Photo By Capt. Remington Henderson | British Army Reserve Soldier Kieran Power promotes to the rank of sergeant while...... read more read more
Since 2018, Colorado Army National Guard Field Artillery and the British Army have been building a strong, lasting partnership. Together, they’ve collaborated on a variety of exercises across the world using existing defense resources including the Military Reserve Exchange Program.
MREP is a program that allows reserve members of NATO militaries to help develop cultural understanding, regional expertise, and build interoperability. This is achieved by connecting two reserve units and sending soldiers to train in each other’s countries.
In June of 2024, 20 British Soldiers from the 101st Royal Artillery Regiment traveled to Fort Carson, Colorado. The British soldiers embedded with the COARNG’s 3rd Battalion, 157th Field Artillery Regiment to train on fire procedures and operations.
Despite using two different weapons systems, the units’ overlapping elements enabled the training value. Both the U.S. Army’s M142 High-Mobility Artillery Rocket System and the British Army’s M270B1 Multiple-Launch Rocket System utilize the same gunner’s display unit to receive mission details and fire their respective payloads.
Between training days, the British soldiers absorbed a cultural perspective by visiting local Colorado cities, traveling to the summit of one of Colorado’s highest peaks, touring the Colorado State Capitol, and watching Major League Baseball at Coors Field in Denver, Colorado.
British reserve soldier and MLRS Detachment Commander Sgt. Kieran Power has served in the 101st Royal Artillery for 15 years and was promoted to the rank of sergeant while at Fort Carson. In his civilian capacity, Power is based out of Leeds, United Kingdom, and works as a train operator.
“What’s been interesting is seeing how Americans conduct fire missions differently,” Power said. “We conduct more through voice, and the Americans conduct more through digital data. However, it was great getting to see that methodology as I think we’ll be heading that way ourselves soon in the 101st.”
Beyond the technical elements of the training, Power said he enjoyed the time with the foreign unit and felt there was camaraderie between the units by the end.
“It was great seeing how fast the units integrated with each other,” Power said. “They were willing and comfortable enough to work together almost immediately and that greatly helped make the training valuable for everyone on our team.”
“The highlight of my visit was attending the Colorado Rockies game,” said Power of his overall experience. “It provided a great opportunity to relax and socialize as a group.
“Most of us had never attended a baseball game before, and the atmosphere was great to experience. It provided a fitting end to our time in the States and with the 3-157th.”
In September, the units traded places. This time, 15 U.S. Soldiers traveled to the UK.
Traditionally, the U.S. Soldiers would have been shown and trained on the MLRS, but none were currently with the unit as they have all been sent to Ukraine to support their war effort. Instead, the British Army emphasized the cultural and historical elements of the UK.
U.S. Army Sgt. Ryan Salmons, a HIMARS crew chief for Battery B, 3-157th FAR who worked alongside the 101st RA in Colorado, was among the group who traveled to the UK. When not in uniform Salmons is a student working on finishing his degree in air maintenance technology.
“It’s humbling traveling through a country with so much history,” said Salmons. “Everyone knows about the Tower of London and Buckingham Palace, but even their stone fences in the countryside feel ancient. The units themselves also felt really connected to their history and I think they have a strong sense of Esprits de Corps because of that.”
Salmons noted how every headquarters has displays on their walls with the names of everyone that had fought and died in the unit.
“That’s something I’m going to try and take home to our armory,” Salmons said. “Try and find out more about our history and share it in such a way that junior Soldiers can learn from and appreciate as well.”
Although Salmons didn’t get to train on a MLRS, he was trained to fire British rifles such as the SA-80 L85A2 rifle, and the L7A2 General Purpose Machine Gun. He said he feels optimistic for the future and what the partnership can bring for both units.
“The bonds for cross-training will last a lifetime,” Salmons said. “Even seeing how they operate weapon systems such as their service rifles is similar but different enough from our own to give us things to consider.”
Historically, the MREP operated on a much smaller scale and could only support the exchange of individual Soldiers. Exchanging more Soldiers has allowed for the knowledge gained to be learned first-hand from a greater number of Soldiers and to help build the partnership on a larger scale.
“We’re grateful for the opportunity to host and send so many Soldiers this year,” said U.S. Army Lt. Col. Matthew Mercado, 3-157 FAR battalion commander. “It's always a balance between requirements and resources, of course, but we’re hoping that we can make this partnership more official and work with the 101st Royal Artillery Regiment on a larger scale in the future. Ideally, we’d love to send a whole battery or even the whole battalion to conduct training together down the road.”
| Date Taken: | 09.26.2024 |
| Date Posted: | 09.27.2024 13:02 |
| Story ID: | 481963 |
| Location: | CENTENNIAL, COLORADO, US |
| Web Views: | 78 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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