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| Army Warfighting Assessment | |
|---|---|
| Name | Army Warfighting Assessment |
| Type | Assessment program |
| Location | Fort Hood, Fort Irwin, Yuma Proving Ground |
Army Warfighting Assessment
The Army Warfighting Assessment (AWA) is an annual series of experiments and field assessments conducted by the United States Army to evaluate future concepts, force structure, and technologies. It integrates Army organizations, allied partners, defense contractors, and academic institutions to test capabilities across environments such as Fort Irwin National Training Center, Yuma Proving Ground, and Joint Base Lewis–McChord. AWA informs modernization priorities linked to initiatives like the Army Futures Command and doctrinal publications from TRADOC.
AWA functions as a live, integrated experiment that brings together elements from FORSCOM, TRADOC, Army Materiel Command, and Program Executive Office organizations. It seeks to bridge concept development from U.S. Army Futures Command with test practices used by U.S. Army Test and Evaluation Command and acquisition pathways overseen by the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment. The program is situated within broader modernization efforts alongside cross-service initiatives such as Joint All-Domain Command and Control and interoperability experiments with partners including United Kingdom Armed Forces, Australian Army, and Canadian Army.
AWA emerged from experimentation programs during the post-9/11 era and iterative reforms following reviews like the Winnefeld reforms and lessons from campaigns including the Iraq War and War in Afghanistan (2001–2021). Early prototypes drew on exercises such as Network Integration Evaluation and concepts from the Future Combat Systems era, evolving through influence from Army 2020 planning and the establishment of Army Futures Command in 2018. Over successive iterations, AWA incorporated capabilities from programs of record such as the Integrated Visual Augmentation System, M1 Abrams, and robotic systems developed with industry partners like Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, and General Dynamics.
AWA aims to validate doctrine and materiel readiness for contested environments informed by strategic documents like the National Defense Strategy and scenarios used by Joint Staff (United States) wargaming. Objectives include assessing command, control, communication, computers, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance capabilities associated with programs such as Joint Battle Command-Platform, evaluating sustainment models related to Defense Logistics Agency concepts, and exploring human-machine teaming exemplified by prototypes from DARPA and corporate partners. Scope extends to multinational interoperability with partners from NATO and regional engagements with militaries like the Japan Self-Defense Forces and Republic of Korea Armed Forces.
AWA employs live, virtual, and constructive (LVC) methodologies similar to exercises like Silver Flag and Vigilant Guard. Components include prototype platforms, tactical networks, training audiences drawn from divisions such as the 1st Cavalry Division and 1st Infantry Division, instrumentation used by National Training Center analytics teams, and scenario injects developed by centers including the Center for Army Lessons Learned. Testbeds often integrate systems from Program Executive Office Command, Control and Communications-Tactical and sensors from firms like Raytheon Technologies and BAE Systems. Data collection leverages analytics tools and modeling suites used by Army Research Laboratory and simulation frameworks from Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency.
Participants span Army headquarters entities, combat formations, and partner services: units from III Corps, III Armored Corps, and aviation brigades, alongside test organizations like U.S. Army Test and Evaluation Command and institutional stakeholders such as U.S. Army War College faculty contributing wargaming expertise. Industry participants include major defense contractors and small business innovators supported by Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) programs. Allied contributions have come from contingents representing United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia, coordinated through liaison elements from NATO Allied Command Transformation.
Notable AWAs have included experiments centered on long-range precision fires interoperability with systems related to the M270 Multiple Launch Rocket System and integration trials for advanced sensors used in formations modeled after the 1st Armored Division. Case studies cite tests of autonomous resupply concepts influenced by work at Yuma Proving Ground and network resilience experiments reflecting lessons from the Cyber Command (United States) posture. Historical parallels are often drawn with earlier evaluations like the Army After Next concept and multinational exercises such as RIMPAC where interoperability and logistical reach were central.
AWA has produced findings that influenced capability roadmaps for portfolios under Army Futures Command, affected acquisition priorities for programs of record, and shaped doctrine updates in Field Manual revisions and TRADOC pamphlets. Lessons learned emphasize logistics agility, communications resilience under contested electromagnetic conditions, and human-machine teaming implications for crew doctrines used by formations like Stryker Brigade Combat Team. Impacts extend to procurement decisions, investment in network modernization programs, and enhanced multinational interoperability protocols with partners in NATO and Indo-Pacific dialogues involving Indo-Pacific Command.