With the cold breed: For soldiers of the 11th Airborne Division, ‘winter is always coming’

Things break in the bitter cold of America’s northern reaches. Batteries die. Fuel and other vital fluids freeze. Vehicles become trapped in ice and snow. Appendages and limbs? If soldiers aren’t careful, such injuries can unravel any semblance of situational control.

Survival in Alaska’s vast wilderness, where any hint of complacency can indeed kill, presents a colossal difficulty. Training service members to fight in these environs is an undertaking even more daunting.

For the soldiers of the U.S. Army’s 11th Airborne Division, this task rests, ultimately, on the shoulders of Maj. Gen. John Cogbill and the capable leaders he advises.

And the commanding general of the Arctic Angels would not trade it for anything.

“We have a saying that everything breaks at 40 below,” Cogbill says when asked about these challenges.

Everything, except morale.

From the outside, the soldiers of the 11th Airborne appear to be built differently. But Cogbill insists that’s not the case.

Perhaps it’s the frigid air, wilderness that stretches beyond the horizon or a sky that unleashes snow without end, but troops reporting to Alaska for the first time often do so with “trepidation in their eyes,” he says.

“But when I see them six months later, after they’ve been through their cold-weather indoctrination course and gone out to the field, they realize their team leader, their squad leader, their platoon sergeant — they’re being taken care of,” he says.

“We’re not going to give them something they can’t handle. Then they start to build that trust in their leaders and trust in themselves. That’s when they truly become Arctic-tough.”

Spc. Logan Calhoun walks toward a rendezvous point at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska. (Lance Cpl. Moses S. Lopez Franco/U.S. Marine Corps)

Achieving that rare brand of toughness requires both sound leadership and reliable equipment, Cogbill says. Nestled in a region that places the 11th Airborne at a crucial convergence of three combatant commands — U.S. Pacific Command, U.S. Northern Command and U.S. European Command — a soldier’s ability to trust in both is the difference between success and failure.

Cogbill spoke to Military Times about what goes into earning that trust, and how a relentless pursuit of innovation is critical to keeping abreast of distant developments that would be reduced to ruin in the far North.

For the Arctic Angels, accounting for their surroundings is part of the fun.

“Winter is always coming in Alaska,” Cogbill says. “They embrace it.”

Editor’s note: Some answers have been edited for clarity.

Cogbill: The Department of War has an Arctic strategy for a reason. We can range any of these locations and be within 90% of the industrial world within nine hours.

Billy Mitchell, the father of the modern-day Air Force, said whoever owns Alaska owns the world. It’s a power projection platform in any of those directions — west of the International Date Line to the Indo-Pacific or over the pole to Europe.

Therefore, we have to be able to fight in different environments. But we optimize for the Arctic, because we’re the only Arctic division.

We have to have certain vehicles that no other unit has, such as the Cold Weather All-Terrain Vehicle (CATV), the workhorse for moving soldiers and equipment over snow.

Soldiers conduct field missions during the annual in the Yukon Training Area. (Sgt. Christopher R. Nicely/U.S. Army)

We have to be proficient in skis and snowshoes. We have to be able to jump out of airplanes with this gear. We have to be able to do air assault missions with this kit and then sustain ourselves — not just survive, but fight and thrive.

Drones are a hot topic right now, and it’s something that I’d say we’re catching up a little bit with the rest of the Army.

We’re not a Transformation-in-Contact division, which means we didn’t have an initial fielding of a large number of small- and medium-range drones. But continuous transformation is a mindset for the 11th Airborne Division, which means we’re learning and adapting quickly, and we’re also bootstrapping this effort by learning from other divisions in the Army and how they’ve utilized first-person-view drones, either for reconnaissance or for strike.

So, we are collaborating with these other divisions — like the 101st Airborne Division and the 25th Infantry Division — to get our own parts, stand up our own Arctic innovation labs and build similar systems.

The difference is, if we want to fly these drones in Alaska during our winter training exercise, the battery life will be about 1/20th of what it is in the Pacific. So, we’re trying to figure out ways to prolong battery life, to build drones that are more capable in high wind, high altitude and sub-freezing temperatures.

Something that works anywhere else in the world — we bring it up to Alaska, take it out to the field and put it through its paces.

