SFAAT Team Leaders and Company Commanders in the SFA Mission

A recent magazine article in Army Magazine published in the February 2013 issue entitled "SFAA: Creating New Challenges & Opportunities for Army Units" has captured the ongoing dilemma of fielding SFAAT teams to Afghanistan from standing Brigade Combat Teams or BCTs. The Security Force Assistance Advisor Teams or SFAATs are taken out of a brigade using commanders and staff. For instance, a team leader of an SFAAT advising an ANA kandak (battalion) is supposed to be a major (0-4). Frequently, the 0-4 position is filled with a captain. This captain is usually a company commander. The captain most times hand-picks the remaining 11 members of his SFAAT from within his company. If his team deploys to Afghanistan and his company stays home (Fort Hood, Fort Campbell, or wherever) he is most likely turning his company command and platoon leadership to junior officers and NCOs. If the SFAAT deploys to Afghanistan with the brigade (the bde deploys as an SFAB) then his company is likely to deploy to another location (COP or FOB) than where his SFAAT goes.  Just think of the C2 and support problems either scenario poses (brigade deploys or stays in U.S.). You can read more about the challenges facing company commanders who are assigned as SFAAT team leaders in the magazine article at the link below.

www.ausa.org/publications/armymagazine/...