RANGE SUSTAINABILITY

Importance of Navy Training

Training to prepare for national defense is required by Title 10 of the U.S. Code, which states, "The Navy shall be organized, trained, and equipped primarily for prompt and sustained combat incident to operations at sea." As the Department of Defense transforms to meet new world threats, it is the Navy’s responsibility to ensure that our men and women in uniform are fully trained and prepared for mission success.

Navy Training SSTC

Realistic training is the single greatest asset the military has to accomplish this. Classroom and staged training scenarios alone cannot prepare our Sailors for the conditions and unpredictable environments they will face in combat. Navy training doctrine and procedures support the idea that our forces must train like they fight.

Military personnel not only require realistic training conditions to learn how to perform complex, integrated operations in unfamiliar and challenging environments, but they require access to areas and environments that closely match the locations to which they may be deployed. In addition, training areas need to be free of artificial structures or operational restrictions that hinder realistic training conditions.

International events, changes in naval strategy and force structure, base closures, and encroachment pose new and increasing challenges to Navy readiness, realistic training, and unrestricted and sustained use of Navy ranges.

To respond to these challenges and to increase the sustainability of Navy ranges, the Navy has begun developing training complexes in areas were there is a high concentration of its personnel. These complexes ensure optimal use and a more effective and efficient use of resources.

The presence of a designated training complex such as SSTC provides for unfettered access and consistent and realistic training opportunities so vital to force readiness. SSTC enables our military to train and perform required exercises against a simulated enemy in a realistic environment that is safe and controlled.

In addition, SSTC enables interoperability training between different Navy communities and ensures a more ready and skilled fighting force forward to support the requirements of U.S. combatant commanders.

Anything less than full, continuous, realistic training places our military forces at risk and jeopardizes mission success.

Preserving Navy Training Ranges

Preserving SSTC Ranges

The Navy has developed a comprehensive approach to "sustain" or preserve ranges for continued training access. The Tactical Training Theater Assessment and Planning (TAP) program is a multi-faceted approach focusing on:

  • Mission readiness and strategic vision

  • Training requirements and training complex capabilities

  • Environment and encroachment issues

  • Stakeholder and public involvement, and

  • Organizational efficiency.

The objectives of the TAP program are to ensure the readiness of Navy personnel and promote sustainability of Navy ranges. Preserving ranges means actively managing resources to promote sustainability, including protecting natural and cultural resources and minimizing the effects of training on the environment.