Peacetime role of the regiment?

JoesPizza11B

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How is the US combat role in Afghanistan ending going to affect the 75th RR? I know we will still have a token presence there after 2014, what can you guys tell me about the role Rangers will play there in the future, if any? (without violating opsec, of course)? In peacetime does the 75th just fall into a modified training cycle and send guys to Ranger School faster? In peacetime Does the US still have DA mission's or does focus in the SOF community shift entirely to FID. I know that ODA's will still deploy all over the world, but seeing as how the 75th RR does not have a hearts and minds mission will they continue to deploy as well? I am asking because I want to serve in the 75th RR but still have 2.5 years on my contract with the National Guard and getting a conditional release is iffy, so I'm wondering what peacetime service is like in the Regiment. If the answers I'm looking for violate opsec then nevermind
 
Invent new and exciting ways to kill people in the next war.

I spent five years in Regiment prior to 9/11. I can tell what we did when there was no war......shoot, shoot, shoot, jump, jump, jump, walk, walk, walk, shoot, shoot, shoot.....so on and so on it went. So, basically what SOWT said.
 
The Regiment performed magnificently during the GWOT, doing things that most people thought the Rangers had no business doing prior to 9/11. My $.02 as a guy who was never a Ranger but worked very closely with them for a number of years is that the Regiment will still be an interesting place to serve even after the drawdown.
 
This is actually a great topic and something I have been following closely. I think Regiment will still be "busy" post Afghanistan CF withdrawal, but not "as busy" as they have been for the last 12 years. My money is that they will have a presence in Afghanistan similar to what it was when Iraq was the main effort. I think you will see guys go a few years with out a deployment, but the regiment will more than likely start to brush up on some of the skills they have put on the sideline since 9/11 (jungle training, high altitude, etc).

Some things I don't have an answer to but will be interesting to watch in the coming years:

  • Retention. Many current Rangers have no interest in serving in a garrison Regiment. I know retention has been down just on the rumor of things getting less busy (along with some disgruntlement with leadership), but once things ACTUALLY slow down, I think we might see some massive hemorrhaging as far as retention goes. ETS of course will be a big draw, but I think you will continue to see more guys going to SMU selections, and going SF may come back into style again as well.
  • Training. Will they continue on the same track of being one of the most deadly SOF DA units in the military, or will they revert back to the more traditional Infantry tasks that went to the wayside post 9/11.
  • MTOE. Will they drop the D co they added to each battalion?
  • Funding. The Regiment enjoyed some VERY generous funding during the GWOT years, even above what some other SOF units were getting. Will we see this go away, stay the same, or even increase?
  • JSOC. We obviously can't talk about this one too much on here, but I will be curious how the relationship with Regiment and JSOC evolves. I know some things that are allegedly going on behind the scenes, but I kind of have the opinion that I will "believe it when I see it"
 
GWOT Rangers will despise garrison life and leave the unit.

If Obama goes through with what he said and pull out ALL troops next year because he is done dealing with Karzai then that's the reality of the Regiment. Unlike SF who will still continue FID and JCETs around the world, and CAG who will always be busy to an extent, the Regiment with everything it's learned and evolved into after 9/11 will have a hard time keeping all of its platoons happy and content to continue serving in the 75th.

Unless the Rangers get more involved in LICs in places like the Horn, North Africa, SE Asia, etc then we need to accept that we are going to lose a lot of talent.
 
Low Intensity Conflict.

As an outsider I find this thread (and the others like it) amusing. What sort of questions would you have asked in 1999?
 
GWOT Rangers will despise garrison life and leave the unit.

If Obama goes through with what he said and pull out ALL troops next year because he is done dealing with Karzai then that's the reality of the Regiment. Unlike SF who will still continue FID and JCETs around the world, and CAG who will always be busy to an extent, the Regiment with everything it's learned and evolved into after 9/11 will have a hard time keeping all of its platoons happy and content to continue serving in the 75th.

Unless the Rangers get more involved in LICs in places like the Horn, North Africa, SE Asia, etc then we need to accept that we are going to lose a lot of talent.
I am willing to bet training keeps the ops tempo pretty high.
 
Low Intensity Conflict.

As an outsider I find this thread (and the others like it) amusing. What sort of questions would you have asked in 1999?
I've had that same thought many times on SS. I suspect it would be allot of conversation about what a horses ass Clinton is and a snipet here and there about Saddam violating the No Fly Zone for the 3,000th time..
 
Low Intensity Conflict.

As an outsider I find this thread (and the others like it) amusing. What sort of questions would you have asked in 1999?

What kinds of questions would I have asked about the Ranger Regiment back in 1999, not knowing what I know now about them?

"Hm, Ranger Regiment... aren't those the 'elite infantry' guys who are pretty much only good for airfield seizures and outer cordon for Delta missions?"

I know better now.
 
Low Intensity Conflict.

As an outsider I find this thread (and the others like it) amusing. What sort of questions would you have asked in 1999?
I wish I could agree more than once with your comment.

I have had young guys ask me the same thing- "Well, I mean, I want to stay in- but what happens when we pull out of OEF?"

Oh, I don't know- actually have the time to prepare for the NEXT 10 years worth of conflict we haven't even been able to accurately forecast because we have been engaged in a 3 front, 12 year, all encompassing effort?
 
I never wanted to join the Military per se, I just wanted to go to war. Unfortunately I was born a bit too late and missed all the "good wars" and the Mercenary heyday. :thumbsdown:
 
I'll be honest, having Regimental experience from 98-04... I don't get what the "fuck peacetime army" guys are spooled up about. At Regiment, We did training iterations that put us in the woods for weeks, deployments to multiple countries for unit specific as well as communal training with local nation "mission parallel" forces. There's nothing bad about the "peacetime" Regiment. Especially considering that by and far the largest parts of Regiment that were a pain in the ass are no more (Spits and starches for whatever reasons the COC could think up)

The barracks are better
The equipment will continue to improve
The missions, albeit for training, will have a reduced risk
You'll be home to see the wife, kids, or the bar more often

Honestly, I can't remember a time where we were limited on ordinance or anything else for training unless it was related to blank fire. We ALWAYS had more live rounds, explosives, and other entertaining implements of destruction we designed or otherwise borrowed from other guys. Were there some D&P operations? Sometimes. Same change of commands and CoC inspections/layouts, and various other herp-derp that still goes on today.
 
There's nothing bad about the "peacetime" Regiment. Especially considering that by and far the largest parts of Regiment that were a pain in the ass are no more (Spits and starches for whatever reasons the COC could think up)
I have great faith in the Army's ability to bring back spits and starches. Otherwise I agree.
Reed
 
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