Category: MIL-OSI

Source: United States Army

PICATINNY ARSENAL, N.J. — The U.S. Army has cleared the M111 Offensive Hand Grenade for full material release. Developed by the Capabilities Program Executive Ammunition and Energetics, CPE A&E, in conjunction with the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command Armaments Center at Picatinny Arsenal, the M111 OHG will replace the obsolete body and fuze of the Mk3A2 hand grenade series, marking the first new lethal hand grenade to achieve full material release since 1968 when the Mk3A2 entered service. The Mk3A2 is restricted for use due to its asbestos body, unlike the M111 which utilizes a plastic body that is fully consumed during detonation.

The M111 will provide increased training and operational readiness while providing the Soldier with a safer option. It also offers Soldiers the ability to fight more effectively in closed quarter urban environments by leveraging blast overpressure, BOP, instead of fragmentation to deliver lethality. When used in grenades, BOP delivers devastating effects to enemy personnel and equipment without fragmentation and is a potent tactical advantage in the field. The M67 fragmentation hand grenade projects lethal and incapacitating fragments that can be deflected when employed in enclosed, restricted terrain like buildings, rooms and structures, whereas the M111 OHG projects high BOP effects that are less affected by obstacles in enclosed and restricted terrain.

“One of the key lessons learned from the door-to-door urban fighting in Iraq was the M67 grenade wasn’t always the right tool for the job. The risk of fratricide on the other side of the wall was too high,” explained Col. Vince Morris, Project Manager Close Combat Systems, CPE A&E. “But a grenade utilizing BOP can clear a room of enemy combatants quickly leaving nowhere to hide while ensuring the safety of friendly forces.”

In open terrain, the Soldier will employ the M67 to maximize lethal fragment effects, whereas in enclosed and restricted terrain, Soldiers will employ the M111 to maximize BOP effects on the enemy.

“We’ve given our Soldiers and joint warfighters the flexibility to determine in the field which type of grenade will best suit the current situation they are facing, be it open space or confined area,” explained Tiffany Cheng, one of the DEVCOM Armaments Center engineers that developed the M111 at Picatinny Arsenal.

Another major benefit of the new M111 design is standardization. The new grenade and its training version, the M112, leverage the same five-step arming process as the M67 and its training version, the M69, allowing Soldiers to train as they fight, improving combat performance and effectiveness. In addition, the M111 and M112 use the same fuzes as the M67 and M69 respectively, thereby enabling Army acquisition professionals to save costs by leveraging economies of scale made possible by common fuze production lines when sourcing both grenades. Both grenades also have government-owned intellectual property that enables the Army to effectively compete production contracts across the industrial base, enhancing production opportunities for multiple vendors while providing best value to our customers, the Soldiers and the taxpayer.

“By standardizing the arming process and the fuzing, the Army saves taxpayer money without sacrificing lethality on the battlefield,” said Morris. “This is the kind of acquisition reform that is currently underway throughout the Army acquisition enterprise. We are taking advantage of that initiative to drive down costs while increasing combat effectiveness.”

Source: United States Army

USAG BAVARIA – HOHENFELS, Germany – A fire inspector with the Directorate of Emergency Team at U.S. Army Garrison Bavaria – Hohenfels received recognition from the local Veterans of Foreign Wars chapter March 9, 2026, for her dedication to job and community.

Theresa Hecht has been with DES since September 2022 and has since made an impact across the community because of her passion for fire safety and her engagement with many other on-post organizations.

Adam Moore, the chapter commander of VFW Post 10557, commended Hecht’s ability to build relationships within the community as he presented her a plaque.

“We wanted to present you this award because your relationships matter,” Moore said. “In an environment like this, where we have Americans working alongside Germans, and then we’re working alongside the rest of Europe when they come through here, how you present yourself and how you interact is very important.”

Hecht has taken part in several on-post community events, such as the 1st Battalion, 4th Infantry Regiment, Trunk-or-Treat Halloween event. She has also introduced herself at the Child Development Center to demonstrate that firefighters are nothing for the preschool-age children to fear despite their bulky suits and masks.

When the members of VFW Post 10557 decided to renew the Public Servant of the Year award recently, it was Hecht’s involvement in so many aspects of garrison life that brought her immediately to the organization’s mind.

“A lot of our members are also part of other associations, such as Boy Scouts, BOSS, MWR, USO, etcetera,” said Moore. “When I asked who should we nominate, it was unanimously decided that Theresa Hecht should be the person.”

“Thank you for choosing me,” said Hecht. “Thank you to the people who believed in me.”

Source: United States Army

FORT LEAVENWORTH, Kansas – U.S. Army and allied leaders are wrestling with how to win on battlefields of new technologies that are challenging armored maneuver.

