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To: Company Commanders
From: Company Commanders
Many company commanders are deploying to Afghanistan on Security Force Assistance Advisor Teams (SFAAT) whose mission is to assist Afghan National Security Forces. The SFAAT mission requires many key leaders, but not many soldiers. As a result, commanders are going to war and leaving most of their soldiers behind. This begs a number of questions, such as: What responsibility do deployed company commanders have to their soldiers at home station? How can they organize the main body to keep operating effectively in the absence of so many key leaders?
A number of us are engaged in a conversation about this in the CompanyCommand forum (http://CC.army.mil). One challenge with this topic is that the advisor mission is ever-evolving and each unit approaches it differently. With that in mind, this article captures some important insights and can serve as a conversation starter for units that are undertaking the SFAAT mission.
Future Company Commander
We are currently planning how to man a SFAAT deployment, and these are some of the exact questions that have driven debate within my unit. Another question we have is: "How do we fairly rate key leaders if there is a nine-month block that they spent away from the supervisory role for which they are charged?"
Salvador Zuniga
With most of the unit leadership heading over to perform the SFAAT mission, the remainder of the unit needs to continue to train to perform its Title 10 mission. But how can this be done if the HQ and most of the senior leaders are on SFAATs?
Noah Truax
I was part of an intra-theater security and partnership mission in Kuwait and re-deployed at the beginning of November 2012. We had a strong and well-resourced team at home station (what was formerly known as Rear-D) with full authority and responsibility. I would not have been as effective in my mission if I'd had to worry too much about what was happening back at home station.
Mark Whitehead
I am currently deployed on a SFAAT and previously deployed on a MiTT in 2008. The difference is that with the SFAAT concept, we are pulling folks from key and developmental positions - company commanders or, in my case on this deployment, brigade...