Military

Command Assessment of Readiness and Training (CART)

There are three command assessments conducted during the course of a complete employment cycle. Command Assessment of Readiness and Training [CART I and II], a two-phase process intended to be a comprehensive review of training readiness; and FEP, an ISIC assessment of the unit's readiness to proceed to the intermediate and advanced phases of the IDTC.

CART I

Command Assessment of Readiness and Training, Phase I, is a ship's self-assessment of operational proficiency, formal school training, team training, inspections/assists and material/equipment status. It is conducted around mid-to-end of deployments of four months or longer (usually only CONUS or MIDPAC vessels) and is conducted by the ship's Commanding Officer. Ships homeported as part of the Forward Deployed Naval Forces (FDNF) will conduct CART I four months before (D) SRA/(D) PMA. Non-deploying units will conduct CART I at not-to-exceed 30-month intervals as scheduled by their ISIC.

The steps involved in generating the criteria for CART I are:

• Step One. Review formal school training status/needs: (a) Review and identify personnel shortfalls (critical NEC, billets) via EDVR/ODCR. This review should be completed well enough in advance to provide a timely heads-up to support activities ashore for scheduling training such as school quotas, training assists and inspections. (b) Identify individual school/team training requirements and request quotas. (c) Identify TADTAR requirements and request augmentation if necessary.
• Step Two. (a) Review basic phase/repetitive elements for material readiness oriented needs that will potentially become part of the work-up requirements. (b) Identify potential special training requirements and areas where crew performance is especially strong or weak. (c) Identify any sensor, weapons system, ship system additions or modifications that will take place during SRA/PMA/UPK periods that will require formal training for existing crew members or enroute training for new personnel. (d) Conduct initial material/equipment assessment to determine equipment condition. Reviews shall be conducted using a number of existing programs, such as Preventive Maintenance System, combat systems checkout employing OCSOT, systems testing, or conduct of safety and zone inspections using ship-tailored NAVSAFECEN safety review checklists and proposed Availability Work Package. (e) Keep ISIC informed of any issues surfaced in CART I that may impact subsequent training. (f) Schedule an SBTT course tailored to own ship's needs as early as possible.
• Step Three. Schedule CART II eight to ten weeks after the completion of the maintenance availability.
• Step Four. Review current PQS program and watchbill: (a) Review current watch-bills for anticipated losses of qualified watchstanders. Make PQS assignments as necessary to maintain continuity after post-deployment leave and upkeep period. (b) Review current PQS materials on hand; order new books as necessary.
• Step Five. Validate/modify ship's training plan for the IDTC based upon assessment results. Request ATG assistance as desired.

Forward-deployed ships conduct CART I on return from deployment or as determined by ISIC in conjunction with CO and ATG.

CART II

CART II is a robust, performance based assessment of a unit's readiness in each mission area except the amphibious, mine and salvage mission areas. It is conducted by the ISIC and is notionally conducted after the first major maintenance availability following deployment and is the beginning of the basic phase. It may include underway days depending upon the ISIC and Commanding Officer's desires. By assessing material, adminis trative, and training proficiency based on demonstrated mission area proficiency, CART II helps to identify areas that need further training during TSTA. The ship's tailored training plan is revised as necessary after CART II and, with ISIC approval, will become the basis for follow-on tailored ship's training during the basic phase.

CART II will be conducted aboard the ship no earlier than 90 days prior to TSTA I.

The steps involved in CART II are as follows:

• Step One. The Commanding Officer conducts a self-assessment using CART II checklists and other directives
• Step Two. Mission area team proficiency assessment. ATG, in PACFLT; and ISIC and ship, in LANTFLT; are responsible for coordinating support services required for proficiency assessment in each area. To the maximum extent possible, watch teams assessed should include those crew-members who will remain on board through the next deployment. Condition III watch teams shall be assessed. CART II will include an ISIC review of the ship's self-assessment of its readiness to execute its training plan.
• Step Three. The following will be conducted as appropriate to individual ship type and mission area: (a)ISIC debriefs the CO (b)The CO and ISIC revise the tailored training plan as needed. This will permit early resolution of schedule conflicts, determination of TSTA/specialty warfare area training length and verification of support service availability.
• Step Four. Reset of the ship's exercise database is not required, unless the ISIC feels that resetting particular exercises is desired based on conclusions concerning the ship's readiness. To avoid unnecessary expenditure of weapons and ammunition, ISICs should use judgment concerning resetting live fire exercises if the ship still has proficiency. Live fire exercises involving expensive ordnance will not be scheduled earlier than necessary to support the ship's normal preparations for deployment, even if reset to M-4 during CART II.
• Step Five. Submit scheduling inputs to reflect the training plan.

CART II consists of three elements, which are conducted over a five day period as follows:

• Days 1-3 A thorough review of the ship's material and administrative readiness to conduct training is conducted by ATG and ISIC personnel using checklists previously provided to the ship. This shall include an assessment of the ship's ongoing training and PQS programs.
• Days 3-5 Training and evaluations of the ship's training teams (ETT, DCTT, CSTT, etc.) are conducted by ATG personnel. Training battle problems may involve condition I and III scenarios designed to measure proficiency of the ship's training teams. It is recognized that operable equipment and material conditions will be affected by the conduct of these scenarios. The primary concern is to evaluate the ability of the ship's training teams to plan, conduct, and evaluate to the maximum extent feasible.
• Day 5 A scheduling session is conducted, during which representatives of the ship, Afloat Training Group, ISIC, type commander and air wing commander review and approve a plan for basic phase training, based on a strawman previously developed by the ship. All major events, especially those which require outside services, should be included in the plan.

Ships will not normally conduct CART II prior to entering extended maintenance or deactivation period. If special circumstances or a protracted period of operations following a deployment will delay the beginning of the maintenance period, the ship may conduct CART II prior to entering the availability. In these circumstances, ships will continue to meet repetitive readiness requirements until 60 days before the availability or 30 days before deactivation start. Some units may be scheduled to participate in evolutions during the 60 and 30-day pre-maintenance/pre-deactivation periods that will provide the opportunity to conduct repetitive exercises. Ships should maintain a continuing training program to ensure operational proficiency while using assets (i.e., fuel, ordnance) economically during this period. Ships will maintain readiness reporting throughout the availability. Upon entering a pre-strike period for deactivation, ships will cease reporting.

Forward deployed ship CART IIs are conducted at a time agreed to by CO, ISIC, and ATG WESTPAC with appropriate regard for the availability of assessment teams. CART II must be done early enough to support tailoring/planning of any follow-on TSTAs and, if possible, should be done sufficiently after CART I to allow time to correct deficiencies. It should also be conducted as soon as practicable after completion of SRA/PMA. FDNF ship CART IIs may be additionally tailored to permit limited training team "on-the-spot-training" to address obvious discrepancies when TSTAs may not be scheduled early enough to correct a discrepancy prior to follow-on contingency operations. The final product of a FDNF ship's CART II will be a general IDTC plan agreed to by CO, ISIC and ATG.