Opposing Force - Units

Units

One of the best-known examples of specialist operations is the United States' OPFOR. During the Cold War, opposing force units employed Soviet military doctrine and simulated Soviet equipment; since the fall of the USSR, US opposing force units have become more flexible to represent a wider range of opponents. More recently training has focused on Iraq and Afghanistan.

There are three Major Training Centers that utilize home-based OPFOR units for the US Army:

• The National Training Center or NTC at Fort Irwin, California -- home unit is the 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment (the Blackhorse)
• The Joint Readiness Training Center or JRTC at Fort Polk, Louisiana -- home unit is the 1st Battalion, 509th Parachute Infantry Regiment (the Geronimos')'
• The Joint Multinational Readiness Center or JMRC (formerly known as the Combat Maneuver Training Center or CMTC) at Hohenfels, Germany -- home unit is the 1st Battalion, 4th Infantry Regiment (Separate) (the Warriors)

The units at NTC and JMRC were used to replicate a Soviet Motorized Rifle regiment or division. At NTC, M551 Sheridans were used to replicate Soviet T-80 tanks until 2003. Visually Modified (VISMOD) HMMWVs are used to replicate BRDM-2s, VISMOD M113A2s (known as the OPFOR Surrogate Vehicle ) are used to replicate BMP-2 Infantry Fighting Vehicles (IFV), while VISMOD M1 Abrams Tanks (known as the Krasnovian Variant Tank ) and M113A2s (known as the OPFOR Surrogate Vehicle, Tank ) are also used to replicate the T-80. At JMRC, M113A2s are used to replicate Soviet BMP-2s and M60A3 tanks are used to replicate Soviet T-80s.

During the mid-1990s, JMRC was used to train peacekeeping forces for the former Yugoslavia under low-intensity conflict missions. Currently, the OpFor mission has since been modified for counter-insurgency training for Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom.

Starting in early 2004, NTC began focusing on training units selected to deploy to Iraq or Afghanistan in urban operations (UO). Towns of ever increasing size and complexity have been constructed throughout the training area to provide battlefield realism and housing for the hundreds of role-playing personnel, many of whom speak Arabic or Kurdish natively, and replicate civilians On the battlefield while wearing Afghan or Iraqi clothing. Cultural awareness and liaison operations with local leaders are emphasized at all times and at all levels.

Various US military installations and/or major units have their own local versions of opposing force used for training exercises. The joint Australian/US military exercise "Crocodile '03" featured an Australian-led opposing force in which soldiers from a range of Australian units worked together with a US Marine Corps contingent.

The British Army rotates units through British Army Training Unit Suffield as OPFOR.

Private OPFOR companies

There are a number of private companies that provide OPFOR services to support the training missions of various military units. As the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan come to a close, the use of private training forces are on the rise in the Department of Defense. Mostly owned by veterans, OPFOR companies supplement the existing training programs in a number of ways. Primarily as a method to retain the valuable combat experience of recently retired personnel and pass it on to new troops.

Some private OPFOR companies in the US include:

• American Shooters
• Cascadia Tactical
• Gryphon Group
• Linxx Global
• Raytheon