The year 2018 was busy for Guns of Glory Soldiers of the 101st Airborne Division Artillery Brigade.

Soldiers of DIVARTY deployed in support of both domestic and worldwide missions, sending headquarters elements and radar to Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan in support of Operations Resolute Support and Freedom’s Sentinel.

Soldiers and communications equipment also were sent to North Carolina in support of Hurricane Florence relief efforts.

DIVARTY increased fires equipping capabilities, executed the Division’s Warfighter 18-03 exercise, and partnered with Army National Guard Soldiers and joint active-duty forces for worldwide training exercises.

Guns of Glory also provided fires training and oversight for the division’s field artillery battalions, and further strengthened bonds with community partners.

Worldwide support

In 2018, DIVARTY Soldiers deployed in support of domestic and overseas operations. In March, Guns of Glory Soldiers deployed headquarters elements and radar to Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan, with the division headquarters. During this deployment, DIVARTY served as the Field Artillery Headquarters for Operations Resolute Support and Freedom’s Sentinel, responsible for all surface-to-surface fires throughout the Combined Joint Operating Area-Afghanistan and resourcing train, advise and assist missions to improve Afghan fires capabilities.

Following the destruction in the Carolinas caused by Hurricane Florence in September, DIVARTY deployed several Signal Corps Soldiers and communications equipment from Headquarters and Headquarters Battery in support of relief efforts. HHB Soldiers deployed a satellite transportable terminal, establishing critical communications capabilities in the hurricane response.

“The DIVARTY S6 command post node team provided beyond line of site satellite communications for the 74th Composite Truck Company, allowing the unit to effectively communicate throughout the affected areas and send updates to their higher headquarters at Fort Campbell,” said Maj. Joel Sabella, DIVARTY S6 officer in charge.

Capability increases

Recognizing the ever-changing landscape of global conflict, DIVARTY sought to continuously improve fires capabilities for the 101st.

In April, Guns of Glory Soldiers fielded new AN/TPQ-53 radars with improved range and additional functionality to replace aging counterfire target acquisition radars. DIVARTY Soldiers also supported division field artillery battalions in upgrading M119A3 howitzers to improve firing accuracy and speed.

Major training exercises

DIVARTY Soldiers participated in multiple major training exercises in 2018, providing fires expertise and training assistance.

In February, DIVARTY Soldiers supported the divisionwide Warfighter Exercise 18-03, serving as the Field Artillery Headquarters. The Warfighter was a capstone event for the division, providing training in large-scale combat operations in a virtual environment.

Also in February, Guns of Glory Soldiers traveled to Germany with strategic partners from the 138th Field Artillery Brigade of the Kentucky Army National Guard in support of Operation Dynamic Front. Both forces integrated combined fires in Europe and forged bonds between strategically aligned Regular Army and National Guard units.

In July, DIVARTY Soldiers participated in Operation Northern Strike at Camp Grayling, Michigan, an annual joint and coalition training exercise designed to strengthen interoperability between forces and nations. DIVARTY Soldiers supported live fire exercises involving small arms, mortars, artillery, and aerial munitions. In addition to the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, Poland, Hungary, Estonia, Lithuania, and Latvia participated in the exercise.

Select DIVARTY Soldiers also traveled to Fort Bliss, Texas in July to provide Q-53 radar support to the 1-121 Field Artillery Battalion of the Wisconsin Army National Guard in the battalion’s training for deployment in support of Operation Spartan Shield in the Middle East.

Fires training readiness,

oversight

One of the DIVARTY’s key tasks is to ensure standardization and technical proficiency in fires for the division. To implement this, DIVARTY conducts regular live fire battery artillery readiness tests and division artillery readiness tests throughout the year.

In 2018, DIVARTY conducted three BARTs and two DARTs, evaluating, certifying, and qualifying the fires capabilities and proficiencies of all three battalions under its command.

Fires leader development

The DIVARTY maintains a strong leader professional development program, with frequent multiday sessions.

During 2018, these LPDs included speakers from the Center for the Army Profession and Ethic; 4th Battlefield Coordination Detachment at Shaw Air Force Base, South Carolina; Brig. Gen. D. A. Sims, deputy director for regional operations and force management, J-35, Joint Staff; Jim Hunter, international speaker on servant leadership and Crowned Grace International.

In March, DIVARTY hosted an Eagle Fires Forum, inviting key members of the fires community from across the country to gather at Fort Campbell and discuss best practices, explore problem sets and influence trends affecting the fires community.

Key leader farewells

In May, DIVARTY Soldiers bade farewell to Command Sgt. Maj. Ernest A. Warner and welcomed Command Sgt. Maj. Elroy Grant. Grant serves as the senior enlisted adviser to DIVARTY and comes to Fort Campbell from the Field Artillery Proponent Office, Fort Sill, Oklahoma.

At the close of 2018, DIVARTY Soldiers prepared to bid farewell to Col. Frank J. Stanco, who has served as DIVARTY commander since January 2017. Col. Bryan L. Babich will replace Stanco as the unit’s third commander since reactivation in 2014.

Community partnerships

DIVARTY maintains strong partnerships with Vanderbilt University Athletics and the unit partner city, Owensboro, Kentucky.

In May, DIVARTY sent a team of Soldiers to run the Wendell Foster 5K in Owensboro, where Mayor Tom Watson awarded four Soldiers for placing in their age groups.

In September, DIVARTY Soldiers and Families were invited to attend a military appreciation Vanderbilt soccer game in Nashville, where Vanderbilt Athletics recognized Spc. Calvin Lowe and Pfc. Ashley Ward.

In November, Soldiers from HHB DIVARTY successfully completed an 18.6-mile Norwegian ruck march at Southern Indiana University, Evansville, Indiana, and were awarded the Norwegian ruck march badge.

“I am incredibly proud of how much the 101st DIVARTY has accomplished this year,” Stanco said. “We continue to set the standard as the world’s premier Air Assault Division Artillery, and I am confident we are and will continue to be prepared to answer the call for our next ‘rendezvous with destiny.’”