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Army Tests Temporary Battlefield Burial Operations in North Carolina

Engineers, chaplains and mortuary specialists tested how to preserve remains for identification and repatriation, with one trench dug in about 1 hour and 15 minutes.

  • On October 20 in Fayetteville, North Carolina, the Army conducted Phase II of Operation Dragon Covenant to test battlefield temporary interment, practicing mass casualty scenarios not seen since the Korean War.
  • For twenty years during wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, United States air superiority enabled quick remains evacuation; future Large-Scale Combat Operations, or LSCOs, may lack those capabilities.
  • Operators excavated trenches for 20 remains in one hour and 15 minutes, enabling commanders to plan for an engineer company to manage burial trenches for up to 2,400 bodies every 24 hours.
  • Lt. Ruska, chaplain for the Corps Sustainment Command, noted teams cannot stop operations for individual religious services; Chaplains consecrate sites beforehand to treat remains with "reverence, dignity and honor."
  • The Army will incorporate lessons into future doctrine, including adjusting trench spacing, with Phase III of Operation Dragon Covenant continuing in Spring 2027.
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Military Times broke the news in Arlington, United States on Monday, October 26, 2026.
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