OCADA | Fort Sill | Oklahoma | Fires Center of Excellence

Ranger School is one of the toughest training courses for which a Soldier can volunteer. Army Rangers are experts in leading Soldiers on difficult missions— and to do this they need rigorous training. For over two months, Ranger students train to exhaustion, pushing the limits of their minds and bodies. The purpose of the U.S. Army's Ranger Course is to prepare these Army volunteers — both Officers and enlisted Soldiers — in combat arms related functional skills. The Rangers' primary mission is to engage in close combat and direct-fire battles.

https://www.goarmy.com/soldier-life/being-a-soldier/ongoing-training/specialized-schools/ranger-school.html

This is a career progression and Leader development course designed to provide Stryker Brigade Combat Team (SBCT) designated Leaders the aptitude to achieve the technical competencies of a Leader assigned to a Stryker formation. This is a three week resident course taught and uses hands-on performance oriented training and simulations as the primary teaching methods.

https://www.benning.army.mil/Infantry/199th/SLC/

The Patriot Top Gun Course is a six week long course, designed to develop expert skills and provide a comprehensive understanding of Air and Missile defense design planning processes, Joint Data Networks, Multi-Tactical Data Links, Patriot Radar theory and battle management within the context of the Joint, Interagency or Multinational operational environment. This course is extremely demanding and will challenge the students' competencies using a number of situations, hands on training, examinations, and practical exercises.

There are National Guard ADA units in Florida, Colorado, Ohio, California, South Carolina, Alaska, Alabama, and North Dakota. All units, except those in Alaska and Colorado (which operate GMD) will deploy overseas in support of the worldwide ADA mission or protect the homeland from incoming aerial and missile attacks. The Army Reserve currently does not feature any combat arms branches.

Currently, 59% of Air Defenders are overseas, making the branch one of the Army’s best opportunities to operate throughout the world. In the past several years, ADA officers have deployed to Afghanistan, Iraq, Turkey, and Saudi Arabia. ADA units provide regular defense of U.S. forces and allies in Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, and United Arab Emirates. ADA officers are also stationed in Germany, Japan, Hawaii, South Korea, Guam, Italy, Spain, Belgium, and Taiwan.

Air Defense is one of the most sought after branches by the Department of Defense and international allies. With worldwide relevance, ADA Officers work with different Army branches, Air Force, Navy, Marines, and international partners. ADA operates on the front lines to engage aerial targets; with senior Pentagon officials to plan the nation’s military strategy; and at every level in between. Foreign allies request ADA protection in their countries, making ADA officers among the most demanded Soldiers in the world. The global importance of ADA has made the branch one of the Department of Defense’s top priorities and one of the fastest growing branches in the Army.

The global importance of ADA has made the branch one of the Department of Defense’s top priorities and one of the fastest growing branches in the Army. While ADA has been a combat arms branch for more than 50 years, the branch is currently experiencing unprecedented growth. As adversaries increase the size and lethality of their aerial arsenal (piloted vehicles, unmanned aerial systems ballistic missiles, rockets, artillery, and mortars), the Pentagon has increased ADA formations and capabilities to employ a large variety of state-of-the-art weapon systems that are needed across the battlefield. The growth is creating new stationing locations and career progression and promotion opportunities.

ADA officers have the opportunity to train Airborne, Air Assault, Ranger courses, and many other professional military schools. The most tactically-proficient officers will complete the ADA Top Gun course. There is also the opportunity to attain Master’s Degrees and fellowships as a mid-career officer.

No. ADA is a multi-disciplinary branch where leadership is the number one prerequisite. The weapon systems are technical and what we do is literally “rocket science,” but ADA officers, of all academic backgrounds will be trained on how to employ the weapons and destroy targets without needing any advanced understanding of math, science, or engineering.

ADA offers experiences that are valuable across many disciplines and can build a professional portfolio that sets ADA officers apart from peers in any field. ADA places officers in leadership positions early in their career and develops the skills to successfully lead large organization. Maintaining accountability for millions of dollars of government property also gives future employers and business leaders a clear understanding that ADA officers have a strong sense of responsibility, organizational and management skills. ADA’s strategic relevance operating across the globe enables officers to show future employers their ability to adapt to any situation and work cohesively with teams with very different backgrounds; whether those are economic or cultural. With a highly-technical background in ADA systems and tactics, officers are also attractive to the nation’s top defense contractors, engineering firms, developers, and industry leaders with lucrative offers because of the technical experiences they gain as an ADA officer.