Photo By Tech. Sgt. Michael Holzworth | U.S. Army Military Police, 472nd Military Police Company, 793rd MP Battalion, Joint...... read more read more
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CLARK AIR BASE, Philippines – Philippine and U.S. military police gathered shoulder-to-shoulder, April 19, at Clark Air Base during exercise Balikatan 2012 to share their knowledge and experiences while working together to strengthen their interoperability.
“It has been very good working with the Philippine soldiers, we have learned a lot from them, and we are also sharing some of our tactics and procedures,” said U.S. Army 2nd Lt. Jeff Ayres, 472nd Military Police Company, 793rd MP Battalion.
The convoy training covered a wide variety of subjects such as sectors-of-fire, spacing, weapons mounting, basic Humvee role over safety, vehicle recovery, and how to brief the soldiers before stepping out to conduct the mission.
“For the Filipino Army, it is a good exercise because we get to learn different tactics from the U.S. Troops,” said Philippine Army Cpl. Adornado Cawa, 5th Infantry Division MP Company. “This is my first Balikatan exercise and also my first experience with convoy operations; it has been very good.”
U.S. soldiers first demonstrated their tactics to the Philippine soldiers watching. Afterward, U.S. soldiers put their words into action during a practical exercise as they played the role of opposing forces, testing the Philippine soldiers’ response to small arms fire and a simulated improvised explosive device attack – set in a small mock village along their patrol route.
Philippine Army Capt. Heriberto Sangalang, 191st MP Battalion gave his summary of the training.
“It has been quite educational, we need this training on a tactical level so that our troops will understand the basics of military police operations, convoy operations and other tactics to upgrade our own training,” Sangalang said. “This realistic, hard training will help the Armed Forces of the Philippines work toward becoming a more modernized force.”
U.S. soldiers also gained appreciation for the Philippine soldiers’ experience and their dedication to each other.
“Captain Sangalang is a student of his enemy, and he knows his tactics, techniques and procedures. He is one of the smartest officers I’ve met,” Ayres said. “He is all about taking care of his soldiers. It is great to see that other military forces are similar to us in the way everybody looks out for each other.”
Similar to the way Sangalang takes care of his troops, he also stays committed to the AFP partnership with the U.S. armed forces.
“For old allies and old friends, Exercise Balikatan is beneficial to both governments. It is part of the commitment of the Armed Forces of the Philippines to revitalize and improve our bilateral military relationship and mutually support each other in times of war and in peace,” he said.
| Date Taken: | 04.19.2012 |
| Date Posted: | 04.25.2012 22:25 |
| Story ID: | 87345 |
| Location: | ANGELES, PH |
| Web Views: | 470 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
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