http://news.soc.mil/releases/News Archive/2009/July/090730-01.html
FORT LEWIS, Wash. (USASOC News Service, July 30, 2009) – If there is one lesson support Soldiers have learned from current conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, it is that simply moving from one base to another during combat operations can be extremely dangerous.
For that reason, commanders place convoy training high on their priority list.
“It’s critical that these Soldiers know what they’re doing,” said Capt. Ross Feuerstein, commander of Headquarters Support Company, 2nd Battalion, 1st Special Forces Group (Airborne). “We can’t be successful if we can’t move to support our teams (of Special Forces Soldiers).”
Feuerstein’s troops recently completed convoy training at the Yakima Training Center in central Washington state.
The goal of the training was to ensure Soldiers are familiar with leading convoys, fighting from vehicles, recovering disabled vehicles and identifying the implied tasks necessary to prepare equipment for combat.
“We ran two seven-day iterations led by the NCOs,” Feuerstein said of the training. “They (the NCOs) started by focusing on the basics, with input based off their experiences conducting operations in the (U.S. Central Command) theater of operations.”
Before the start of the training, each trainee was required to take an Army physical fitness test, complete a six-mile run and complete a 10-mile endurance event. The seven-station endurance event required Soldiers to wear body armor and a ruck sack and complete various tasks as a team at each station.
“Physical fitness is very important to our mission,” said Staff Sgt. Mark Cook, a trainer at the drills. “Preparation now can save lives later. It can be very difficult to open an uparmored Humvee door after an IED goes off. That’s why preparing now is critical.”
In addition, the drills featured weapons training on the different systems that can be mounted to a vehicle. The Soldiers conducted live fire drills using greande launchers and various machine guns. They also qualified with their assigned weapon.
The Soldiers conducted medical and communications training also.
“I’d say the training was very successful,” said Feuerstein. “Our junior troops really seemed to soak up what the NCOs told them and they used it during the drills.”
Feuerstein added that NCOs placed junior Soldiers, who wore the same protective gear required while in combat, in leadership positions throughout the training to broaden their experience.
“This makes the training more realistic,” Feuerstein said. “They wore full kit the entire time also because that’s exactly what’s going to happen if we deploy. I don’t want these guys to be surprised if they go somewhere.”
FORT LEWIS, Wash. (USASOC News Service, July 30, 2009) – If there is one lesson support Soldiers have learned from current conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, it is that simply moving from one base to another during combat operations can be extremely dangerous.
For that reason, commanders place convoy training high on their priority list.
“It’s critical that these Soldiers know what they’re doing,” said Capt. Ross Feuerstein, commander of Headquarters Support Company, 2nd Battalion, 1st Special Forces Group (Airborne). “We can’t be successful if we can’t move to support our teams (of Special Forces Soldiers).”
Feuerstein’s troops recently completed convoy training at the Yakima Training Center in central Washington state.
The goal of the training was to ensure Soldiers are familiar with leading convoys, fighting from vehicles, recovering disabled vehicles and identifying the implied tasks necessary to prepare equipment for combat.
“We ran two seven-day iterations led by the NCOs,” Feuerstein said of the training. “They (the NCOs) started by focusing on the basics, with input based off their experiences conducting operations in the (U.S. Central Command) theater of operations.”
Before the start of the training, each trainee was required to take an Army physical fitness test, complete a six-mile run and complete a 10-mile endurance event. The seven-station endurance event required Soldiers to wear body armor and a ruck sack and complete various tasks as a team at each station.
“Physical fitness is very important to our mission,” said Staff Sgt. Mark Cook, a trainer at the drills. “Preparation now can save lives later. It can be very difficult to open an uparmored Humvee door after an IED goes off. That’s why preparing now is critical.”
In addition, the drills featured weapons training on the different systems that can be mounted to a vehicle. The Soldiers conducted live fire drills using greande launchers and various machine guns. They also qualified with their assigned weapon.
The Soldiers conducted medical and communications training also.
“I’d say the training was very successful,” said Feuerstein. “Our junior troops really seemed to soak up what the NCOs told them and they used it during the drills.”
Feuerstein added that NCOs placed junior Soldiers, who wore the same protective gear required while in combat, in leadership positions throughout the training to broaden their experience.
“This makes the training more realistic,” Feuerstein said. “They wore full kit the entire time also because that’s exactly what’s going to happen if we deploy. I don’t want these guys to be surprised if they go somewhere.”