Transforming The Force

In his monograph, originally written in 2000 for the School of Advanced Military Studies (SAMS) entitled, "Transforming the Force: The 11th Air Assault Division (Test) from 1963-1965," then-Major Thomas Graves-currently serving as a Brigadier General-traced the history behind the development of air assault doctrine, tactics, and procedures that would later be used with great effect during the Vietnam War. The Howze Board and the development of the 11th Air Assault Division (Test) served as a great paradigm for how the U.S. Army could examine new concepts involving emerging technologies and put them in practice throughout the Army. It was the 11th Air Assault Division (Test) that would later become the 1st Cavalry Division and utilize the new tactics immediately in combat, most notably in their first major battle in the Ia Drang Valley in 1965.