Photo By Sgt. Fenton Reese | A crew from Scout Platoon 4th Tank Battalion, Headquarters and Service Company,...... read more read more
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CAMP BLANDING, Fla. - Expended brass casings littered the ground giving an illusion that the dirt was paved gold.
Another day on the range had come to an end for the Marines of 4th Tank Battalion, Headquarters and Service Company, Detachment 4.
The Marines from Hialeah, Fla., conducted crew-served gunnery training at Crew Combat Range and Pinner Range, here, Feb. 22-26.
The Marines doing the shooting that week came from the TOW (Tube-launched Optically-tracked Wire guided missile crews) and Scout Platoons. Each were handed the task of qualifying with their crew-served weapon systems from a vehicle-mounted platform according to the specifications of Joint Field Manual 3-90.6 “The Brigade Combat Team.”
The TOW Marines, also known as “Saber” Platoon, were not allowed to shoot any missiles that week, but did use a simulator that gave the experience of wire-guiding onto a target.
The Saber Marines’ roll in combat is to provide long-range anti-armor support capabilities. In layman’s terms, they shoot TOW missiles from various distances to terminate enemy hardened targets – like buildings, bunkers and armored vehicles.
The purpose of the exercise was to qualify each Marine on the tables of fire for their respective weapon systems according to the guidelines spelled out in the field manual. The weeklong evolution was a graded event meant to train and evaluate the gunners, crews and vehicle commanders on their heavy weapons.
To prepare themselves to be effective in combat Marines qualify with rifle, pistol, machine guns and more at increasingly difficult courses of fire, commonly referred to as “tables.”
Each table consisted of various challenges, increasing qualification standards and intensity the more advanced they become. The initial tables focus on allowing Marines to understand the mechanics of the weapon and develop comfort using it.
“Tables three, four and five are ‘work up’ tables,” said Capt. James A. Neville, inspector instructor and officer in charge of Det. 4.
“It takes a certain skill to be able to handle a 50 cal. – let alone accurately,” said Neville.
As the Marines progressed through the tables, the targets were farther away, their time on task was shortened and their ammo supply was limited. However, at each level the crews had to operate like it was a real combat situation.
The final test, Table Six, put the machine-gunners and TOW missile-men through a course of fire where they were tasked with using their vehicles to respond to realistic scenarios – driving into position, engaging the enemy and driving back to their original position.
To some this may sound like a routine training exercise, however, to the Marines of Saber and Scout Platoons, it was much more.
“If I had the power I would make all Marines in the unit do this training,” said Cpl. Matthew T. Kruspe, of Saber Platoon, former machine gunner now training to become a vehicle commander.
Kruspe has been with the unit for three and a half years. He recently returned from Iraq and said he wishes he had had this training prior to going.
These types of exercises build not only skill, but character and camaraderie among the Marines, he explained.
“Just this week alone has made me that much better,” said Kruspe, as he described the mental and physical fulfillment he got as a result of this training.
Even beyond the idea of “getting some,” it just feels good to be doing something out of the normal, said Kruspe.
Due to location and facility constraints this unit differs from the routine one weekend a month Reserve schedule.
Extensive planning goes into coordinating exercises like this one for Reserve Marines. In addition to normal planning associated with logistics, operations and administration, units like this also need to ensure the Marines can fit it into their civilian jobs’ and families’ schedules.
Instead of having one weekend per month the Det. 4 staff schedules week-long drills every few months. This allows the Marines to plan and prepare for their service obligations.
In the case of this shoot, the planning paid off. 137 Marines transported 22 vehicles and thousands of dollars worth of weapons and equipment 350 miles each way with no injuries or equipment losses – and Aced the graded event on the first try.
“This is the first time we’ve qualified on the unstabilized platform course of fire,” Neville said. “The fact that we went clean across the board doing it for the first time with no major issues speaks volumes about the type of Marine we have down here.”
In combat, modern Marines are forced to make decisions and take action based on their experience gained from training. For some, experience will mean the difference between success and failure.
“We’re a small unit trying to make ourselves more combat effective,” Neville explained. “The small unit leaders and vehicle commanders have done nothing but great things for us, and I’m sure they will continue to do the same.”
Unlike the illusion that expended .50-caliber cases create in the sun, for these Marines, training like this is worth its weight in gold.
| Date Taken: | 03.10.2011 |
| Date Posted: | 03.10.2011 16:19 |
| Story ID: | 66805 |
| Location: | CAMP BLANDING, FLORIDA, US |
| Web Views: | 771 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
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