Photo By Staff Sgt. Christopher Case | An artilleryman assigned to 1st Battalion 82nd Field Artillery Regiment, awaits a fire...... read more read more
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TORUN, Poland – Soldiers assigned to Alpha Battery, 1st Battalion, 82nd Field Artillery Regiment, 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division enhanced their skills during M109A6 Paladin howitzer battery qualifications in Torun, Poland, on July 4, 2018.
This training exercise is a battery level qualification, where the brigade commander validates the lanes to certify and qualify every troop, company and battery within his brigade.
“These Soldiers get to hone their skills, bring it all together in a combined battery operation,” said U.S. Army Capt. Glenn Rumph, the Alpha Battery Commander for 1-82 FA. “Now they get to bring it together to see it in a bigger picture, in a foreign land. It just opens their minds to see how important their job really is.”
The difference between being at Fort Hood, Texas and deployed in Europe is the freedom to focus on training.
“This is a great opportunity for Soldiers to come here to experience Europe and be able to train,” said Command Sgt. Maj. Jonathon Ballard, the senior enlisted advisor for 1-82 FA. “The Soldiers now pretty much live probably 200 meters from their vehicles. Any time a Soldier wants to go out there and train, we have that ability to go out and train.”
Soldiers have more time in Europe to train compared to a combat deployment.
“This is what they’ve been looking for,” said Ballard. “Being able to train their people the way they need to.”
The training Dragon Battalion Soldiers receive while in Poland helps them understand the value and scope of their vehicles while on the battlefield.
“No battlefield should be without a howitzer,” said Rumph. “We drop steel rain down on the enemy. We are truly the king of battle.”
Having the chance to train valuably gives commanders more opportunity to ensure their units are qualified to perform to standard.
“We have a scenario that we use to drive this exercise where we have the entire ABCT out, notionally,” said U.S. Army Lt. Col. Matthew Dennis, the battalion commander for 1-82 FA. “We push our howitzers, which are now qualified, out to support combined arms lanes with tanks, Bradleys, aviation and mortars, in what will be the company live fire exercise.”
1st ABCT, 1st CD Soldiers are in Europe training as part of Atlantic Resolve, a demonstration of continued U.S. support of collective security and interoperability, and to reassure NATO allies of America’s backing of continuing peace and stability in the region.
“We want to reassure our allies over here that we are committed to NATO,” said Dennis. “Nothing says you’re committed like sending tanks, Bradleys and Howitzers thousands of miles from home to stand shoulder to shoulder with our allies.”
| Date Taken: | 07.24.2018 |
| Date Posted: | 07.24.2018 16:13 |
| Story ID: | 285456 |
| Location: | TORUN, PL |
| Web Views: | 507 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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