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HOHENFELS, Germany - More than 5,000 service members from 17 nations concluded force on force Combined Resolve Xlll training at the Joint Multinational Readiness Center (JMRC) on February 2.
It was a joint exercise that Soldiers of the 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team (2ABCT), 1st Cavalry Division from Fort Hood, Texas undertook with NATO allies and partners as a way to train, demonstrating their ability to fight and win against an equally capable force in the European theater.
Combined Resolve Xlll is a headquarters, Department of the Army (HQDA) Multinational Unified Land Operation event that exercises the U.S. Regionally Aligned Force (RAF) Brigade in support of European Commands (Eucom) objectives.
This training is an enormous undertaking in scale and scope. The Soldiers were affixed to the battlefield during the entire engagement. Initially on defense, and at the midway point, they transitioned into an offensive force.
Success in this exercise requires preparation, resilience and a great deal of measured patience.
"At the National Training Center, (NTC) we have a completely different environment, we have like 3 kilometer engagements. Up here, (Hohenfels-CBR XIII) it's close and personal," said Staff Sgt Lewis Robertson, M1A2 Abrams tank commander, B Co, 1st Battalion, 8th Cavalry Regiment from Fort Hood, Texas. "We took out five T-72's and 3 or 4 BNB's before we were taken out."
Permanent party OPFOR Soldiers of Hohenfels typically has little trouble savaging the incoming units on this rotation.
"So I think through annihilation, through defeating them... I'm training them. The outcome is that the brigade comes in here, and they leave a better trained unit," said Lt. Col. Kevin Ryan, OPFOR commander, 1st Battalion, 4th Infantry Regiment from Hohenfels, Germany. "I have about 1,100 Soldiers underneath my command for this rotation, of that, we had six different allied or partnered nations to include Latvia, Bulgaria and Bosnia."
When pressed to offer sustainment regarding the 2ABCT Soldiers, OPFOR Spc. Matthew Blohm, with the 173rd, 2503 Chosen Co, and Private First Class Adam Walter from Hohenfels, Germany said, "The biggest thing they did well was in hiding their TOC's. Most rotations, we find TOC's really easily because you know this is our backyard. I don't think we found a single one, they were very well hidden."
Additionally, they expressed mutual respect for the multinational forces encountered on the battlefield.
"I thought the Dutch (Netherlands) reacted really well. Quick responses, they weren't confused, well organized, well hidden, they ended up ambushing us the best too," said Blohm. "They would sleep in the wood line, and we pretty much didn't see them until we started to capture U.S. Forces. By the time we were capturing them, they would sneak up on us and engage us."
The goal of the exercise was to assess and increase the military readiness and lethality of all the joint participants. Combining forces on such an enormous scale showcases our interoperability, and promotes regional stability, thereby enhancing relationships between the allied and partnered militaries.
“Dealing with the Polish, the Bulgarians, the Latvians, the Estonians, the Romanians, the Georgians, all the people that are out here - one of the things that impressed me the most was the professionalism that they displayed, and they weren't here to lose either," said Lt. Col. Jonathan Bender, commander of 1st Battalion, 8th Cavalry Regiment from Fort Hood, Texas. "They were out here to win, to learn and they were out here to operate with us and really practice.”
Mechanized battles and tactics were a considerable portion of this exercise.
Bender continued, "In one attack, my A Co was in a support by fire position.... Well, that support by fire position was critical because I thought we had enemy that could potentially be on our northeastern flank as we made a turn south, and it was just through a little bit of intuition, but it was also the fact that we had some indicators that there was something over in that area. We didn't have any reconnaissance that could get in there because every time they got in there they got killed. So, (that is) an indicator that something bad is over there. I integrated fires and a smoke mission to get 'em into place. Fires to suppress and then we had direct fires at the same time. We ended up killing about nine tanks and seven BMP's (U.S. Bradley Fighting Vehicles) that were in that location. One tank company was able to do that. It really created a seam for us to exploit, and while he was doing that the whole battalion ran right off his backside. In football terms, he was the left tackle, and we ran a counter play right off of his backside and it was successful."
While the 2ABCT Soldiers held their own, the OPFOR is very formidable Combined Resolve adversaries.
"They're definitely out here to fight. They don't like to lose. The terrain is terrible, and it forces you to get better in harsh environments,” said 1st Lt. Josh Surabine, Apache Troop, 4-9 CAV platoon leader.
The 2ABCT tank crews particularly had to keep their head on a swivel, as the Hohenfels OPFOR is very familiarized with their 'home field' advantage.
"They attacked us before we could even see them. They already had the beat on us from a drone," said Staff Sgt. Paul Lewis, 1st Battalion, 8th Cavalry Regiment tank commander from Fort Hood, Texas after his tank became disabled during a support-by-fire mission.
Even in times of defeat the Soldiers from Fort Hood remained steadfast.
"We didn't wake up every day and go out there at four o'clock in the morning to lose,” said Bender. “We were out there to win.”
Indeed, winning or losing is ascertained here by degrees. Ultimately, each side can take away aspects of this exercise that they can build upon for future real world engagements moving forward.
"At different points on the battlefield, some units are better than others, and by me giving them the best fight I can possibly give them, we'll make sure that they're a better unit when they leave, said Ryan. “We have to be ready to fight what's coming next.”
If these Soldiers from 17 different countries had to unite and face a powerful enemy, just how would they fare?
"If we did have to take on a near peer adversary here in Europe, I have no doubt that we would crush them," said Bender.
Combined Resolve Xlll will conclude on February 5.
| Date Taken: | 02.04.2020 |
| Date Posted: | 02.05.2020 08:34 |
| Story ID: | 361702 |
| Location: | HOHENFELS, BAYERN, DE |
| Web Views: | 844 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
This work, Blackjack Brigade Concludes Combined Resolve XIII Training in Germany, by SSG Gregory Stevens, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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