If it doesn’t work, then we have innovation partners — academic partners at the University of Alaska, Fairbanks, for instance — who we go to and say, “Hey, this is an engineering problem. What can you do to help us?”

They’ve got one of the best small UAS engineering programs in the entire world, because they live and operate in this environment.

Two service members operate a snowmachine in the Yukon Training Area. (Spc. Cole Moore/U.S. Army)

So, we share as much as we can, learn from our peers and work closely with the modernization enterprise to pioneer some of these efforts.

There are certain things that just work differently in the Arctic. Mobility is harder, going from point A to point B. Sustainment is harder when you’re talking about moving things off-road through waist-deep snow. Battery life is shortened, which means you have to resupply more often. Water can’t be delivered in bulk. Fuel has to be delivered in cubed ice.

Those are all the logistical challenges. For the individual soldier, it’s about just being able to maneuver.

Common across all these operating environments are the need for decision dominance and for human-machine teaming.

So, we understand the importance of drones, which is why we’re catching up as fast as we can and working with the Army Materiel Command and SkyFoundry initiative to get as many of these drones as possible into the hands of our soldiers so they can operate in any environment.

For the decision dominance piece, it’s about being able to develop a common operating picture and a common intel picture at echelon.

Everywhere from the rifle squad up to the division and corps, all the way up to a combatant commander — where we can see the enemy, see ourselves and use all the sensors at our disposal to make decisions about how to strike most efficiently.

We’re using existing exercises and joint partners to pass targets through tactical data links to do machine-to-machine communication, gain and maintain custody of targets and increase our lethality as a division and warfighting headquarters.

It varies depending on the echelon of command. As the division commander, I’m responsible for every decision we make as a division, whether it’s in training or combat. If I make a decision to strike a target, I own that decision and the outcome.

A culture where commanders feel empowered also means a culture of accountability. Having commanders in the loop — although the machines and AI are evolving rapidly, the Army still expects us as commanders to use judgment and experience to make a call to strike or not strike.

A paratrooper boards a U.S. Air Force C-130J Super Hercules. (Senior Airman Cayla Hunt/U.S. Air Force)

You have to practice that. You have to get reps and sets, and do it through training as often as you can. So, we do exercises every 90 days to help us see the strengths and weaknesses of the algorithms, to code, to work with the engineers and our own operators.

We need to be able to program new strategies and develop agentic AI solutions for targeting that allow us to not only find optimal solutions for shortening kill chains, but also to be able to incorporate large language models in things like rules of engagement and lessons learned.

Anything that we’re doing in a training exercise can then be referenced using these large language models to make us better, to make my decisions faster, better, more informed and hopefully yield better outcomes.

With the proliferation of these machines — and not just at my level or the squad level, but throughout our formations — we have to train and rehearse this physically.

I mentioned digital targeting, but when you talk about the mechanics of lethal squads, platoons and company commanders who are trying to converge fire and maneuver, you have to put that into live-fire training.

Our brigades at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson recently went through nine company iterations of combined arms live fire. In every single one of those live fires, they were employing FPV drones in a strike capability and in a reconnaissance capability, while also trying to think, “Where would the enemy be attacking us right now? What is our counter-UAS posture?”

So, you’re adding another dimension to a company commander’s thought process as they try to make tactical decisions about how to assault an objective. Again, it’s getting those reps and sets. It becomes ingrained in them that there’s always a machine aspect.

Soldiers execute a HIMARS live-fire exercise in Tanana Flats Training Area, Alaska. (Staff Sgt. Kylee Marshall/U.S. Army)

So, maybe you’re a battalion commander, and you have to think, “Who can see me right now? Who can see this command post? How many tents do I have set up? What does that look like from above? What does it look like in the summer? What does it look like in the winter, when I’ve got a green tent on a snowy landscape?”

Or, if you’re one step ahead, maybe you set up a white tent, but then you have to consider, “What kind of EW signature am I emitting that can be picked up by a machine or a sensor? What does my heat signature look like? Because I’ve got all these bodies and machines cranking out processing power inside of a tent.”

So, how do you mitigate that? It requires constant thought about how we see the enemy, but also how the enemy sees us, and making sure that we can adapt and stay ahead.

