Photo By Kimberly Hackbarth | Staff Sgt. Joseph Cole (far right), a Patriot master gunner, watches as Staff Sgt....... read more read more
FORT HOOD, Texas – In any Army school, the attrition rate shows how difficult the course is for the average Soldier.
With an attrition rate of 65 percent - meaning roughly nine out of 14 Soldiers graduate each cycle - the Patriot Master Gunner Course is one of the toughest schools in the Air Defense Artillery.
In an effort to improve Soldiers’ chances of passing the course, 69th Air Defense Artillery Brigade held a Pre-Patriot Master Gunner Course, here, Aug. 18 through Sept. 3.
The Patriot Master Gunner Course at Fort Sill, Oklahoma, is a 10-week, advanced course that teaches the skills necessary to train and certify crews on the Patriot weapon system.
A graduate of the course serves as his or her unit’s Patriot subject-matter expert, said Staff Sgt. Joseph Cole, a Patriot master gunner with Headquarters and Headquarters Battery, 69th ADA Bde., who taught the pre-course to a class of four noncommissioned officers.
One of the things covered at the Patriot Master Gunner Course is training on the contemporary operating environment and it directly applies the principles of leadership and training to the Patriot battlefield, Cole explained.
To prepare the NCOs attending the class for the demands of the real Patriot Master Gunner Course, Cole said he taught training strategy, defense design, tactics, techniques and procedures of the Patriot Air and Missile Defense System on an advanced level.
The students also utilized Reconfigurable Table Top Trainers, known as RT3, which are training platforms that simulate Patriot Air and Missile Defense System operations, along with other functions.
"With the RT3s, we can run … air battle scenarios and we can find out where the student's weakness is," Cole said. "We can find out where they're strong at and we can further implement training from there."
Staff Sgt. Mallory O'Brien, a Patriot launching station enhanced operator/maintainer with Battery D, 1st Battalion, 62nd ADA Regiment, 69th ADA Bde., said she went through the Patriot Master Gunner course in July. However, the course ended up being harder than she anticipated and she did not graduate.
O'Brien said the hardest part of the course is trying to remember all of the information taught.
Cole had the NCOs attending the pre-course get in depth with the system and he conducted a lot of checks on learning, O'Brien said.
"This is (Cole's) expertise, this is what he does and he's an excellent instructor, so I feel a lot better prepared this time," she added. "As NCOs, that's what we do: teach, coach and mentor, even if it is to each other."
O'Brien is slated to attend the Patriot Master Gunner Course again this fall and said she is optimistic she will graduate.
"I'm anxious to learn (and) I'm ready to learn," she said. "Patriot's not slowing down."
| Date Taken: | 09.03.2014 |
| Date Posted: | 09.03.2014 13:40 |
| Story ID: | 141045 |
| Location: | FORT HOOD, TEXAS, US |
| Hometown: | CORPUS CHRISTI, TEXAS, US |
| Hometown: | POST FALLS, IDAHO, US |
| Web Views: | 228 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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