Photo By Staff Sgt. Hannah Tarkelly | Army Pvt. Alexander Wilson, an assistant gunner assigned to the Headquarters and...... read more read more
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A moment of calmness falls over the vast landscape at the firing range in Smarden, Romania. Abruptly a blusterous voice breaks the silence commanding “Fire!” Without hesitation fellow Soldiers echo his command as the assistant gunner slides the heavy 120 millimeter mortar round in the entrance of the tube and quickly releases, ducking for cover and grasping tightly to his ears. The thunderous sound of the round rips through the sky and is gone an instant only to reveal itself again as a cloud of smoke and destruction 4,000 kilometers away.
Soldiers assigned to the Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 2nd Battalion, 5th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, conducted a mortar live fire training and evaluation in support of Atlantic Resolve, an enduring training exercise between NATO and U.S. Forces, July 19, 2018.
The crews worked tirelessly in the field during the training and evaluation to qualify on their mortar systems.
Round after round, Soldiers worked from day to night, firing over 128 rounds consisting of 94 practice rounds, 24 high explosive rounds and 10 illumination rounds.
A continuous repetition allowed for the Soldiers to become well trained and familiar with their weapons. The training allowed the field support crews to observe the rounds and become more proficient in their tasks.
“They’re getting more reps on the guns,” said 1st Lt. Abigail Imelio assigned to HHC, 2-5 Cav, 1st ABCT, 1st CD. “They can be on the gun all they want but if they’re not actually popping rounds on the range then it’s hard for them to get effective training.”
Actively firing their weapon systems presents the best opportunity for Soldiers to enhance their skillset, communication and teamwork on the battlefield.
| Date Taken: | 07.19.2018 |
| Date Posted: | 07.24.2018 03:36 |
| Story ID: | 285072 |
| Location: | SMARDEN, RO |
| Web Views: | 84 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Soldiers Conduct Mortar Live Fire Training, by SSG Hannah Tarkelly, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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