New Officer Training School Mission Command Scenarios Prepare Tomorrow’s Leaders Published Sept. 15, 2025 By Capt. Abigail Bowles Holm Center Publlic Affairs MAXWELL AIR FORCE BASE, Ala -- Officer Training School integrated new, dynamic Mission Command Experiences (MCEs) into the curriculum, preparing Air Force and Space Force officers for the future fight. Mission command is a leadership philosophy that enables Airmen and Guardians to operate in dynamic, complex situations. Focusing on the delegation of authority, leaders empower subordinates with the initiative to carry out the commander’s intent with increased trust. Through distributed control and decentralized execution, subordinate teams can execute the mission with greater flexibility to make decisions and rapidly respond to mission requirements. At OTS, MCEs introduce future Department of the Air Force (DAF) leaders to this command philosophy through dynamic wargaming scenarios. MCEs became a part of the OTS curriculum in October 2023, serving as an assessment tool to evaluate the leadership capabilities of future DAF officers. As modern threats continue evolving, instructors realized a need for refinement of the current MCEs executed in the latter half of OTS, to include an increased focus on near peer adversaries, Space Force integration, and evolving medical considerations. As strategic competitors like China and Russia continue to amplify their multi-domain warfare tactics, future officers must operate in highly contested environments with degraded communications and increased ambiguity. Reinforcing cyber, electronic warfare, and information operations alongside conventional capabilities is one of the new focuses in the revamped wargaming scenarios. “To ensure our future leaders are prepared to excel in an increasingly complex world, our instructors are committed to evolving the MCEs to reflect the realities of the contemporary battlespace,” said U.S. Air Force Maj. Kimberly Dotson, OTS Module 4 assistant director of operations. “This evolution involves incorporating new concepts, diverse backgrounds, and innovative approaches to broaden the scope of understanding and enhance the resources available to officer trainees.” The integration of the Space Force and Medical Command into the new MCEs further deepens future officers’ understanding of how diverse functional areas contribute to Mission Command and Agile Combat Employment. Officer trainees learn how critical space-based assets are to modern warfare, requiring them to coordinate between ground, air, sea, cyber, and space force domains. In addition, these leaders are also challenged to integrate medical support into their operational planning, practicing sustained operations in environments with potentially limited infrastructure. “The exercise did a great job simulating a stressful, fast-moving environment,” said U.S. Air Force Officer Trainee Mia Bolding, mission commander during the medical-focused MCE. “I had to understand my team’s strengths, assign tasks that maximized their abilities, and manage physical resources and logistics under pressure.” These more realistic MCEs require officer trainees to consider the unique capabilities and challenges of the evolving, modern battlespace. They are better trained to think strategically and anticipate obstacles while effectively integrating with joint partners, ultimately producing an officer who can effectively lead in evolving and complex global environments. “Leading fellow medical officers through a complex mission gave me a realistic taste of the demands officers face by requiring me to balance strategy, logistics, and human factors,” said Bolding. “It prepared me to lead with clarity, resilience, and purpose when the stakes are high, making me a better Medical Service Corps officer in an Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron.” OTS develops warrior-minded leaders of character ready to fight and win our nation’s battles. Through continuous refinements to its curriculum, OTS ensures every officer trainee graduates prepared to lead Airmen and Guardians with agility, innovation, and character in the future fight.