DATE: November 12, 2022 1:43:37 PM CST

First Team Participates in Project Convergence 2022

Story by: Army Sgt. Brayton Daniel, 1st Cavalry Division Public Affairs

FORT IRWIN, California — 1st Cavalry Division participated in Project Convergence 2022, an experiment offering opportunities to access future warfighting strategies, including how the All-Service and Multinational Force can work together to detect and defeat threats Sep. 29 through Nov. 9 at Fort Irwin, California..

Sgt. Michael Trask, 1st Squadron, 7th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Cavalry Division, bradley track commander, calls grid coordinates on the opposing forces during Project Convergence 2022, Nov. 2 at Fort Irwin, California The opposing forces were spotted using the Raven, an unmanned aerial vehicle fixed winged aircraft.

The First Team’s primary mission during the experiment consisted of forming attack positions each morning while moving to the landing departure zone in the M113 Tracked Armored Personnel Carrier, M1A2 SEP v3 Abrams Tank, M2A3 Bradley Fighting Vehicle, and the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV) while fighting the opposing forces. Each day new technology is added to the mission to test the success and practicality of the technology when used in a lifelike scenario.

Electronic assets allowed the unit to conduct reconnaissance and bring out the enemy without endangering Troopers, preserved combat power of larger platforms, scan the battlefield in a minimal amount of time, and allowed the commander to make decisions with less risk.

The assets also allowed rapid communications with allied partners across the spectrum of operations, reducing the time needed for decision making and allowing for more rapid target engagement by the 1st Cav artillery.

The 1st Cav is transforming by integrating these new technologies across the formation to enhance our ability to compete globally, deter adversaries, and win on all-domain battlefields.

“I firmly believe that everything we do here is something that we’ll see throughout the Army over the next 60 years,” said Lt. Col. Brennan Speakes, 1st Squadron, 7th Cavalry Regiment, commanding officer. “This is the equivalent of the Army moving from the horse drawn cavalry to the armored formations we know today.”

Army Futures Command established Project Convergence in 2020 as an opportunity for collaboration, experimentation and a way of informing how we fight, how we organize, the talent we need and what we fight with.

“1-7 Cav is going to be the best trained squadron in the Army by next summer,” said Maj. Gen. John B. Richardson IV, 1st Cavalry Division commanding general. “You are building an incredible reputation right now across the Army.”

Project Convergence is designed to aggressively advance and integrate the Army’s contributions to the Joint and Multi-National Force and ensure that the Army, as part of the Joint and Multi-National partner’s fight, can rapidly and continuously converge effects across all domains including air, land, sea, space and cyberspace, to overmatch our adversaries, increase operational tempo and generate decision advantage over our adversaries.

Pfc. Thomas Bennett, 1st Squadron, 7th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Cavalry Division, cavalry scout dismount, executes his mission during Project Convergence 2022 while dismounted from a M2A3 Bradley Fighting Vehicle Nov. 7 at Fort Irwin, California. Bennett’s primary focus was gaining a higher attack position to spot the opposing forces using the Javelin Close Combat Missile System - Medium, a man-portable, medium range tactical missile system.

Convergence means integrating efforts across all echelons, from the tactical to the strategic level, to deliver optimal lethal and non-lethal effects across all domains.

“Project Convergence 2022 is good for not only the training value for the squadron, but to learn the use and capabilities of this new technology,” said Sgt. Kyler Tackett, 1st Squadron, 7th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Cavalry Division, bradley gunner. “Hopefully PC22 will help with the further development of these vehicles, and to help solve problems for the future of the Army.”

Through Project Convergence, the Army is demonstrating new technologies continuously throughout the year to ensure we can fight and win as one Joint, Multi-National team by framing objectives within the Joint Warfighting Concept and Joint All-Domain Command and Control (JADC2) network.

A 1st Cavalry Division Trooper ground guides a Bradley M2A3 Fighting Vehicle after a mission during Project Convergence 2022 Nov. 2 at Fort Irwin, California.

These experiment demonstrations and future modernization capabilities inform Army emerging technologies, future concepts and future formations.

“Hopefully we leave our mark as a contributor to future technologies that are going to help the Army fight our future wars,” said Cpt. Rannie Lintag, 1st Squadron, 7th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Cavalry Division, human resources officer.

Looking to Project Convergence 2023 and beyond, the Army will continue to expand it’s alliances and demonstrate the impact modernization will have in various theaters of our geographic combatant commands.

“I couldn’t be prouder of the team that’s out here,” said Speakes. “This team is making things happen, and I’ve seen a stark improvement in not only their capabilities, but also their leadership potential.”