That’s where I think those lessons learned from the battle labs in Ukraine, Operation Epic Fury and other places inform the way we train. That feedback loop has to be super fast, because we can’t be everywhere and do everything, but we can certainly learn from everywhere.

So, if we can use large language models to put all these lessons learned into a one-stop shop, it makes it a lot easier for us to access all that knowledge and incorporate it into how we train every single day.

You’re not just dealing with tech that needs to work, but a changing landscape as well. Impacts of climate change have opened up sea lanes. Chinese-Russian collaboration has surged as a result. How is the Army adapting to those changes?

We’re worldwide deployable and the Pentagon’s only Arctic division, but we could go anywhere.

We’re very aware of the collusion between adversaries and what that would mean to us. With environmental changes — you talked about sea lanes opening — there are also strategic choke points, and we’re seeing how important choke points can be — like the Strait of Hormuz or Bab al-Mandeb in the Red Sea.

We have the Bering Strait right off the coast of Alaska. And there are people in our neighborhood who don’t always have the best interests of the United States in mind.

So, how do we deter? That’s probably the most important thing we can do is deter an adversary from thinking, “Today’s the day that we’re going to go. We’re going to take a shot at the United States of America.”

You deter through forward presence. You deter through people who are trained, and you deter through capable partners that are able to prevail if it goes from competition to crisis to conflict.

That’s what we’re trying to build every day through Operation Pathways . As we train with our multinational partners, we need the ability to project power, to put ourselves astride some of those strategic choke points and be capable of holding adversaries at bay if they start to encroach on our national boundaries.

You mentioned that everything breaks at -40. But there is a certain love, among troops, in shared misery. How do your junior enlisted stay motivated?

We get our soldiers from the same basic training as anywhere else.

They may be coming from Hawaii. They may be coming from Fort Polk. But when they arrive in Alaska, they realize they have a job to do, and they are going to be expected to operate anywhere from -20 to -40, which was the range of temperatures during our last Joint Pacific Multinational Readiness Center rotation in February.

That’s expected. That’s what our nation needs us to do. And they rise to the occasion.

My sergeant major and I use the ANGELS acronym to remind soldiers of our expectations of every paratrooper in the 11th Airborne Division as the Arctic Angels.

Troops conduct a foot march in the Yukon Training Area near Fairbanks, Alaska. (Spc. Cole Moore/U.S. Army)

The A is for Arctic tough. Everybody, whether you’re a sustainer, a cyber warrior or an infantryman, has to be Arctic tough, and you’ve got to be able to operate in that environment.

The N means you’ve got to be able to fight at night. Night fighters have to own the night and maintain that advantage over our enemies.

The G represents being a great teammate, whether that’s inside of your team, squad, company, up to your higher headquarters or down to a subordinate unit. We demand that you be a great teammate.

The E represents being experts in the fundamentals — your PT, marksmanship, battle drills, medical training and mobility. This means a lot. Being part of the 11th Airborne Division means you’ve got to be able to jump out of a plane, air assault, move on snowshoes and skis, pull a sled — do all that’s expected.

The L is to be lethal. That’s why we exist — to close with and destroy the enemy anywhere in the world.

And then lastly, the S. We need soldiers to be standard bearers. Because if you violate a standard in the Arctic, people lose a finger, a hand, a leg or a life. It’s a natural risk to operate in this environment, so we need leaders who are very engaged, who know the standard, who uphold it and model it themselves. That builds trust in the organization.

There’s ultimately so much value in Arctic warfare expertise. Not only are we training Rangers, jump masters, air assault and repel masters, but these are people who have learned how to fight and not just survive, but thrive in these conditions.

And once you’ve served in Alaska, you kind of never want to leave. Most people come here a little bit nervous, but they leave kicking and screaming.

We’re all about joint training opportunities and service interoperability. When we do our annual training exercise up there in the Yukon Training Area , we invite all of our multinational partners and all of our joint partners.

We’ll never fight alone. We’ll never fight as just an Army, and we’ll never fight as just the United States of America. We want everybody to come together.

There is plenty of training area in the Joint Pacific Alaskan Range Complex . It’s two and a half times the size of the National Training Center in Fort Irwin, California. So, imagine all that wild and wonderful wilderness out there with very permissive airspace and a lot of maneuver area.

