In late October, a division of the Lanzhou Military Area Command (MAC) conducted successful on-line drills that involved joint actions between different functional groups, providing a new approach to integrated drills.

　　In order to meet the requirements of future wars, the division organized the established battalions and companies to conduct tactical drills. In order to enhance every combat unit's independent combat capability of attacking, defending and supporting as a whole, the division broke the limits between different arms and establishments, and according to the combat tasks, functions and needs, combined all elements into one module, all the participants in the drill were presented with the condition that they had the same subject, background, terrain and scenario. By operating in the division's automatized field command system, command posts at the division, regiment, battalion and company levels conducted the on-line drill in different places and at the same pace. In the drill, the coordinated commanding capability of the joint tactical corps and different combat groups got a full test in the on-line drill.

　　The division believed that future wars would require joint military actions and it had to increase its power of joint actions by hard praticing close to real wars. For example, all the elements of a real war were integrated into this on-line drill.

　　By Wang Guangli

　　(November 5, PLA Daily)