SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, Ill. (USTCNS) --- In order to improve service to the warfighter and be better aligned in advance of Military Surface Deployment and Distribution Command’s move to Scott Air Force Base, U.S. Transportation Command’s Operations Directorate (J3) and Strategy, Plans, Policy, and Programs Directorate (J5) will start moving personnel to realign them within new directorates and divisions in an operation known as Focus Warfighter II, the second phase of the Focus Warfighter initiative.

During Focus Warfighter I (FWI), J3’s geographically-focused branches began concentrating on transportation requirements from approximately six months out until seven days prior to loading of the move. In January, FWII began aligning the entire planning process from the deliberate planning until one day prior to the loading within geographically-focused branches. This will allow USTRANSCOM to present the user with one face who will take their needs from the planning stage all the way to execution.

The Focus Warfighter initiative is an outgrowth of the Agile Transportation for the 21st Century (AT21) Military Utility Assessment. The goals of the initiative are to maximize DTS throughput while gaining flexibility, have better up-front planning with the warfighter, incorporate execution priorities, and have a single requirements process while presenting a single face to the customer.

FWI took place last spring with the reorganization of J3’s Requirements Branch into Combatant Command-oriented branches and the redesign of the requirements/validation process. The goal of FWI was to place in action the concept of using a “single face to the customer” model to meet COCOMs’ needs. That goal was accomplished on May 2, 2005.

The goal of FW II is to develop a process that capitalizes on a joint fused effort to assess and plan multi-modal end-to-end solutions. To achieve this goal, J5 will move 62 people to J3, while J3 is both realigning functions internally as well as moving 10 people to the Command, Control, Communications and Computer Systems Directorate (J6).

The first move was bringing J5’s War Planning branch, as well as the Training, Readiness and Exercise branch to J3. This consolidated all operational aspects from planning and training to execution within the J3.

Next, FWII will divest Information Technology (IT) oversight to J6. J3 will continue to provide supervision of IT systems as they relate to operational command and control and will continue to articulate requirements for C2 systems to J6.

Finally, the component commands are the transportation executers and FWII will strengthen this role by divesting USTRANSCOM of its Air, Surface, and Sustainment Branches which were the command's primary execution monitors in the Deployment and Distribution Operations Center. Under FWII, Liaison Officers for Air Mobility Command’s Tanker Airlift Command Center, SDDC and Military Sealift Command will now be responsible for providing execution information to the USTRANSCOM DDOC chief who will retain execution oversight of all transportation requirements.