So, the more the merrier for us, and those joint training opportunities help us see gaps and seams where maybe our machines are not talking. But we want to be able to seamlessly have a common operating picture and share a common intel picture on a single pane of glass.

You can’t know if you can do it well or not unless you train together on a regular basis, so we welcome that opportunity.

With the budget, it’ll work out, and soldiers will find ways to train. PT is free, so if we have physically fit, Arctic-tough soldiers, then that’s what we’re going to be.

We can go out there and train in the elements and do all those things we’ve discussed, but I think the most important thing is that we have to be able to project this power. Alaska is far away from a lot, but it’s strategically located at the center of three combatant commands.

If you’re going to build an Arctic-capable lethal fighting force, you have to be able to get it to the fight, whether that’s in the Pacific, Europe, or anywhere else in the world.

When I served in Alaska 25 years ago, we had an airborne battalion task force, but now we have an entire division that’s airborne and air assault capable. And we have these cold-weather all-terrain vehicles. We have all of the kit that the Army has invested in.

How do you get it to the fight? That’s infrastructure, that’s power projection, that’s joint interoperability with the Air Force to make sure we can get there. That’s understanding the sea lines of communication that you brought up earlier, so we can float those things and get it there fast enough.

That goes to our ready-forward concept with Operation Pathways. Not only do we train with multinational partners to build that interoperability and trust, but we also train in those locations to be west of the International Date Line with soldiers and equipment.

So, if we need to do something somewhere in the Pacific, we’re already there with our gear. That really shortens the commute time, if you will.

It’s critically important that we maintain that capability.

J.D. Simkins is Editor-in-Chief of Military Times and Defense News, and a Marine Corps veteran of the Iraq War.

在美国北部严寒的环境中，各种设备都会损坏。电池会没电，燃料和其他重要液体会冻结，车辆会被困在冰雪中。至于肢体和伤势？如果士兵不小心，这些伤势可能会彻底摧毁他们原本对局势的控制。

在阿拉斯加广袤的荒野中生存极其困难，任何一丝一毫的懈怠都可能致命。训练军人在这种环境下作战则是一项更加艰巨的任务。

对于美国陆军第 11 空降师的士兵来说，这项任务最终落在了约翰·科格比尔少将和他指导的能干的领导人的肩上。

北极天使的指挥官绝不会用任何东西来交换它。

“我们有句俗语说，零下40度什么都会坏掉，”科格比尔在被问及这些挑战时说道。

除了士气之外，一切都好。

从外表上看，第11空降师的士兵似乎体格不同。但科格比尔坚称事实并非如此。

他说，或许是因为寒冷的空气、一望无际的荒野，又或许是因为无休止的降雪，但第一次到阿拉斯加报到的部队往往“眼中充满恐惧”。

“但六个月后，当我再次见到他们时，在他们完成了寒冷天气适应性训练课程并下地作战之后，他们意识到他们的队长、班长、排长——他们都得到了照顾，”他说。

“我们不会给他们无法应对的事情。这样他们才能开始建立对领导者的信任，以及对自己的信任。那时，他们才能真正变得坚韧不拔，适应北极环境。”

陆军下士洛根·卡尔霍恩走向位于阿拉斯加州埃尔门多夫-理查森联合基地的集合点。（美国海军陆战队下士摩西·S·洛佩兹·弗朗哥/美国海军陆战队）

科格比尔表示，要培养出这种罕见的坚韧不拔的精神，既需要卓越的领导，也需要可靠的装备。第11空降师驻扎在三大作战司令部——美国太平洋司令部、美国北方司令部和美国欧洲司令部——的交汇点，士兵能否同时信任这两方面，决定着成败。

科格比尔向《军事时报》讲述了赢得这种信任需要付出什么，以及坚持不懈地追求创新对于跟上遥远发展步伐的重要性，否则这些发展在遥远的北方将会付诸东流。

对于北极天使来说，了解周围环境是乐趣的一部分。

“阿拉斯加的冬天总是如期而至，”科格比尔说。“他们欣然接受。”

编者按：为了清晰起见，部分答案已进行编辑。

科格比尔：战争部制定北极战略是有原因的。我们可以在九小时内抵达这些地点中的任何一个，并覆盖全球90%的工业化地区。

现代空军之父比利·米切尔曾说过，谁控制了阿拉斯加，谁就控制了世界。阿拉斯加是一个强大的力量投射平台，可以向任何方向投射力量——从国际日期变更线以西到印度洋-太平洋地区，或者越过北极圈到达欧洲。

