TAFT Instructor – AFATDS / Fire Control Systems (13D)
Why IDS?
IDS believes in resolving conflict, building innovative approaches to do so. Combining operational expertise with an intimate understanding of today’s greatest challenges, we bring our customers the solutions required for success in a complex and multidimensional world. IDS tailors solutions for a diverse range of government, military, nonprofit, and public‑sector clients.
Locations
IraqJob Description
The TAFT AFATDS / Fire Control Systems Instructor delivers comprehensive training on the Advanced Field Artillery Tactical Data System (AFATDS) and associated digital/analog fire‑control workflows used to plan, process, and execute artillery and mortar fire missions. This instructor develops student proficiency across the full cycle of fire support operations: establishing communications architecture; receiving, validating, and prioritizing fire missions; computing firing solutions; and coordinating with gun lines, fire direction centers (FDC), and command posts to ensure safe, timely, and accurate fires.
Responsibilities include teaching AFATDS configuration and employment, data management, message traffic, and interface operations with radios, digital networks, and data links. The instructor guides students in target location methods (map/GPS/software), elevation/deflection computation, and verification procedures, while reinforcing doctrinal standards, safety controls, and reporting requirements. Instruction is delivered through classroom sessions, practical labs, and scenario‑based command post exercises that replicate realistic operational conditions, enabling students to integrate fire support at battery and battalion levels effectively.Key Duties
• Teach AFATDS system setup, initialization, user roles, permissions, and interface navigation; instruct mission processing steps from call‑for‑fire receipt through fire order generation and end‑of‑mission reporting.
• Instruct on digital and analog fire‑control workflows, including manual backup procedures to maintain continuity of fires during degraded or contested communications.
• Train students to compute firing solutions using maps, GPS, and targeting software; verify elevation/deflection, fuse/charge data, and apply corrections based on meteorological inputs and registration.
• Establish and maintain communications architecture for artillery operations: radios, crypto procedures, frequency management, data links, and secure message formats; validate transmission integrity and troubleshooting steps.
• Lead hands‑on labs that integrate FDC, gun lines, and command post functions, emphasizing synchronization, positive control, and safe firing sequence execution.
• Deliver instruction on tactical data flow—prioritization, deconfliction, and processing of multiple simultaneous missions—while enforcing doctrinal safety checks and risk controls.
• Coach students through scenario‑driven command post exercises that simulate time‑sensitive targeting, counterfire, and combined‑arms operations; conduct after‑action reviews (AARs) to capture lessons learned.
• Teach documentation and reporting standards, including logs, mission records, and digital audit trails to support accountability and readiness assessments.
• Evaluate student proficiency through written exams, practical check‑rides, and graded CP lanes; provide counseling and targeted remediation to ensure mastery of fire‑control tasks.Requirements
• Five (5) years of experience in an operational artillery or mortar unit.
• Served as US Army MOS 13D or USMC MOS 0844.
• Proficiency with AFATDS and related fire‑control systems; strong understanding of artillery communications, FDC operations, and command post procedures.Questions?
[email protected]
Top Skills
What We Do
Hybrid conflict. Non-state actors. Digital hacktivists. Tribal politics. Advanced technology. Ancient beliefs. Rapid adaptation. Strategic uncertainty. Declining resources. Rising extremism.
Today’s national security challenges are complex and multidimensional, requiring adaptive, interagency responses.
For more than a decade, IDS International has delivered innovative training, research and operational civil-military services to help address these 21st century challenges. We are seasoned soldiers, aid workers, diplomats, intelligence professionals, cyber warriors, technical experts, political advisors, and more with a common understanding of how to train for and operate in conflict zones and transitional areas.
Our team of interagency experts and field practitioners operate and train together daily, building on our global multidisciplinary understanding of challenges, best practices and new approaches. This wide range of perspectives permits us to serve as a liaison between civil society, military, government and technology to enhance coordination and effectively solve complex security and political problems.
