Photo By Sgt. Alleyson Singley | The Alabama National Guard 1-167th Infantry Battalion stands in formation for the...... read more read more
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CENTAUR-21
XANTHI, GREECE— Soldiers from the Alabama National Guard 1-167th Infantry Battalion conducted annual training with the Hellenic Army as part of the DEFENDER-Europe 21 Immediate Response Exercise, May 13-26, 2021, here.
DEFENDER-Europe 21 is comprised of 26 nations, including the United States, and around 28,000 multinational forces. The Immediate Response portion consists of more than 5,000 troops across 31 training areas in 12 different countries.
“This exercise is a small part of DEFENDER-Europe 21, specifically we are involved with Centaur-21 with the Hellenic Army in Greece,” said Lt. Col. John Craft, commander of the 1-167th Infantry Battalion. “The overall goal of this exercise is to demonstrate strategic readiness and capability of projecting readiness here in the European theater.”
The soldiers of the 1-167th Infantry Battalion, alongside soldiers from the Hellenic Army, conducted mounted and dismounted ambush exercises, mortar live fire exercises, and force-on-force training to improve operational readiness and allow units to improve techniques and procedures.
“For most of the soldiers, this is the first time they’ve gone out of the country with this unit, so this is the first time they’ve seen how we actually operate in a tactical situation,” said Sgt. Luke Sukow, truck commander from Delta Company, 1-167th Infantry Battalion. “With us coming to Greece, it takes soldiers out of their comfort zone and helps them pay more attention to the actual training rather than going through the motions”
DEFENDER-Europe 21 gave soldiers, many of whom have only trained at their home station, a glimpse of how vast the Alabama National Guard’s potential and capabilities are. Training in different environments is beneficial for soldiers to fully understand all aspects of the job they do, as well as the unit they are a part of.
“I was able to work with a Greek medic on the mortar range,” said Pvt. Jacob Evans, Combat Medic, HHC 1-167th Infantry Battalion. “I got to teach him about our combat casualty care and about how combat procedures work on the medical aspect, and in turn he taught me how their medical procedures work.”
Soldiers of the Alabama National got the chance to work directly alongside soldiers of the Hellenic Army with the same job descriptions. These joint training opportunities allowed them to gain insight into how other militaries operate and a chance to learn and teach new things along the way.
“I had the opportunity of working alongside the Hellenic Army when we conducted a logistic support area exercise where we had to defend a position,” said Cpt. Jeremy McGhee, commander of India Company, 1-167th Infantry Battalion. “We got an opportunity to see their tactics, techniques and procedures on how they operate. They were very professional soldiers that we have enjoyed working with.”
Greece is a vital NATO ally in the Mediterranean and Black Sea regions. Consistent engagement with the Hellenic Army allows the Alabama National Guard to develop and maintain a positive relationship with them, which allows opportunities for increased cooperation, and further enables security and stability in the region.
| Date Taken: | 06.13.2021 |
| Date Posted: | 06.13.2021 14:07 |
| Story ID: | 398796 |
| Location: | XANTHI, GR |
| Web Views: | 166 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
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