因此，我们必须能够在不同的环境下作战。但我们专注于北极作战，因为我们是唯一一支驻扎在北极的部队。

我们必须拥有其他部队没有的某些车辆，例如寒冷天气全地形车（CATV），它是雪地上运送士兵和装备的主力车辆。

士兵们在育空训练区进行年度野外任务演练。（克里斯托弗·R·尼塞利中士/美国陆军）

我们必须精通滑雪和雪鞋的使用。我们必须能够穿着这身装备从飞机上跳伞。我们必须能够穿着这身装备执行空中突击任务，并且能够维持自身生存——不仅仅是生存，而是战斗并取得成功。

无人机现在是一个热门话题，我认为我们在这一领域正在逐渐赶上陆军其他部门的步伐。

我们并非一支“接触式转型”部队，这意味着我们最初并没有大量部署中小型无人机。但持续转型是第11空降师的一种思维模式，这意味着我们正在快速学习和适应，同时我们也在借鉴陆军其他师如何使用第一人称视角无人机进行侦察或打击，从而推动这项工作。

因此，我们正在与第 101 空降师和第 25 步兵师等其他部门合作，以获取我们自己的零部件，建立我们自己的北极创新实验室，并构建类似的系统。

区别在于，如果我们想在阿拉斯加的冬季训练演习中使用这些无人机，电池续航时间将只有太平洋地区的二十分之一左右。因此，我们正在努力寻找延长电池续航时间的方法，并制造出在大风、高海拔和零下温度下性能更强的无人机。

在世界其他地方都适用的东西——我们把它带到阿拉斯加，带到实地进行测试。

如果这种方法行不通，我们还有创新合作伙伴——例如阿拉斯加大学费尔班克斯分校的学术合作伙伴——我们会去找他们，说：“嘿，这是一个工程问题。你们能帮帮我们吗？”

他们拥有全世界最好的小型无人机系统工程项目之一，因为他们生活在这个环境中，并在这种环境中工作。

两名军人在育空训练区驾驶雪地摩托。（美国陆军下士科尔·摩尔摄）

因此，我们尽可能多地分享，向同行学习，并与现代化企业密切合作，以引领其中一些工作。

在北极，有些事情的运作方式截然不同。从A点到B点的行动更加困难。在齐腰深的积雪中越野运输物资也更加困难。电池寿命缩短，这意味着需要更频繁地补充物资。水无法批量运输。燃料必须以冰块的形式运输。

这些都是后勤方面的挑战。对单个士兵来说，关键在于能否灵活机动。

所有这些运行环境的共同之处在于都需要决策主导权和人机协作。

因此，我们了解无人机的重要性，所以我们正在尽最大努力加快步伐，并与陆军物资司令部和 SkyFoundry 计划合作，尽可能多地将无人机交付给我们的士兵，以便他们能够在任何环境下作战。

就决策优势而言，关键在于能否在各级单位建立共同的作战图和共同的情报图。

从步枪班到师、军，一直到作战指挥官——我们都能观察敌人，观察自己，并利用所有可用的传感器来决定如何以最有效的方式进行打击。

我们正在利用现有的演习和联合伙伴，通过战术数据链传递目标，进行机器对机器通信，获取并保持对目标的控制，提高我们师和作战司令部的杀伤力。

这取决于指挥层级。作为师长，我负责师部做出的每一项决定，无论是在训练还是作战中。如果我决定打击某个目标，我就必须承担该决定及其后果。

赋予指挥官权力的文化也意味着问责文化。让指挥官参与决策——尽管机器和人工智能发展迅速，但陆军仍然期望我们这些指挥官运用判断力和经验来决定是否发动攻击。

一名伞兵登上美国空军C-130J“超级大力神”运输机。（高级空军士兵凯拉·亨特/美国空军）

你必须练习。你必须反复练习，多做几组，尽可能多地通过训练来练习。所以，我们每90天进行一次练习，以帮助我们了解算法的优势和劣势，以便编写代码，并与工程师和我们自己的操作员合作。

