Forging Synergy: US Army and US Air Force convene at Agile Combat Employment Summit

Fort Shafter, Hawaii - The Agile Combat Employment Summit brings together Army and Air Force leaders to discuss strategies and best practices for achieving ACE objectives, fostering greater interoperability and integration among the U.S. Army and Air Force units in the Indo-Pacific region on Sept. 3, 2024.

The summit was hosted U.S. Air Force Pacific Commanding General of Pacific Air Forces Gen. Kevin B. Schneider at U.S. Army Pacific headquarters.

The ACE conference brought together key military leaders and experts to discuss strategies and best practices for achieving ACE objectives, fostering greater interoperability and integration among the U.S. Army and U.S. Air Force units in the Indo-Pacific region.

The event began with opening remarks and U.S. Army Pacific Commander Charles A. Flynn thanking those in attendance.

"I Just want to say that I am thankful for the opportunity to discuss warfighting and potential collaborations between our services," said Flynn "It would be irresponsible not to seize the opportunities that can address our strategic challenges."

ACE is a strategic initiative aimed at enhancing the U.S. military's joint force ability to rapidly deploy and integrate forces across various domains. This approach focuses on increasing operational flexibility and resilience, enabling forces to respond swiftly to emerging threats and dynamic environments.

By delving into essential warfighting functions such as sustainment, protection, command and control (C2), and fires, the summit aims to enhance the long-range capabilities of the Multi-Domain Task Force.

"I believe it's about closer alignment and understanding of the myriad problems we face and how we solve them. It's about integrating our capabilities by understanding what each of us brings to the fight," said Schneider.

U.S. Army Pacific Chief of Staff, Maj. Gen. James B. Bartholomees shared his insight on the ACE concept through his experience.

"The ACE Concept is the United States Air Force concept for Agile Combat Employment, which is the employment of their aircraft in a dispersed fashion to maintain survivability in order to prepare for future operations," said Bartholomees. "The reason why we came together with Pacific Air Forces is so that we can combine the best elements of multi -domain operations and ACE of air and land forces to achieve combined effects."

The theater Army derives its mission requirements from the joint force, ensuring a cohesive and unified approach to defense in the Indo-Pacific Region. One of the pivotal contributors to this synergy is the Air Force, which spearheads the ACE concept.

With the ACE concept, the summit will set the stage, focusing on how the Air Force and Army are refining new standards for how operational capabilities are being employed in the Pacific theater and how the Army is poised to support and enhance these efforts, ensuring joint-force capabilities remain effective and adaptable.

Schneider emphasized how land and air components capabilities can be used together to help create a synergy when combined properly.

"We have complementary capabilities, and I believe this conference went a long way in helping us identify those capabilities," said Schneider. This enables us to continue teaming up and combining our strengths as a joint force."

The efforts and collaborative ideas here ensure that joint forces are better prepared, more resilient, and capable of responding swiftly to any threats, strengthening security in the region.

The event wrapped up with the Army and Air Force coming together to draft a memorandum of understanding. This key document sets the stage for ongoing collaboration in planning for ACE, MDO, and ensuring these strategies are seamlessly integrated into operational plans fulfilling the Army and Air Force roles in the Pacific Theater.

"There are three steps we will take as a result of this summit. First, we will work on merging our operational concepts of ACE and MDO. Second, we have decided to identify exercises in the region to rehearse the mechanics of air and land power converging to support joint power," said Flynn. "Third, we agree to hold this summit every six months to learn, grow, succeed, develop, and create synergy between air and land domain capabilities to support air, cyber, space, and maritime operations within the joint force."

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