Hello all,
"Why is CA considered SOF?"
Good question, I have asked myself this many times... ;)
"In the Vietnam War, CA was more publicized than ever before with its phrase “winning the hearts and minds of the people.” CA’s greatest success was in working with U.S. Special Forces in South Vietnam’s central highlands and securing large areas of difficult terrain by winning the confidence of local tribes. Since there were no fixed battle lines, CA personnel had to stay in some places indefinitely. By 1966, each Special Forces A-Detachment in the highlands was augmented by a Civil Affairs-Psychological Operations officer (CAPO). The functions of CA and PSYOP were often combined. Three CA companies carried the burden of pacification, working with the State Department. CA assisted Vietnamese civilians by drilling wells, building roads and bridges to help market local products, setting up public health clinics and school buildings, and carrying out public education programs. The CA programs in the central highlands were, according to the Army’s Vice Chief of Staff at the time, “worth their weight in gold.” Overall, the effort to “win the hearts and minds” of the local people was hit and miss however due partly to the fact that civil administration expertise in the Army lay within Army Reserve."
From the very beginning CA was part and parcel of SF in the US Army and became part of US- SOF as a result and the strategic objectives of the force / occupational field. We work in small teams, outside the scope of local commanders with much independence of action many times, and must be able to adapt to changing circumstances rapidly. Some of our personnel support conventional forces as well and typically under the direct control of the theater or regional commander. Our tasking comes from many US government entities, we support all US Special Operations Forces jointly (not just Army). CA even supports CAG and they have assets assigned, I'm told from reliable sources. We are further tasked with FID/UW missions as well as other supporting missions, as well we are assigned to US Embassies and specific regions for operations with and along side SF and others.
I served in CA and hold the identifier 38A (2002-2008). My MOS's were 11B, 38A & 37F. Relative to CA, I was in the reserve forces and with the 426th FID/UW Airborne among others then additionally served with SOCCENT J-35 IO in Tampa as an active duty augmentee.
Little overview and general knowledge
During my tenure with the 426th FID/UW Airborne we had "Capstone" mission assignments supporting different commands and regions worldwide. The 426th at the time supported 1st SFG and we had / have many native speakers to support the mission AOR for 1st group. Our language school slots matched those assigned regions. We also had assigned several former 18 series SNCO as our team sergeants. Our people went to DLI in Monterey Ca. at the time and occasionally Bragg. We had school slots for language schools, information security manager (SNCO /Officer), foreign weapons, defensive driving, Airborne, Ranger, etc. Many of our folks possessed higher degrees, were professionals in the civilian world and many even possessed PHDs. CA tends to attract academics, professionals and many former SF guys from my experience. At that time we had to pass a PT test with 80% or better, complete a road march (6 miles, 45# ruck, or 1 / 3rd your body weight in under 2 hours) do a water test and swim a designated specific distance. You must possess a GT above 110 and a ST above 100. Nothing too hard compared to when I was Infantry. I worked with professionals who knew their bussiness and stayed in their respective lanes. Currently CA falls now under the Army Reserve Command but once activated the funding stream comes from USASOC, my understanding now. We are not shooters, nor enablers or "action guys" not our lane... Later I became a Psyops team chief with the 7th POG and crossed over to that MOS.
Personal thoughts, combat operations & reality
I can honestly say this was the most interesting, rewarding, fun and the highest level responsibility I ever had in the military. I loved it in so many ways, really the best job ever! In fact given the choice I would rather be in CA than anything else including the Rangers or SF...I know, sick hun?! I served in combat operations; I was assigned with the CJSOTF-A- 04-05 in Regional Command South. We relieved the 96th active duty CA out of Bragg on our arrival. Active duty CA (96th & 95th ) is assigned for short term initial operations to do short durations low sustainability operations, with a emphasis on data collection & general assessments to be handed off to reserve forces, reserves are mostly professionals, put in place to take over. They (the reserves) conduct long term high impact projects with a high level of sustainably and increased funding streams.
Many times we had SF teams and Infantry supporting our taskers, yes they support our missions on occasion. And we also supported their taskers and mission directives. I was a CAT-A Team Sergeant (8 personnel assigned broken into 2 four man cells) and operated at times completely independently within the battlespace and far outside the purview of superiors and command structures. We / I had autonomy of action and was able to effect changes within directives and influence our AOR. Most of our taskers came directly from the theater command or above. We / I also worked with large sums of funds at times in excess of 200k local and was responsible for all funds distributed and what that money did. We / I oversaw funding requests and validated those requests for use of funds, for appropriate missions, to be given to different entities with specific needs and justification. ODAs at times used us to facilitate their missions by using us to do assessments, speaking directly with the locals and our contacts in villages. We many times were a conduit between the locals and other types of US / Coalition personnel. We made intros and facilitated certain things through our influences in an area, we had high levels of trust within the communities. That was and is often leveraged to accomplish other things. More often we were issued taskers from US Government entities for detailed assessments, of different locations and contact with our tribal folks. Also we do after action assessments and provide money to compensate for loss by locals as a result of our justifiable combat actions. At times we work independent from direct military influences and outside the scope of local commanders, parallel to and not involved with their missions.
