1-186 IN BN Prepares for XCTC in 2023

Photo By Maj. Wayne Clyne | Mission Command Training Program (MCTP) contractor Pernell Edwards instructs 1st Battalion, 186th Infantry Regiment, 41st Infantry Brigade Combat Team, Oregon National Guard Soldiers on the Joint Battle Command-Platform (JBC-P) in Ashland, Ore. Sept. 9, 2022. The training's purpose is to prepare the Battalion for the upcoming Exportable Combat Training Capabilities (XCTC) event in Camp Roberts, Calif., in the summer of 2023. (U.S. Army National Guard photo by Maj. W. Chris Clyne, Oregon National Guard Public Affairs)  

ASHLAND, OREGON, UNITED STATES

09.10.2022

Story by Maj. Wayne Clyne 

Oregon National Guard Public Affairs Office

ASHLAND, Ore. - 1st battalion, 186th Infantry Regiment, 41st Infantry Brigade Combat Team (IBCT), Oregon Army National Guard is preparing for the eXportable Combat Training Capability (XCTC) at Camp Roberts, California, scheduled for the summer of 2023. Additionally, the battalion has recently redeployed from a rotational deployment in Djibouti in 2020. Since the Djbouti deployment, 1-186 has been instrumental in the Oregon National Guard's domestic responses, including fighting wildfires, the Capitol security mission, and Oregon Hospital Support during the COVID pandemic.

Currently, the 1-186 IN BN Headquarters and Headquarters Company (HHC) is conducting staff training over multiple Inactive Duty Training (IDT) periods in Military Decision Making Process (MDMP), Joint Battle Command - Platform (JBC-P), and Command Post of the Future (CPOF) to prepare them for the XCTC rotation. Battalion Executive Officer (XO) Maj. Josh Rapp, an estimator/ project manager for Knife River in his civilian occupation, said, "training for XCTC is a very significant gate that will ensure we are prepared for a JRTC in 2024. We are approaching XCTC with the same rigor that we would a combat rotation overseas. "

Before going to the U.S. Army's Joint Readiness Training Center (JRTC) at Fort Polk, Louisiana, the battalion is preparing for Camp Roberts. The Army National Guard (ARNG) says, "XCTC is the ARNG's program of record that enables Brigade Combat Teams (BCT) to achieve trained Platoon readiness in preparation for a Maneuver Combat Training Center (MCTC) rotation like JRTC. Exercising units achieve this readiness in the training year before their MCTC rotation through highly realistic, immersive, and fully instrumented training. XCTC allows commanders to assess their unit's Mission Essential Task (MET) and Collective Live Fire proficiency levels."

The battalion is constantly planning for future operations, "we just sent an entire company with the California National Guard to JRTC this summer. This training support will also help us prepare for JRTC since we have an entire company's worth of soldiers who've already seen what it will look like there." Said Rapp, "but the short-term target is XCTC. So, besides the staff training, we've packed three battalion field training exercises (FTX) into our training plan this year to prepare to meet all the requirements going into Camp Roberts."

Commenting on the upcoming training events, Battalion Commander Lt. Col. Jered Carpenter, an Oregon Department of Transportation engineer in his civilian occupation, said, "JRTC is game day, and we're focused on winning. So everything we do from now until we get to Ft. Polk in the summer of 24' is just game prep. I'd be pretty worried if I were Geronimo." Geronimo referring to the nickname for the U.S. Army active duty Opposing Force (OPFOR) 1st Battalion, 509th Infantry Regiment the 1-186 IN BN, will battle at JRTC.

• Date Taken: 09.10.2022
• Date Posted: 10.04.2022 18:01
• Story ID: 430669
• Location: ASHLAND, OREGON, US