Photo By Sgt. Garett Hernandez | Soldiers of the 21st Military Police Company (Airborne), 503rd Military Police...... read more read more
FORT BRAGG, N.C. - It is late afternoon and a team of Military Police stand ready to enter a building known to be occupied by an enemy who is armed and ready to do them harm.
The team rushes through the door, maneuvering through tight corridors; shouts of “Clear!” echo from rooms. The enemy is dealt with and the platoon readies for the next mission.
This building and the troopers aren’t in some far off country on the other side of the world – they’re right here on Fort Bragg.
Soldiers from the 21st Military Police Company (Airborne), 503rd Military Police Battalion (Airborne), 16th Military Police Brigade recently conducted live-fire training to hone their skills while clearing buildings and learned how to maneuver through hostile urban terrain.
“As MPs, we are multi-facetted. We do a lot of different kinds of things,” said 1st Lt. Laura Reiber about the role Military Police have on the modern battlefield. “At any time we can be asked to go into buildings to clear and search them.”
Reiber, a platoon leader with the 21st Military Police Company (Airborne), led her platoon through a series of exercises leading up to her soldiers entering a building with live ammunition.
Part of a preparing a soldier to enter hostile urban terrain is preparing them to recognize and engage a hostile enemy at short range within a moment’s notice, training known as reflexive firing.
“Reflexive fire is important because it teaches you everything within short range marksmanship needed for M.O.U.T., Military Operations in Urban Terrain,” said Sgt. 1st Class Sam Davidson, a platoon sergeant in the 21st Military Police Company (Airborne).
The training, intended to gradually build up to a team of soldiers entering a building with live ammunition, helps soldiers increase their awareness of where they are moving and how their weapon is oriented.
“The training we did before [reflexive fire], prepared us for the shoot house. It made us more comfortable turning and shooting our weapon,” said Sgt. Antoine Shade.
After two runs through the house, once with no ammunition and once with blanks, it was finally time for the Military Police to enter as a team with live ammunition, prepared to engage an enemy and clear the building.
The team stacked at the door, weapons at the low ready and loaded with magazines of live ammunition.
Final checks were completed and the Military Police moved in, ready to engage and accomplish the mission.
| Date Taken: | 10.14.2010 |
| Date Posted: | 10.29.2010 05:23 |
| Story ID: | 59040 |
| Location: | FORT BRAGG, NORTH CAROLINA, US |
| Web Views: | 145 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
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