Community Relations visits to the National Training Center (NTC) at Fort Irwin, CA.  Each time a brigade combat team from Fort Hood trains at NTC a group visit is coordinated through a collaborative effort of Fort Hood leadership, the Greater Killeen Chamber of Commerce and the Heart of Texas Defense Alliance.   The visits consists of two escorts and ten guests that travel to NTC to visit the unit during their training cycle at Fort Irwin.  Invitations are extended to community, business, municipal leaders at the local, regional, and state levels.  The visit is designed to develop better understanding and appreciation for the complex environment faced by the US Army, Soldiers, and their Family Members.  A NTC training cycle pits a brigade combat team against an opposing force replicating a near-peer capable threat operating in a training area (1187 square miles) the size of Rhode Island.