Reaper Troop helps Germans refine tactics

Photo By Sgt. Joshua Edwards | U.S. Army Spc. Kyle Mullis, a soldier with Reaper Troop, 4th Squadron, 2nd Cavalry Regiment, waves to German local nationals Sept. 15, 2012 at Regenstauf. Troops with 2nd Cavalry Regiment were on a training mission with the German army.  

GRAFENWOEHR, BAYERN, GERMANY

09.28.2012

Story by Spc. Joshua Edwards 

2d Cavalry Regiment

ROSE BARRACKS, Germany – U.S. Army Reaper Troop, 4th Squadron, 2nd Cavalry Regiment conducted a training exercise with German army soldiers Sept. 14 and 15 at Regenstauf, Germany. The training was an opportunity to bring camaraderie and teamwork between U.S and German forces.

The exercise known as Operation Saber Sharpener consisted of U.S. troops playing the role of opposing forces against German soldiers while mounted in Stryker vehicles. The urban area set the scene and provided good training for combat scenarios that might occur while deployed. The German army provided foreign tactics that allowed Reaper Troopers to learn different ways an enemy might attack in a hostile environment.

“We have to maneuver in and around built-up urban areas and we get to test our tactics and abilities, as well as see a different way of doing things from the Bundeswehr [German army] perspective, said Sgt. 1st Class Daniel Muren, a non-commissioned officer with Reaper Troop. “It gives us a scenario like we would be in, in Afghanistan in built up areas and all the problems that maneuvering towards an urban area would provide.”

During movement through the streets of Regenstauf, soldiers with Reaper Troop had to exercise caution among the local German population so they didn’t interrupt the community’s daily activities. The local population seemed to be happy and excited about seeing the different types of military vehicles driving through their town.
“We’re dealing with an actual civil population, people going to work and taking their kids to school and we have to look out for those things happening around us,” said 2nd Lt. Matthew Ausderan, a Reaper Troop fire support officer and native of Bowling Green, Ohio. ”For the most part you get a lot of waves, little kids especially. They get a kick out of seeing the Strykers rolling down the street.”

The training presented an opportunity for both Reaper Troop and German forces to get the experience of combat level training without the loss of government assets that units might experience during deployment. The Offensive created a trial-and-error type of scenario that allows standard operating procedures for actions that would be taken in a hostile environment to be refined.
“We can really find out what they’re [German army] thinking without having the realism of losing a vehicle and that’s really the biggest benefit to training with an apposing force that has different tactics,” said Muren. “We get to see it and analyze it in an A.A.R. [after action review] setting, what we did right, what we did wrong and how we are going to fix it.”

Senior enlisted personnel and officers with 4th Squadron interacted with their German army counterparts and learn how leadership works in a foreign force. The training was a good way to get a different aspect on the way things are done.

“It’s good to get different faces in the mix,” said Ausderan. “Normally when we go out to the field we see our military police as our OPFOR and we’re pretty familiar with their tactics. It’s nice to get an actual vehicle we don’t have in our inventory to look for. It’s a good experience for our leaders to interact with the German leaders when we have our breaks, a good opportunity for both sides to get away from their normal training and mix it up a little bit.”

• Date Taken: 09.28.2012
• Date Posted: 09.28.2012 04:04
• Story ID: 95430
• Location: GRAFENWOEHR, BAYERN, DE