VOLAR and the ARMY OF EXCELLENCE

The period immediately following the Vietnam War is known as VOLAR or the Volunteer Army and subsequently known as the Army of Excellence. The Cold War with the Soviets was at a critical point and military service was not a popular career choice. Technological advances in weaponry and organizational atrophy from institutional focus on Vietnam required an across-the-board overhaul of the Army. This overhaul led to performance-oriented training for individuals and units. It also led to Air Land Battle Doctrine, Division 86 reorganization, and weapons modernization that produced the Big 5: the M1 Abrams Tank, M2 Bradley Fighting Vehicle, AH-64 Apache Helicopter, MIM-104 Patriot Surface to Air Missile System and the UH-60 Blackhawk helicopter. The establishment of the Army’s training and exercise program, and its crown jewels - combat training centers at Fort Irwin, California; Fort Polk, Louisiana and Hoenfels, Germany - expressed the Army’s commitment to a new approach to training that saw empowered commanders creating more capable units.

During the VOLAR period (1973-1982), OCS produced between 800-1000 officers a year running two companies each running three classes. During the Army of Excellence period, OCS produced 500-600 officers a year.

During the VOLAR and Army of Excellence periods, OCS officers guarded the inter-German and Czech borders, guarded the Korean DMZ, served as part the of the Multinational Observer Force in Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula, protected the Panama Canal, and assisted in the resettling of Cuban refugees at Fort Chaffe, Arkansas. OCS officers conducted exercises like Return of Forces to Germany (REFORGER), Team Spirit, Balikatan and Bright Star. REFORGER validated the Army’s ability to reinforce Europe in the event of a crisis with the Soviet Bloc. Team Spirit demonstrated the Army’s ability to rapidly deploy to the Republic of Korea and, in concert with Ulchi Focus Lens—the theater’s major command post exercise, ensured the Army’s ability to deter North Korean aggression. Bali katan provided the Army recurring training with our Filipino allies. Conducted in Egypt, Bright Star gave the Army experience in the Middle East and assisted in the professionalization of the Egyptian Army. OCS officers developed the tactics, techniques and procedures for modern warfare at places like the National Training Center, Joint Readiness Training Center, Grafenwoehr, Hoenfels, Rodriquez Range, Empire Range, and during countless live-fire and gunnery training exercises conducted at home station and during external evaluations as part of the Army Training and Evaluation Program.

OCS officers participated in multiple contingency operations; combat characterized by Operations URGENT FURY in Grenada, JUST CAUSE in Panama, and RESTORE HOPE in Somalia, UPHOLD DEMOCRACY in Haiti, DESERT FOX in Kuwait and the Implementation and Stabilization Force missions in Bosnia and Kosovo were large-scale peacekeeping/peace enforcement operations. Citizens of Pakistan benefitted from American humanitarian assistance operations following a devastating earthquake in 2005. Success in these broad-ranging operations demonstrated the abilities of American Soldiers enabled by tactically and technically proficient leadership.

OCS officers developed skill in the operational level of war during exercises like Ulchi Focus Lens, Lucky Sentinel, Golden Saber, Millennial Challenge, and Battle Command Training Program (BCTP) warfighter exercises. All of these exercises, contingency operations, and training events over a 30-year period led to the U.S. Army’s decisive victories during Operations DESERT STORM, ENDURING FREEDOM 1 and IRAQI FREEDOM 1.

OCS graduates from World War II, Korea and Vietnam were culminating successful military and civilian careers during this period. This includes: