European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - January 23, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Vie. Of the exercise control Center the heart of Centurion shield "90, set up in a trym Nasim in Southern German control Center monitors War pulse by Gary Pomeroy reformer team writer Crail sheim West Germany it is difficult to find the slightest phase of Centurion shield 90 not tracked by the people in the exercise control Center. Although this year s scaled Down exercise has altered the Etc s role it remains the Center of activity for 57.500 troops in the 15,600 Square mile Man Euver Box. We Are keeping a hand on the  tactical to administrative said maj. Tom Hill Ausa eur reformer planner who works in the operations cell the Hub of the control Center. Other elements of the Etc operation include the Man Euver damage control Center on Jaeger Cavern across town and the Allied press information Center near Schwabish Hall. From the upper deck of the my acc Mij. Tom Hill left a reformer planner and col. Darrel Charlton chief of usar eur s exercise division prepare slides for a briefing. Barracks gymnasium the Etc resembles a scaled Down version of usar eur Headquarters. The gym floor is jammed Wilh work stations for Many staff agencies computers and Tele phones. A racquetball court in the far Corner is converted into a briefing room for distinguished visitors such As the chairman of Fth joint chiefs of Slaff. In the Middle of the Center is the map of the Man Euver Box about the Sie of a picnic table. It shows the lines of Bailie the Bottom line. Information gels to this map through a communications network throughout the Man Euver Box. Exercise umpires in the Field Send information through one of four local control centers. The data then is relayed to the Umpire control Center across the Street from the exer Cise control Center. Umpire controllers pass it to the operations cell in the dec map plotters rely upon or crib c. Timely and Correct information. Hill said. Hut the system in t foolproof. A lot ofttimes we gel information and people swear up and Down that it s  Hill said. Thou we Post it on the Board and it s nowhere close to where the person ought to  information is Cross checked with Haithc plans. Changed Battle plans and inaccurate unit locations account for Many of the discrepancies. Hill said. Commanders from company 10 corps level receive this intelligence on troop locations As it is passed from the Field to the Etc. Therein lies the key. Previous reformer Field exercises such As certain Challenge in 1988, were scripted. A very specific sequence of scenarios indeed All action started at the exercise control Center la flowed downhill not up. In scripted scenarios higher head quarters and units in the Field relied on the operations cell at the ii to feed intelligence information to  Hill said. So. If Al hour 15. Something was sup posed to happen it did. Likewise in things started happening Loo fast the script was changed. Etc staffers would input things to slow the War  Hill said. A grease pen could wipe out a unit or i Bridge " one army colonel likened the clubs of inc in the scripted Davs to Ike s War room the a before inc n or Mundy  since Centurion shield is a tree play exercise All actions affecting bal the real or simulated Are generated b the units in the War.  c plotters up Date the map based on the actions mad by the warriors. The Etc May not he the Mam source Lor Halle intelligence hut life s never Dull at the converted gym. Other events either exercise related or real  keep phones ringing and people mov ing. 1 Ersi Innel people Are asked Foi hoop reinforcement statistics. Man Euver damage specialists ire called to inspect a Farmer s Field. Weather experts must relay atmospheric changes. Around the clock from the beginning of the exer Cise to the end Mission activities Are endless. The addition of computer simulation to train commanders in the Field adds another scenario for Hill s planning group to consider computer crashes if that would happen the exercise still could continue. It just Means thai the stress w ill not be there for those intended to hone their Battle skills on the computer Hill said. It won t be on the people we re trying to  it la probably be on  tuesday january 23, 1990 stars and stripes special edition Page 3