Photo By Aleah M Castrejon | CAMP GUERNSEY, Wy. — Soldiers with the Colorado Army National Guard observe their...... read more read more
By Aleah M. Castrejon
Mountaineer editor
CAMP GUERNSEY, Wy. — Fort Carson’s 4th Security Force Assistance Brigade assisted and advised Colorado Army National Guard Soldiers with Attack Company, 1st Battalion, 157th Infantry Regiment, in Guernsey, Wyoming, Oct. 15-25, 2020, in preparation for a mobilization.
The SFAB is a specialized unit with the core mission to conduct training, advising, assisting, enabling and accompanying operations with allied and partner nations.
Staff Sgt. Kurt Taveras, senior operations adviser for Team 4322, 4th SFAB, sought out a training opportunity with the CONG, and through networking he learned about the upcoming mission of the 1st Bn., 157th Inf. Reg.
“From there I initiated the rapport that I wanted to establish with what the 4th SFAB at Fort Carson has — through all of the different battalions and squadrons — to see if it meets any of the (needed) criteria,” Taveras said.
He said the idea caught the Attack Company commander’s ear. After it was understood that the advisers would partner with squads – with the intent to improve their mission – plans commenced.
Capt. Kyle Pernelli, team leader for Team 4322, 4th SFAB, said these types of missions allow the SFAB team to hone their skills and ensure they become subject matter experts on their equipment.
“The real beauty of all of this is what Taveras has put together enables us to practice every aspect of our job — while we are in Colorado or Wyoming — in preparation for any employment that we may have globally,” Pernelli said. “It’s really a testament to him and a testament to the work and foundation he’s laid that’s enabled this to happen.”
Pernelli said they can use their doctrine and build onto that unit’s specified doctrine.
“What’s specifically awesome about the Guard is they have a doctrine and culture that is similar to ours,” he said. “So if we superimpose the two it’s as close to a true one-for-one match or replication of what we would see partnering with a NATO force or another force anywhere else in the globe.”
Specifically the SFAB’s mission with the CONG was to offer assistance with the subject matter experts among the SFAB to support the Soldiers with their infantry tactics, Taveras said. The SFAB provided advice and coached them with the infantry’s training plan already set in place.
Capt. Brian S. Howard, commander, Attack Company, 1st Bn., 157th Inf. Reg., said it was helpful to have the 4th SFAB advisers attached to each squad in order to catch and correct issues during the training to make them a better unit moving forward.
“The amount of expertise of the Soldiers of the 4th SFAB is outstanding,” Howard said. “I am picking each one of their brains and understanding things that I didn’t know or verifying things, as a command team.”
He said given a mission, the teams moved to an objective using live fire, simulated live fires and attacks in order to clear an objective. The Soldiers performed collective and individual tasks for the mobilization with the focus on the teams learning how to maneuver together, all while the SFAB oversaw each movement.
“Almost every lane that I have walked, I’ve gone to the advisers and double checked myself,” Howard said. “It’s good to see that someone in that type of role either agrees with me, and if they don’t agree with me, they have an outstanding reason and we build off that. Having master gunners, having career artillerymen out here — even though we are doing squad-level tactics — their advisory role has really stepped up our ability to improve ourselves in these lanes and at the command-team level.”
Sgt. 1st Class Chris Clingempeel, assistant team leader for Team 4322, 4th SFAB, said working with the Guard provided a prime opportunity to meet various aspects.
“(The Guard) is typical of what we would end up partnering with,” he said. “They are an organization that has doctrine … they are a professional military force. From the initial building of rapport to what we have seen in the last few days … it is real-time that we are seeing the product of using our doctrine in the way that it’s intended to be used.”
The SFAB advisers have brought out the best in what the CONG Soldiers are capable of, Pernelli said.
“They are streamlining the efficiency that they have through years of developing expertise and truly knowing their craft,” Pernelli added. “And we are starting to see that culminate in how each of these squads operates, and how the company as a whole is starting to operate.”
Clingempeel emphasized that their mission was to make the unit better within their scope, doctrine and processes already in place.
With two advisers assigned to each squad, the SFAB was able to provide consistent feedback and the infantry Soldiers benefitted, as well, Taveras added.
“It made the National Guard squad team leaders and squad leaders more comfortable to come up to us and ask the questions they may not be comfortable asking in front of their Soldiers,” he said. “It meets our mission statement for the SFAB (because) we (are able to conduct) our own stressing and testing of our communication system, which is going to be crucial when we have a small 12-man team deploy to an austere environment.”
“We are extremely grateful for (the CONG) welcoming us and allowing us to simultaneously conduct our missions and assist them with theirs,” Pernelli said. “We are really happy to create this relationship and we hope it continues more, and expands to any other element that thinks they can use an SFAB team.”
Pernelli said the SFAB is a customer-based organization, such as a combatant command commander, Department of State or partner force.
“We don’t report to another (Observer — Controller) network, we are not here to certify them, we are here to make them better, and everything we do is for them along the way … we’re here building their efficiency and making them better at what they do without having a second agenda,” Pernelli added.
| Date Taken: | 10.20.2020 |
| Date Posted: | 12.21.2020 12:14 |
| Story ID: | 385499 |
| Location: | US |
| Web Views: | 58 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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