Army news service (Jan. 17, 2006): Army selects unit to test FCS.

WASHINGTON -- The Army has selected Fort Bliss, Texas, as the location for its Evaluation Brigade Combat Team, or EBCT, which will evaluate and test leading-edge technology for the Future Combat Systems program.

Fort Bliss was selected because of its access to White Sands Missile Range, N.M., which provides the requisite land, airspace, and facilities for EBCT soldiers to fully train, evaluate, and test FCS capabilities, said Lt. Col. Michael Johnson of the Army Transformation Office, G3, at the Pentagon.

Fort Bliss is the Army's second-largest post with almost 1.2 million acres of land in both Texas and New Mexico. Its garrison headquarters is in El Paso, Texas.

The EBCT will be made up of about 3,500 soldiers, Army officials said.

"The Evaluation Brigade Combat Team is a key milestone in the FCS program and will enable the Army to evaluate technologies and develop tactics, techniques, and procedures that will maximize the program's value to the force," said Secretary of the Army Francis J. Harvey.

The EBCT's mission will be to evaluate operational concepts and conduct testing and training of FCS equipment in realistic environments while providing continuous feedback, Johnson said. He said this feedback will allow the Army to determine what, if any, adjustments and/or improvements will be needed to continue to develop the best equipment for soldiers.

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The FCS program is the core of the Army's modernization program, officials said. It consists of 18 manned and unmanned systems connected by a secure network designed to enhance soldiers' capabilities.

The EBCT will be created from a heavy brigade combat team coming from the 1st Armored Division. It will be ready to support FCS evaluation and training in June 2007, Army officials said. They said the first fully equipped FCS unit is expected in 2014.