Gen. Lloyd J. Austin III, vice chief of staff of the

Gen. Lloyd J. Austin III, vice chief of staff of the Army, approaches soldiers from 1st Battalion, 35th Armor Regiment, 2nd Heavy Brigade Combat Team, 1st Armored Division, before presenting them with coins of excellence, during a visit to Network Integration Evaluation 12.2 at White Sands Missile Range, N.M., May 17, 2012. NIE, using soldiers from 2-1 AD, assesses potential network capabilities in a robust operational environment to determine whether they perform as needed, conform to the network architecture and are interoperable with existing systems.