我们需要能够编写新的策​​略，并开发用于目标定位的智能人工智能解决方案，这不仅使我们能够找到缩短杀伤链的最佳解决方案，而且还能够将大型语言模型融入到交战规则和经验教训等内容中。

我们在训练演习中所做的任何事情都可以使用这些大型语言模型进行参考，从而让我们变得更好，让我能够更快、更好、更明智地做出决策，并有望取得更好的结果。

随着这些机器的普及——不仅在我所在的级别或小队级别，而且在整个阵型中——我们必须进行体能训练和演练。

我提到了数字目标定位，但是当你谈到致命班、排和连长试图汇聚火力并进行机动时的机制时，你必须将其融入实弹射击训练中。

我方驻扎在埃尔门多夫-理查森联合基地的各旅最近进行了九轮连级联合兵种实弹演练。在每一次实弹演练中，他们都使用了FPV无人机进行打击和侦察，同时还要思考：“敌人现在会从哪里攻击我们？我们的反无人机系统态势如何？”

所以，你为连长在制定进攻目标的战术决策时，增加了一个新的思考维度。再说一遍，关键在于反复练习。这样一来，他们就会根深蒂固地意识到，战术中始终存在着机械化的因素。

士兵们在阿拉斯加塔纳纳平原训练区进行HIMARS实弹射击演习。（美国陆军参谋军士凯莉·马歇尔摄）

所以，也许你是一名营长，你必须思考：“现在谁能看到我？谁能看到这个指挥所？我搭了多少顶帐篷？从上面看是什么样子？夏天是什么样子？冬天，当我在白雪皑皑的景色中搭起一顶绿色的帐篷时，又是什么样子？”

或者，如果你领先一步，也许你会搭起一个白色帐篷，但这样你就必须考虑，“我发出什么样的电子战信号会被机器或传感器探测到？我的热信号是什么样的？因为帐篷里有这么多人和机器在高速运转。”

那么，如何减轻这种影响呢？这需要我们不断思考我们如何看待敌人，以及敌人如何看待我们，并确保我们能够适应变化并保持领先地位。

我认为，我们在乌克兰实战实验室、“史诗狂怒行动”以及其他地方汲取的经验教训，正是指导我们训练方式的关键所在。这种反馈机制必须非常迅速，因为我们不可能面面俱到、事事亲力亲为，但我们绝对可以从任何地方学习。

因此，如果我们能够利用大型语言模型将所有这些经验教训整合到一个统一的平台，就能让我们更容易地获取所有这些知识，并将其融入到我们每天的训练中。

你不仅要应对需要正常运行的技术，还要应对不断变化的环境。气候变化的影响开辟了海上航线，中俄合作也因此激增。陆军如何适应这些变化？

我们具备全球部署能力，是五角大楼唯一的北极部队，但我们也可以去任何地方。

我们非常清楚敌对双方之间的勾结以及这对我们意味着什么。随着环境的变化——您刚才提到了海上航道的开辟——也出现了战略要地，我们正在看到这些要地有多么重要——比如霍尔木兹海峡或红海的曼德海峡。

阿拉斯加海岸附近就是白令海峡。而且，我们附近有些人并非总是把美国的利益放在心上。

那么，我们该如何威慑呢？或许我们能做的最重要的事情就是阻止对手想：“今天就是我们出手的日子。我们要袭击美利坚合众国。”

威慑力来自于前沿部署。威慑力来自于训练有素的人员。威慑力来自于能够应对竞争、危机乃至冲突局面并最终取得胜利的得力伙伴。

这就是我们每天通过“通道行动”努力构建的目标。在与多国伙伴进行训练的过程中，我们需要具备投射力量的能力，能够控制一些战略要地，并在敌人开始侵犯我们的国界时有能力将其击退。

你提到零下40度什么都会崩溃。但士兵之间，在共同的苦难中，也会产生一种特殊的情谊。你的低级士兵是如何保持斗志的？

我们的士兵接受的基础训练与其他地方的士兵完全相同。

他们可能来自夏威夷，也可能来自波尔克堡。但当他们抵达阿拉斯加时，他们意识到自己肩负着任务，而且需要在零下20度到零下40度的严寒环境中工作，这正是我们2月份在太平洋联合多国战备中心轮换期间的温度范围。

