Under Attack! Task Force Keystone Gets Fired Up at the Aerial Gunnery Range

Photo By Matthew Jones | A 1/137th Black Hawk hits the last target during an exercise, Feb. 10. The role players on the ground are impersonating Iraqi insurgents.  

UNITED STATES

02.18.2009

Story by Sgt. Matthew Jones 

28th Expeditionary Combat Aviation Brigade

The field was mostly covered in grass, which came thigh-high, and waved in the Oklahoma breeze. Several gentlemen stood around in the clearing, casually sipping their coffee and discussing football. Justin Robertson was speaking of his individual accomplishments as a quarterback when he was abruptly interrupted.

"Get into position," barked Capt. Ian Anderson. Robertson began running for the tree line waving his fists wildly into the air. Sgt. Donald Newsome picked up his M-240B machine gun and started firing toward the Black Hawk helicopters that were zooming above his head. Sgt. Angel Jaca hopped onto the back of a rusty pickup truck and started firing his machine gun in eerily long bursts as if it would be his last time firing the weapon.

The exercise had begun.

These gentlemen are role players and it's their job to help the 28th Combat Aviation Brigade train for their mission in Iraq, and on this particular day, it was the pilots and crew of the 1/137th going through the lanes.

The first lane, which Anderson is in charge of, allows the soldiers to react to a surprise attack while performing a reconnaissance mission.

"They're supposed to lay down suppressive fire and execute evasive maneuvers, but they could have been more aggressive," said Anderson. "It's all about the right combination of suppressive fire, maneuvering and avoidance."

In the second lane, which is controlled by Capt. Kevin Hughes, the pilots and crew are expected to actively engage the enemy and encircle them in a special formation, with the door gunners firing as they pass by. This lane starts with a surface-to-air missile launch which ends with a mission update over the radio.

According to Hughes, the third and final lane is all about a "fallen angel," or a downed aircraft.

"The pilots get the situation update and a grid coordinate, and off they go," he said.
According to Anderson, the training is very effective because the trainers blend doctrine and personal experience together.

"There's the clothing, the weapons, the older model cars... down to the way the taxis are painted with orange corner panels," said Anderson. "We bring them together to add the elevated level of realism necessary for effective training.

• Date Taken: 02.18.2009
• Date Posted: 02.18.2009 14:20
• Story ID: 30169
• Location: US