The U.S. Army Command and General Staff College U.S. students and allied partners learn to execute multi-domain operations as part of joint or multi-national teams.

Through curriculum and exercises like Eagle Owl, students earn valuable knowledge and skills to conduct division-level combat operations in modern warfare.

U.S. Army Command and General Staff College Commandant Col. Ethan Diven provided the keynote address for the British Covering Force Symposium 2026 with focus on changing character of war, and how armored forces are adapting to new realities.

The conversation is a direct continuation of CGSC’s global focus and the larger Army’s commitment to sharing lessons learned with allies and partners to solve common problems.

“This is the way that we are going to fight [jointly with British military],” Diven said. “If we don’t agree that we are not good enough yet; the tech that we’re experimenting with is getting to some people, but not all the right people and not in the right time; and making sure our leaders are using clear language, we’re going to continue to struggle. I share your sense of urgency. I share your lack of satisfaction with how fast we are going.”

The audience of officers and senior non-commissioned officers of the U.K.’s three armored and recce brigades, had vested interest in how to move their forces’ calvary capabilities by examining challenges emerging from the Russia-Ukraine War.

Near omnipresent enemy and defensive drones (among other emerging technologies) has changed how armored, combined arms teams plan for tactical success, Diven explained.

Making initial non-human contact with enemy forces has become increasingly important, encouraging experimentation with how the Army sequences and integrates drones and other recon-strike platforms ahead of crewed fighting vehicles.

Old armored team tactics and techniques in today’s rapidly changing battlefield creates high-value risk, Diven explained.

“Reconnaissance professionals, and reconnaissance organizations, do not just exist, but will continue to demonstrate their relevance by helping inform a commander’s decision to be violent. To commit, not just robots, but ultimately humans to fight and win,” he said.

New technologies like artificial intelligence, digital collaborative command and control platforms and data-driven decisions, are influencing how commanders see, describe, and direct forces.

These advancements, while allowing more refined, high-speed tactical actions, are generating secondary effects easily detected by increasing overhead surveillance: signatures.

Contemporary command posts and those of a decade ago share only two commonalities: being housed under a “giant circus tent” and being a buzz of activity.

Today’s CP activity generates more enemy-detectable information than ever before, Diven explained, challenging maneuver across the board.

This detriment to movement was a common observation in his role as the commander of an Armored Brigade Team and commander of operations for the National Training Center.

“I was much more comfortable to be where the action was, to confirm what is being told to me over the radio or the digital common operating picture with my own eyes, talking to that sergeant that is seeing and fighting, to build my understanding. That comes with risk… and that is likely not the best decision or the best use of assets anymore.”

How can armored forces fight effectively without commander’s orchestrating shoulder to shoulder with their teams?

Clear communication.

Not just verbally but through a set of concise, orders products, and leader interactions.

“Have you provided a simple, clear, understandable series of products that can stand the test of not just time, but continuous contact?” Diven said. “The 200-page word document that is complemented by the 50 PowerPoint slide deck, with a series of annexes that are only enabled by unlocked series of passwords that require an incredible amount of bandwidth. aren’t super helpful for the platoon or the koi [company] that can only communicate over TACSAT.”

Commanders who communicate clearly, and staff who challenge them to do so, enable subordinates to execute at speed, in fiercely contested environments.

Gone are the days of planners and command teams gathering around acetate maps, Diven explained.

Officers and NCO’s now use digital collaborative and synchronization programs and training to operate differently and at greater tempo.

Students at CGSC are learning the intricacies of these planning and execution tools to be capable and ready leaders upon arrive to assigned commands.

“We have to deliberately disaggregate ourselves and figure out how to conduct decentralized planning, decentralized coordination, and look like other small elements at the platoon at most size and move our command posts at the battalion squadron at tactical level,” Diven said.

As armor forces adapt to fight new enemy capabilities and warfare as a whole, Diven encouraged a transformation in command culture, to enable units to operate more effectively.

Culture shifts include in traditional sequential training schedules and embracing the “uncomfortable” associated with stepping off the normal path of training and technology adoption.

“Our Secretary of War, that entire department, down to platoon level, is embracing a culture of experimentation,” Diven said. “It is not waiting for the Army to give us the tool to try to train with.”

The U.S. and British Army have more than a century of experience fighting together, driving the importance of continued training and lessons sharing.

The Covering Force Symposium, which included most officers and NCOs of the British armored force, was an opportunity for American and British warfighters to discuss shared challenges and potential solutions.

“I’m excited to not just fight together in the future, but to collaborate on how we’ve got to get better,” Diven said.