing, assessments and counseling, as well as weapons qualification and Annual Physical Fitness Test. All administrative processing activities were conducted at one location, the MUIC site.
Fort Huachuca, Arizona, was the site for a major mobilization exercise, CALL FORWARD 1996, scheduled for June 1996. Exercise CALL FORWARD 1996 tested the RC and the installation's readiness to support a mobilization. For the exercise, nearly 1000 U.S. Army Reserve (USAR) and Army National Guard (ARNG) soldiers reported to Fort Huachuca over a two-week period. Most of the participants were members of RC units from the Southwest Region. Another 100 were MI Inactive Ready Reserve (IRR) soldiers called up for predeployment refresher training. The 6th Reserve Forces School-Intelligence (RFS-I) supported the USAIC&FH refresher training during Exercise CALL FORWARD 1996. Five RFS-Is are affiliated with the USAIC&FH through WARTRACE. During Operations DESERT SHIELD and DESERT STORM, the RFS-Is mobilized, in part, to support the MI proponent.
The Department of the Army-directed mobilization exercise Call Forward 2000 had more than 900 soldiers from dozens of units participating in a mock deployment scenario at Fort Dix. The Call Forward 2000 scenario is based on an ongoing peacekeeping/rebuilding mission to a nation in the aftermath of a civil war. Increased tensions among neighboring states in the area result in the need for more troops, and a Presidential Selective Reserve Call Up is declared. Call Forward is directed by DA through FORSCOM and the post's performance was evaluated July 21-23, 2000, by more than a dozen subject matter experts from First Army. Installations such as Fort Dix, which serve as premier power projection platforms, are evaluated every three years. As the Army seeks to trim the number of platforms, success in Call Forward exercises gains in importance, and the post hosted a steady stream of visitors to the event.
The goal of Call Forward is to press the installation to do its pre-mobilization and post-mobilization mission. Units in the exercise are not evaluated, but commanders routinely take advantage of the opportunity to check on the readiness status of their soldiers. Many units were on post for annual training, and carved time to participate in Call Forward. Records and equipment are checked. Individuals go through Soldier Readiness Processing, a multi-station system that ensures they are up to date on everything from dental checks to Family Care Plans. While the process is part of the exercise, soldiers participating will have the real-life opportunity to update their records, including wills, family care plans and other necessities.
The USAR has a total of 35 USAR units, with 4,193 soldiers assigned to mobilize at Fort Leonard Wood. Approximately 2,000 of these soldiers (17 units) are involved in Training Base Expansion. Fort Leonard Wood conducted the mobilization exercise CALL FORWARD 00 (TBE) in MAR 00 involving the 98th Division (IT) and 120 IRR soldiers and CONUS Replacement Center Exercise in APR 00 involving the 387th Replacement Battalion (Wichita, Ks) and 45 -75 IRR, civilian, and sister service personnel.
Exercise Call Forward was held during the week of May 6, 2001. Designed to test TRADOC installations' ability to support mobilization of the IRR, the two-week exercise simulated the call-up process. A task force deployed from Pasadena to Ft. Bliss, set up a processing facility in the Reserve Mobilization Support Center there, and spent three days updating records, issuing new ID cards, and supervising the issue of clothing and equipment. The last phase of Call Forward included five days of MOS refresher training. The IRR soldiers were shipped from Ft. Bliss to Ft. Huachuca, AZ and Ft. Sam Houston, TX, where instructors from the 5th (MI) and 9th (Medical) Battalions, 104th Regiment, trained and tested them on the critical job skills they need to be effective on the battlefield.
The CALL FORWARD exercise was cancelled for 2002.
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