This story has been updated to more clearly reflect that Maj. Gen. Walter Piatt is one of two leaders of the Army's Rapid Capabilities Office. He is the military leader of the RCO while Doug Wiltsie is the director.
WASHINGTON -- The Army's new Rapid Capabilities Office was established roughly six months ago, but a leader of the outfit is already moving on to command the 10th Mountain Division at Fort Drum, New York.
The RCO was set up to quickly fill land forces capability gaps with early priorities to tackle electronic warfare, cyber, survivability and positioning, navigation and timing (PNT) -- areas where adversaries like Russia have shown a high degree of prowess in recent years. The office is designed to rapidly deliver those capabilities within a one- to five-year horizon.
Maj. Gen. Walter Piatt, the RCO’s director of operations, along with Doug Wiltsie, the office's director, have led the RCO since its establishment last summer and have had a productive start.
By December, the office had already received approval for a "phased" way ahead to rapidly prototype electronic warfare capability. And officials were making headway tackling more complex issues in cyber and PNT.
"I am humbled and honored by the opportunity to return to the 10th Mountain Division and Fort Drum," Piatt said in a statement. "It’s been a challenging and rewarding two years at the Pentagon working on the Army’s highest priorities: readiness and modernization."
Piatt said he was "confident" that the RCO "is formalized, running well and starting to cut through the bureaucracy and expedite critical capabilities to soldiers."
Before taking on the RCO, Piatt was the director of operations, readiness and mobilization in the Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff G-3/5/7 at the Pentagon.
Piatt has also recently served as the US Army Europe deputy commanding general and commander of US Army NATO as well as the commander of the Seventh Army Joint Multinational Training Command in Grafenwoehr, Germany.
Jen Judson is an award-winning journalist covering land warfare for Defense News. She has also worked for Politico and Inside Defense. She holds a Master of Science degree in journalism from Boston University and a Bachelor of Arts degree from Kenyon College.
