The Army’s transformation in contact efforts have been extended to its three multidomain task forces, further broadening joint force enabling capabilities in Europe, Africa and the Indo-Pacific.

In the Indo-Pacific, the 3rd Multi-Domain Task Force, the newest of five planned task forces, is growing and testing new capabilities with the joint and multinational force across the region, Col. Mike Rose, the task force’s commander, said March 14 in a call with the media.

Pointing out that Army Chief of Staff Gen. Randy George “has been very clear that transformation needs to happen at every echelon throughout the entirety of the Army,” Rose said the formalization of the 3rd Multi-Domain Task Force and each of the other task forces as transformation in contact units “falls squarely within the chief's intent for being part of continuous transformation as we provide warfighting capability and deliver ready combat formations.”

“All the work that we've been doing without that formal label, we anticipate to be able to accelerate and to pick up speed here going forward,” Rose said, adding that his task force is slated to grow to some 2,000 soldiers, including embedded allies from Australia and the U.K.

The Army created multidomain task forces as joint, theater-level assets to bring together lethal and nonlethal capabilities to provide long-range precision effects such as cyber, electronic warfare, intelligence and long-range fires.

The 1st Multi-Domain Task Force, aligned with the Indo-Pacific, was stood up in 2017 at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington. The 2nd Multi-Domain Task Force, aligned with Europe and Africa, stood up in 2021 in Wiesbaden, Germany. The 3rd Multi-Domain Task Force, Rose said, was stood up in September 2022, at Fort Shafter, Hawaii, and has been in operation since May 2023.

“There's a significant amount of critical allies, key terrain and choke points that we can be useful against throughout the entirety of the region, so we campaign as part of the theater Army in support of joint force objectives under Operation Pathways, which is a component of the U.S. Army Pacific Theater Army Strategy,” Rose said.

Rose explained that the 3rd Multi-Domain Task Force works on operational level integration of the capabilities resident in its four battalions, which include multidomain effects, long-range fires, integrated fires protection and support.

The task force also works closely with allies and partners “to demonstrate resolve, assure those allies and partners and contribute to deterrence,” Rose said. “We're continuously campaigning and continuously transforming our capability through those operations forward.”

The 3rd Multi-Domain Task Force has been testing and using new program of record prototypes and experimental capabilities, maintaining close relationships with the research, development, testing and experimentation and science and technology communities “to inform programs of record and requirements specific to our mission,” he said.

“We were at first experimental, but now we are a reality operating every single day in the Indo-Pacific and in Europe and Africa,” Rose said. “We do experiment forward, we do have a lot of capabilities that we’re still investing in, but that’s going to be part of the journey. We’re going to be of the mindset that we’re going to continuously integrate. We’re never going to be satisfied with what we have when there are new technologies and capabilities that are around the corner.”