Many other missions we conduct put us into the US Embassies world-wide as individual or 2-4 man teams supporting folks. In addition occasionally we operate in austere detached operations away from support and other US entities independently, occasionally with an ODA in a safe house or site.
"1) The mission of the Army’s Civil Affairs and Psychological Operations Command (USACAPOC) is to organize, train, equip, validate, and prepare Army Reserve Soldiers for worldwide support to regional combatant commanders overseas.
2) USACAPOC consists of 12,730 Soldiers, 4 Civil Affairs Commands, 2 Psychological Operations Groups and 1 training Brigade.
3) USACAPOC(A) is composed mostly of U.S. Army Reserve Soldiers in units throughout the United States, with its headquarters at Ft. Bragg, NC.
4) In the aftermath of war and natural disasters, USACAPOC teams help restore communities infrastructure by building roads, schools, medical facilities, sewer lines, etc., and follow up assessments to ensure progress for the future.
5) Civil Affairs Soldiers are responsible for executing 5 core civil affairs tasks; Civil Information Management, Foreign Humanitarian Assistance, Nation Assistance, Population Resource Control and Support to Civil Administration.
6) USACAPOC strive to support our nation’s objectives overseas by sword, deed, and word."
The first Civil Affairs company was commissioned in 1955, the 41st Civil Affairs company. It is said that Civil Affairs was part of the Continental Army in 1775 with the invasion of Canada. Lt. Gen Winfield Scott is considered the Father of the modern Civil Affairs units.
"Civil affairs in WWII was successful in developing and instituting training programs, in deploying many small detachments specialized in installing the types of governance and infrastructure that were known to be in need of rebuilding, and in recognizing the end of military involvement in civil affairs when there was no longer interference from civilians or the need to support a military mission."
BTW here's a link if your interested in joining...
CA Qualifications
Sorry for the long answer and fluff guys... Respectfully
"Why is CA considered SOF?"
Good question, I have asked myself this many times... ;)
"In the Vietnam War, CA was more publicized than ever before with its phrase “winning the hearts and minds of the people.” CA’s greatest success was in working with U.S. Special Forces in South Vietnam’s central highlands and securing large areas of difficult terrain by winning the confidence of local tribes. Since there were no fixed battle lines, CA personnel had to stay in some places indefinitely. By 1966, each Special Forces A-Detachment in the highlands was augmented by a Civil Affairs-Psychological Operations officer (CAPO). The functions of CA and PSYOP were often combined. Three CA companies carried the burden of pacification, working with the State Department. CA assisted Vietnamese civilians by drilling wells, building roads and bridges to help market local products, setting up public health clinics and school buildings, and carrying out public education programs. The CA programs in the central highlands were, according to the Army’s Vice Chief of Staff at the time, “worth their weight in gold.” Overall, the effort to “win the hearts and minds” of the local people was hit and miss however due partly to the fact that civil administration expertise in the Army lay within Army Reserve."
From the very beginning CA was part and parcel of SF in the US Army and became part of US- SOF as a result and the strategic objectives of the force / occupational field. We work in small teams, outside the scope of local commanders with much independence of action many times, and must be able to adapt to changing circumstances rapidly. Some of our personnel support conventional forces as well and typically under the direct control of the theater or regional commander. Our tasking comes from many US government entities, we support all US Special Operations Forces jointly (not just Army). CA even supports CAG and they have assets assigned, I'm told from reliable sources. We are further tasked with FID/UW missions as well as other supporting missions, as well we are assigned to US Embassies and specific regions for operations with and along side SF and others.
I served in CA and hold the identifier 38A (2002-2008). My MOS's were 11B, 38A & 37F. Relative to CA, I was in the reserve forces and with the 426th FID/UW Airborne among others then additionally served with SOCCENT J-35 IO in Tampa as an active duty augmentee.
