Photo By Sgt. DeUndra Brown | 1st Lt. Daniel Blanchard and 1st Lt. Braxton Bullion, assigned to Headquarters...... read more read more
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FORT IRWIN, California - A trip through National Training Center develops teams and prepares Soldiers for combat.
“We are mission planning to take two or three different towns by attack by fire,” said 1st Lt. Daniel Blanchard, assigned to Headquarters Company, 2d Battalion, 198th Armored Regiment, Mississippi Army National Guard. “Lots and lots of preparation. The biggest issues that we have mostly seen or run into is logistics, getting from A to B and having all your necessary supplies you need to get through the fight.”
Blanchard stressed the importance of being able to communicate while in the field.
“The best thing is communication, sending up reports, getting down to the lowest man, figuring out what he needs,” he said. “Also verifying, not only do you push it up, verifying that it gets done. Spot checking that it gets done before we step out.”
The realistic operational training is relevant to the Soldier’s survival so that they may be able to adapt to emerging threats in an operational environment.
“Mostly what we’re looking at is trying to map out, not only which route we’re taking, but also what the enemy is doing,” Blanchard said. “How he’s fighting us and which terrain he’s using, since we have so much terrain out here. Mostly mapping out where we can place effective fires. Where we think the enemies going to hit us. My small part of the pie is that I’m going to be scouting, looking for the enemy on the eastern flank to make sure they don’t harass our guys as they go to infield. So I’m the early warning system - me and my platoon.”
Soldiers may face challenges while out in the field, but the training they are receive will provide necessary skills that will benefit them while in combat, so they can sustain and keep going.
“Motivation. Don’t get down. It’s hot, it’s supposed to be. This is pretty much as life-like as you’re going to get to combat. So don’t have a bad attitude, suck it up and drive on,” Blanchard said.
Sgt. Christian Richter, assigned to 301st Psychological Operations Company (Airborne), in support of the 2d Battalion, 198th Armored Regiment, said the realistic training keeps Soldiers of all components on the same level.
“I feel like the training is real life,” he said. “I feel like it offers a perspective to a lot of Guard and reservists don’t get on a day-to-day basis. It kind of gives you the time and the planning to accomplish what we need to accomplish to get us equipped to the same standard as our active duty counterparts.”
Both Blanchard and Richter support the training at NTC and want to let Soldiers know that it will benefit them later in their career.
“Embrace what’s going on,” said Richter. “You know it’s hot, it’s dry, it’s not Mississippi. You’ve got to think about the millions and millions of dollars that have gone into making this training possible to make you a better Soldier. And just understand those facts and just give it your all.”
| Date Taken: | 05.29.2017 |
| Date Posted: | 05.31.2017 15:55 |
| Story ID: | 235664 |
| Location: | FORT IRWIN, CALIFORNIA, US |
| Hometown: | JACKSON, MISSISSIPPI, US |
| Hometown: | MEMPHIS, TENNESSEE, US |
| Hometown: | OLIVE BRANCH, MISSISSIPPI, US |
| Hometown: | OXFORD, MISSISSIPPI, US |
| Hometown: | SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA, US |
| Web Views: | 157 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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