Photo By Sgt. Holly Pernell | A Marine confirms a firing mission during a distributed battery experiment at Camp...... read more read more
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Marines with 1st Battalion, 10th Marine Regiment conducted its first-ever distributed battery experiment to test possible combat scenarios at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, May 1-4.
During the experiment Marines fired M777A2 Howitzers from six different gun positions, into one impact zone. The separation of the howitzers is what set this exercise apart from previous training.
“What we are doing today is trying to test the feasibility of being disbursed,” said 2ndLt. Juan Martinez, a platoon commander with the battalion. “We’re testing if we can occupy six different gun positions with six different howitzers and six different sections, and be able to destroy, neutralize or suppress the enemy.”
Positioning the teams in separate areas gives them the flexibility to move to a new location immediately after firing and provides defense against counter attacks, which previously could have taken out multiple sections.
“If we’re all in one gun position an air strike or counter battery can come in and wipe us all out,” said Sgt. Anthony Vissoc, a section chief with Alpha Battery. “But if each gun is spread two to four miles apart, they have a smaller chance of taking us all out at once.”
For the past month the unit has been preparing for the exercise by conducting mission rehearsals. During preparation the unit was able to detect any possible issues with the training and come up with solutions to prevent delays during execution.
Maintaining communication between all six locations has been a source of friction, said Martinez. Normally all six guns are in one location, but with them spread across the Camp Lejeune training area, and transmitting all of their firing missions digitally, it makes the communication for this type of training more complex.
Although communications have been problematic, overall the experiment was completed successfully, said GySgt. William Day, the battery gunnery sergeant with Alpha Battery. He expects to see more experiments that will test their capabilities with separation and cover.
“The exercise helps with our unit’s readiness by allowing us to be flexible operationally and it allows us to gain experience and skills where we haven’t had it before,” said Martinez. “We can also look at the after actions of this experiment and go back to the drawing board to see how we can do it better next time.”
| Date Taken: | 05.03.2017 |
| Date Posted: | 05.05.2017 15:32 |
| Story ID: | 232768 |
| Location: | CAMP LEJEUNE, NORTH CAROLINA, US |
| Web Views: | 58 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
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