这是意料之中的。这是我们国家需要我们做的。而他们也确实不负众望。

我和我的军士长使用 ANGELS 这个缩写来提醒士兵们，我们对第 11 空降师的每一位伞兵都抱有“北极天使”的期望。

部队在阿拉斯加费尔班克斯附近的育空训练区进行徒步行军。（美国陆军下士科尔·摩尔摄）

A代表极地坚韧。每个人，无论你是后勤保障人员、网络战士还是步兵，都必须具备极地坚韧的品质，并且能够在那种环境下作战。

“N”代表你必须具备夜间作战能力。夜战队员必须掌控夜空，并保持对敌人的优势。

“G”代表着优秀的团队合作精神，无论是在你的团队、小队、公司内部，向上级总部还是下属单位，我们都要求你成为一名优秀的团队成员。

“E”代表精通基本功——体能训练、射击、战斗演练、医疗训练和机动性。这意义重大。加入第11空降师意味着你必须能够跳伞、空中突击、穿着雪鞋和滑雪板行进、拉雪橇——完成所有被要求完成的任务。

L代表致命一击。这就是我们存在的意义——在世界任何地方与敌人决一死战并将其消灭。

最后，也是最重要的一点，我们需要领导者来树立标准。因为在北极，一旦违反标准，就可能有人失去手指、手掌、腿，甚至生命。在这种环境下作业本身就存在风险，所以我们需要积极参与、了解标准、维护标准并以身作则的领导者。这才能建立起组织内部的信任。

北极作战经验的价值无可估量。我们不仅训练游骑兵、跳伞教官、空中突击和绳降教官，而且这些人不仅学会了如何在这种环境下作战生存，更学会了如何在这种环境下茁壮成长。

在阿拉斯加服役过之后，你基本上就不想离开了。大多数人刚来的时候都有些忐忑不安，但离开的时候却依依不舍。

我们非常重视联合训练机会和服务互操作性。每年我们在育空训练区举行联合训练演习时，都会邀请所有多国合作伙伴和联合伙伴参加。

我们绝不会孤军奋战。我们绝不会仅仅以军队的名义作战，也绝不会仅仅以美利坚合众国的名义作战。我们希望所有人团结起来。

联合太平洋阿拉斯加靶场综合体拥有充足的训练场地。它的面积是加利福尼亚州欧文堡国家训练中心的两倍半。想象一下，那里有广阔而美丽的荒野，空域非常宽松，还有很大的机动空间。

所以，对我们来说，参与的人越多越好，这些联合训练机会有助于我们发现机器间可能存在的沟通障碍和漏洞。我们希望能够在一个统一的界面上无缝地共享作战态势图和情报信息。

只有定期一起训练，才能知道自己能不能做好，所以我们很欢迎这样的机会。

有了预算，一切都会顺利，士兵们会找到训练的方法。体能训练是免费的，所以如果我们能拥有体格健壮、能适应极地环​​境的士兵，那我们就能成为那样的士兵。

我们可以去那里进行野外训练，做我们讨论过的所有事情，但我认为最重要的是我们必须能够投射这种力量。阿拉斯加地处偏远，但它的战略位置优越，位于三个作战司令部的中心。

如果你要打造一支具备北极作战能力的致命战斗部队，你就必须能够将其部署到战场上，无论是在太平洋、欧洲还是世界其他任何地方。

25年前我在阿拉斯加服役时，我们只有一个空降营特遣队，但现在我们拥有一个完整的空降和空中突击师。我们还有这些耐寒全地形车。我们拥有陆军投资的所有装备。

如何才能把这些东西送到战场？这涉及到基础设施、力量投送，以及与空军的联合互操作性，以确保我们能够抵达目的地。这还涉及到理解你之前提到的海上交通线，这样我们才能把这些东西投放到位，并尽快送达。

这与我们“路径行动”的前沿部署理念相契合。我们不仅与多国伙伴进行联合训练以建立互操作性和信任，而且还在这些地区进行训练，以便将士兵和装备部署到国际日期变更线以西。

所以，如果我们需要在太平洋的某个地方开展工作，我们的装备已经在那里了。这大大缩短了通勤时间。

保持这种能力至关重要。

JD Simkins 是《军事时报》和《防务新闻》的总编辑，也是参加过伊拉克战争的海军陆战队老兵。