Photo By Sgt. Robert M. England | Spc. Sean McFarland, a grenadier with Company B, 1st Battalion, 21st Infantry Regiment...... read more read more
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FORWARD OPERATING BASE WARHORSE, Iraq – Simulated gunshots rang throughout a vast expanse of palm trees and wilted undergrowth. Iraqi Army soldiers, in desert camouflage uniforms, shout commands to each other, operating as a collective unit as they steadily advanced toward their objective.
An American soldier, role-playing as the enemy for training purposes was immobilized from simulated gunshots. After the Iraqi platoon secured the objective, an IA soldier inspected the simulated enemy for anything dangerous or suspicious.
Although this was an exercise, the earnestness and intensity in each IA soldier’s actions demonstrated their commitment to learning in a training environment.
Soldiers from Company B, 1st Battalion, 21st Infantry Regiment, 2nd Advise and Assist Brigade, 25th Infantry Division, conducted a series of training operations with their Iraqi Army counterparts throughout the month of October in a palm grove in Diyala province, Iraq.
The training began with an introduction of all Company B, 1-21 Inf. Reg. Soldiers that the IA soldiers would be working with, followed by instruction on maintenance and operation of their weapons; in this case, the M-16A2 rifle.
“Day one was introduction,” said Sgt. Christopher Burnham, a Council Bluffs, Iowa, native and team leader assigned to Company B, 1-21 Inf. Reg. “We introduced all the guys that would be working with the IA soldiers and then we covered basic weapon orientation with the M-16 – how to break them down, clean them, put them back together and perform functions checks. From there we went to zero and qualification, teaching them the fundamentals of shooting.”
Once a level of familiarity was established with the weapon, Gimlet soldiers began to teach the IA soldiers maneuvers specific to a woodland environment through battle drills and constant repetition.
“As with anybody, repetitive training is good just because it helps to foster muscle memory,” Burnham said. “If they do it over and over and over, it helps to stick with them a lot better.”
Throughout the course of the eight-day training cycle, the IA soldiers learned individual movement techniques, buddy team maneuvers and react-to-contact drills.
The training culminated in a situational training exercise that required the IA platoons to demonstrate proficiency on all course objectives, including movement, maneuver and medical skills in dense vegetation.
“We started them off with individual and buddy team maneuvers, getting them familiar with how to move with more than one person – while one person is moving, the other person is laying down suppressive fire,” Burnham said. “Then we moved up to full fire-team maneuvers, then squad and platoon level. After they got the training for six days, we ran them through the palm grove so they could actually get a feel for how much different it is rather than inside the city or even a flat open area.”
Prior to the beginning of the palm grove training exercises, soldiers from 1-21 Inf. Reg. conducted a demonstration for senior IA officers, showing proper clearing techniques in a densely wooded area, Sept. 30.
The demonstration came at the request of senior IA officers from the 5th IA Division in response to a palm grove clearance operation in Al Hadeed, Diayala province, Iraq, in September, in which the IA suffered several casualties.
These losses caused the IA commanders to reassess their tactics. They determined that formal training would be necessary to effectively operate in what was a new environment for the soldiers.
IA soldiers are well-versed in urban locales. Their primary focus for much of Operation Iraqi Freedom was eliminating insurgent activity inside city limits through the effective use of security checkpoints and counterinsurgency raids.
Operating procedures in a palm grove are as drastically different from those in an urban environment as the terrain itself. Security and engagement maneuvers vary, and though the enemy may be the same, their behavior is different as well.
“In the cities, we would have to look out for snipers in windows and on top of roofs, as well as improvised explosive devices, but out in the palm groves it is a completely different environment,” said Spc. Hussein Ali Abehe, a soldier with 5th Brigade, 5th IA Div. “In the cities, when we would raid a house, we might only use three Soldiers. In the palm groves, we need the entire platoon to work effectively.”
“The terrain is all different; you’re not working with buildings or alleyways,” said Spc. Sean McFarland, a Farmington, N.M. native, and grenadier with Company B, 1-21 Inf. Reg. “As far as the cover that is available to use, it’s completely different.”
Gimlet soldiers conducting the training noted the IA soldiers’ progress applying these new maneuvers despite a relatively short training period.
“When we started moving up from individual movement techniques to buddy team movements, squad and platoon movements, you can see, within the last few days of this eight-day training cycle, a huge difference in their weapon safety as well as their ability to communicate with each other,” said Staff Sgt. Anthony Valle, a squad leader with Company B, 1-21 Inf. Reg. from San Antonio, Texas.
The Gimlets established personable working relationships with the IA soldiers they trained as well.
“It’s actually really cool working with these guys because they have been trained before by American troops and a lot of it shows, a lot these guys have retained the stuff they have been taught,” Burnham said. “These guys have great character – they joke around with each other, they have good teamwork, good cohesion.”
“I’ve been working with the American Army for six years, and I feel much more confident with the things they have taught us,” Abehe said.
Lt. Col. Robert Molinari, battalion commander, 1-21 Inf. Reg. said the confidence in the American soldiers’ abilities to properly train and prepare the IA for the complete assumption of responsibility of security operations in the region is indicative of the relationship between U.S. and Iraqi forces as a whole.
The ability to relate with each other strengthens the bonds between soldiers from both armies and lays a secure foundation on which both nations can build a mutual partnership for the future Lt. Col. Molinari said.
"Training is the centerpiece of the future strategic relationship between the Iraqi and U.S. Armies,” he said. “It facilitates good will, relationships and the exchange of methods and techniques for military operations. Training events and exchanges allow our militaries to interoperate and truly understand how to bridge cultural differences and achieve combined unity of effort to overcome common security concerns.”
Molinari said that though it may seem like a training exercise, when viewed through a wider scope, this training contributes to security in Iraq as well as overall stability in the region.
“This training assists in transitioning the Iraqi Army from urban counterinsurgency operations to rural security operations targeting insurgent sanctuaries,” he said. “The Iraqi Army continues to push its security focus out to border security and external threats which is where most armies focus. The Iraqi Army is good at urban operations and has a history of rural operations that just needed some refresher training to appreciate maneuvers in dense palm groves.”
Each IA soldier was presented with a certificate of completion during an award ceremony following the conclusion of the final training exercise. The true reward, however, is the added confidence of the soldiers’ ability to effectively defend their country from any threat in any environment.
| Date Taken: | 10.30.2010 |
| Date Posted: | 10.30.2010 13:29 |
| Story ID: | 59139 |
| Location: | FORWARD OPERATING BASE WARHORSE, IQ |
| Web Views: | 146 |
| Downloads: | 10 |
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