Deployment Journal: Revolutionizing the ANA

  • Published
  • By Tech. Sgt. Kevin Wallace
  • 100th Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs
HERAT, Afghanistan --  It was the 18th Century and America was at war. I was a young Army officer leading Sailors on combat patrols somewhere in New England.

I vividly recall a senior French officer instructing me, and not understanding a word he was saying. Through a translator, I discovered he was giving me battlefield tactics advice.

From there, things got progressively stranger.

I reflected on that strange dream this morning then I woke up and thought I must have been dreaming about what the Afghan National Army soldiers whom I'd been working with these past few days must feel like.

Can you imagine fighting for your nation and being mentored by foreigners from many different countries, speaking many different languages, and always talking through an interpreter?

But, you know something, as unfathomable as that statement sounds, it's working here. Each and every time I go out with the ANA or witness their training, I see hope.

From my perspective, hope stems from three things: a motivated enlisted corps, valid and professional NCOs, and an officer corps who's not only educated and trained, but who places trust in their NCOs.

I spent the past four days with ANA basic military trainees during Humvee and light-terrain vehicle driving training, Humvee rollover training, M-16 familiarization training, English and Dari literacy training, and an outside-the-wire Military Operations in Urban Terrain (MOUT) scenario.

All in all, the ANA soldiers performed top-notch and were literally thirsty for knowledge.

Watching young Afghans clear rooms and engage fictitious opposing forces tactfully while watching their fellow soldiers' backs overwhelmed me with joy.

Though these recruits still have much training to endure, these guys were motivated, ready and excited to harness their own fate, and willing to die doing so.

Back at the basic training compound, I met the sergeant major of basic training, ANA Sgt. Maj. Shukrullah Ahmadi.

What a fantastic NCO.

Though NCOs have been around since the start of the ANA, the status and responsibility of a credible NCO is very new, and still not completely solid.

The ANA NCO corps is transitioning from a period where an NCO was a more-experienced soldier to an NCO not only being experienced, but a front-line leader, who is trusted and respected by ANA officers.

Sergeant Major Ahmadi seems to be at the spear's tip in pursuit of that needed transition.

In his second month as a sergeant major, he created NCO counseling and evaluation forms. Prior to that, there was no official tracking for an NCO's performance.

Sergeant Major Ahmadi counseled each NCO monthly, which included positive and negative comments. Every six months, all NCOs at the basic training compound were evaluated based on these counseling forms, which enabled promotion based on merit.

Prior to that, promotions were normally based on family status or favors, explained Sergeant Major Ahmadi.

Now, the sergeant major counsels all of his first sergeants monthly, and those NCOs evaluate the NCOs junior to them. Sergeant Major Ahmadi still oversees the process and reports his findings to the basic training commander, ANA Col. Yousef Wardak.

Colonel Wardak lauded the sergeant major's initiatives and plans to introduce the programs through the ANA chain of command for hopeful service-wide implementation.

Reeling back to MOUT training, I saw the three parts I described work together flawlessly, like a well-oiled ANA machine producing hope.

First, a basic training captain laid out his plan to the four NCOs on site. The ranking NCO, a sergeant first class, seemed to have contrasting views on parts of the plan, and the captain accepted his feedback.

The two discussed the issue, and came to a conclusion. I wonder if that would have been the case a few years ago.

Next, the sergeant first class rallied his three fellow NCOs and prepared to execute the plan.

Soon thereafter, hundreds of recruits broke up into five-man fire teams equipped with M-16 rifles and blank ammunition. One team at a time, they brought the fight to their simulated enemy.

Every soldier knew their place - top to bottom.

I've patrolled by foot and mounted convoys with ANA during real-world missions and into hostile territory. These guys are the real deal.

I don't know if Afghanistan will reach the heights my nation has, and I can't guarantee Sergeant Major Ahmadi or Colonel Wardak will be their own version of George Washington. But I'm certain my dream meant something.

I'm told that this spring will likely be a kinetic one and can all but guarantee I'll be a part of that. It's reassuring to know that the basic trainees I saw this week are primarily destined for service in the region which I'm currently deployed, and I can't wait to see their faces and work together again.