ARNG Division Headquarters in an Era of Persistent Conflict

The Army is under stress from repeated deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan and is limited to ten AC division HQ to fill operational command and control missions. Nine of the ten AC division HQ have had a total of 30 deployments between September 11, 2001, and December 2010, for operations in OEF and OIF. By comparison, during this same period, only two of the eight ARNG division HQs deployed in support of OIF. As of December 2010, the AC had 50 percent of their division headquarters deployed with three division HQ in Iraq and two division HQ in Afghanistan. This monograph will answer the question; should the Department of Defense (DoD) employ the eight Army National Guard (ARNG) division headquarters (HQ) on a regular rotational basis for overseas contingency combat missions thus providing relief to the Active Component (AC) division HQ. With proper resourcing for training and equipment, ARNG division HQ are capable of providing relief for AC division HQ from the stress of multiple rotations. With a predictable deployment schedule, the eight ARNG division HQ can increase the operational division HQ in the AC by 80 percent. Effective access to ARNG division HQ as an operational force is essential to reducing the repeated deployments of AC division HQ.