Photo By Staff Sgt. Jonathan Campbell | U.S. Soldiers with the 56th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, deployed to Africa as Task...... read more read more
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MANDA BAY, Kenya – Soldiers with the 56th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, deployed here as Task Force Paxton, held a four-day Ranger/Sapper Assessment Program event while in Kenya to test candidates interested in attending Ranger or Sapper School.
Ranger School is a challenging three-phase school that focuses on small unit tactics and combat leadership skills. During the first phase, “Darby Phase,” Ranger candidates learn and refine skills in mission planning at the squad level. The second phase, “Mountain Phase,” focuses on mountaineering training, mobility and platoon sustainment in a challenging, fatiguing environment. The third phase, “Swamp Phase,” focuses on waterborne operations and tactics in a coastal swamp environment under extreme stress.
Conducting the RSAP course in a foreign country was a unique opportunity Soldiers do not often receive while on deployment. The candidates have trained for months for this opportunity.
“RSAP tests the limits of Soldiers," said Capt. Nathan Giroux, commander of Bravo Company, 1st Battalion, 112th Infantry Regiment. "It weeds out those that aren’t ready for Ranger School and, those that remain, learn they can push themselves much harder than they knew.”
RSAP, directed by Ranger-qualified leaders, aims to evaluate Ranger candidates on their physical endurance and mental toughness through a rigorous four-day course, while refining the essential skills for a Ranger. This program is designed to aid in the selection process, and since its implementation prior to Ranger School, the pass rate for Pennsylvania National Guard Soldiers has notably increased.
The Task Force Paxton Soldiers were subject to days of grueling training, testing their physical fitness and mental resolve. Training events included the Ranger Physical Fitness Test, an obstacle course, a “don and ditch” test in the pool, an ocean swim test in Manda Bay, a challenging night and day land navigation course through dense jungle, tactical training and individual movement techniques. The culminating event for the course was a 12-mile ruck march within three hours, to Ranger standard. All these events were conducted with a limited amount of sleep.
The challenging training helped candidates understand why they want to be a Ranger.
“I want to strive for new experiences; I want to be a more competent Soldier as I prepare to become an E-5. I don’t want to let anyone down. Ranger School will be tough, but it will be worth it. A Ranger tab stands out on a uniform as a great first impression and really shows that person is a leader,” said Spc. Justin Hendricks, one of the RSAP candidates. “While it was going on, I just kept pushing, kept going. You’ll get a lot further than you expect by doing that.”
Determining the best candidates with the best chance of passing Ranger school allows the U.S. Army and the Pennsylvania National Guard to develop stronger, more capable leaders for the next generation of American Soldiers.
| Date Taken: | 08.26.2024 |
| Date Posted: | 09.05.2024 13:06 |
| Story ID: | 480125 |
| Location: | KE |
| Web Views: | 474 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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