Little overview and general knowledge
During my tenure with the 426th FID/UW Airborne we had "Capstone" mission assignments supporting different commands and regions worldwide. The 426th at the time supported 1st SFG and we had / have many native speakers to support the mission AOR for 1st group. Our language school slots matched those assigned regions. We also had assigned several former 18 series SNCO as our team sergeants. Our people went to DLI in Monterey Ca. at the time and occasionally Bragg. We had school slots for language schools, information security manager (SNCO /Officer), foreign weapons, defensive driving, Airborne, Ranger, etc. Many of our folks possessed higher degrees, were professionals in the civilian world and many even possessed PHDs. CA tends to attract academics, professionals and many former SF guys from my experience. At that time we had to pass a PT test with 80% or better, complete a road march (6 miles, 45# ruck, or 1 / 3rd your body weight in under 2 hours) do a water test and swim a designated specific distance. You must possess a GT above 110 and a ST above 100. Nothing too hard compared to when I was Infantry. I worked with professionals who knew their bussiness and stayed in their respective lanes. Currently CA falls now under the Army Reserve Command but once activated the funding stream comes from USASOC, my understanding now. We are not shooters, nor enablers or "action guys" not our lane... Later I became a Psyops team chief with the 7th POG and crossed over to that MOS.
Personal thoughts, combat operations & reality
I can honestly say this was the most interesting, rewarding, fun and the highest level responsibility I ever had in the military. I loved it in so many ways, really the best job ever! In fact given the choice I would rather be in CA than anything else including the Rangers or SF...I know, sick hun?! I served in combat operations; I was assigned with the CJSOTF-A- 04-05 in Regional Command South. We relieved the 96th active duty CA out of Bragg on our arrival. Active duty CA (96th & 95th ) is assigned for short term initial operations to do short durations low sustainability operations, with a emphasis on data collection & general assessments to be handed off to reserve forces, reserves are mostly professionals, put in place to take over. They (the reserves) conduct long term high impact projects with a high level of sustainably and increased funding streams.
Many times we had SF teams and Infantry supporting our taskers, yes they support our missions on occasion. And we also supported their taskers and mission directives. I was a CAT-A Team Sergeant (8 personnel assigned broken into 2 four man cells) and operated at times completely independently within the battlespace and far outside the purview of superiors and command structures. We / I had autonomy of action and was able to effect changes within directives and influence our AOR. Most of our taskers came directly from the theater command or above. We / I also worked with large sums of funds at times in excess of 200k local and was responsible for all funds distributed and what that money did. We / I oversaw funding requests and validated those requests for use of funds, for appropriate missions, to be given to different entities with specific needs and justification. ODAs at times used us to facilitate their missions by using us to do assessments, speaking directly with the locals and our contacts in villages. We many times were a conduit between the locals and other types of US / Coalition personnel. We made intros and facilitated certain things through our influences in an area, we had high levels of trust within the communities. That was and is often leveraged to accomplish other things. More often we were issued taskers from US Government entities for detailed assessments, of different locations and contact with our tribal folks. Also we do after action assessments and provide money to compensate for loss by locals as a result of our justifiable combat actions. At times we work independent from direct military influences and outside the scope of local commanders, parallel to and not involved with their missions.
Many other missions we conduct put us into the US Embassies world-wide as individual or 2-4 man teams supporting folks. In addition occasionally we operate in austere detached operations away from support and other US entities independently, occasionally with an ODA in a safe house or site.
"1) The mission of the Army’s Civil Affairs and Psychological Operations Command (USACAPOC) is to organize, train, equip, validate, and prepare Army Reserve Soldiers for worldwide support to regional combatant commanders overseas.
2) USACAPOC consists of 12,730 Soldiers, 4 Civil Affairs Commands, 2 Psychological Operations Groups and 1 training Brigade.
3) USACAPOC(A) is composed mostly of U.S. Army Reserve Soldiers in units throughout the United States, with its headquarters at Ft. Bragg, NC.
4) In the aftermath of war and natural disasters, USACAPOC teams help restore communities infrastructure by building roads, schools, medical facilities, sewer lines, etc., and follow up assessments to ensure progress for the future.
5) Civil Affairs Soldiers are responsible for executing 5 core civil affairs tasks; Civil Information Management, Foreign Humanitarian Assistance, Nation Assistance, Population Resource Control and Support to Civil Administration.
6) USACAPOC strive to support our nation’s objectives overseas by sword, deed, and word."
The first Civil Affairs company was commissioned in 1955, the 41st Civil Affairs company. It is said that Civil Affairs was part of the Continental Army in 1775 with the invasion of Canada. Lt. Gen Winfield Scott is considered the Father of the modern Civil Affairs units.
"Civil affairs in WWII was successful in developing and instituting training programs, in deploying many small detachments specialized in installing the types of governance and infrastructure that were known to be in need of rebuilding, and in recognizing the end of military involvement in civil affairs when there was no longer interference from civilians or the need to support a military mission."
BTW here's a link if your interested in joining...
CA Qualifications
Sorry for the long answer and fluff guys... Respectfully
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