Photo By Command Sgt. Maj. Adam Stone | Second Lt. Connor Arbiter, a native of Kent, Wash. assigned to Company D, 2nd...... read more read more
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DRAWSKO POMORSKIE, Poland – Paratroopers of the 173rd Airborne Brigade and ‘Light-Roll’ British Soldiers from the 1st Battalion, The Duke of Lancaster’s Regiment, kicked off NATO Exercise Steadfast Javelin II with a night operation to neutralize radar sites in Western Poland Sept. 3.
Steadfast Javelin II is a NATO exercise involving over 2,000 troops from 10 nations and takes place across Estonia, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland. This exercise focuses on increasing interoperability and synchronizing complex operations between allied air and ground forces through airborne and air assault missions.
“I like training with the Americans because we both share a common professionalism and drive for excellence,” said Lt. Robert Campbell, the officer-in-charge of 9th Platoon, 1st Battalion, The Duke of Lancaster’s Regt. “We are here to support our NATO allies and show that our alliance will always be strong.”
The Duke of Lancaster's Regiment is an infantry regiment of the line within the British Army and recruits throughout the Northwest of England.
The paratroopers from the 173rd Airborne Brigade executing the mission are deployed to Poland for training as part of Operation Atlantic Resolve. British troops came to Poland specifically to execute Steadfast Javelin II, but were previously deployed alongside the brigade in Estonia in the spring for training.
“I have been looking forward to training on this operation and working with [the British troops], said Capt. Matthew McCarthy, a Deerfield, Illinois native and commander of Company D, 2nd Battalion, 503rd Infantry Regiment, 173rd Airborne Brigade. “The British are one of our oldest allies and we work well together.”
The U.S. forces boarded UH-60 Helicopters from the 12th Combat Aviation Brigade around 9:45 p.m. under only a half-moon for an hour-long flight. Once they made it to the site they destroyed the radar site and obtained intelligence important to the rest of the exercise. The British forces were able to destroy their objective simultaneously, surprising the opposing force to ensure exercise mission success.
“It was good to see what we brought to the table in terms of coordinating and graphics and technology and it was good to see their discipline and we learned a lot from each other,” said U.S. Army 1st Lt. Dean De Smet, a staff officer with 2nd Bn., 503rd Inf. Regt.,. “It was a successful mission.”
Steadfast Javelin II is led by NATO’s Allied Land Command and focuses on its partner’s concepts such as decisive and sustainable land operation through the simultaneous combination of offensive, defensive and stability operations.
Paratroopers from the brigade deployed to Poland, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania are conducting similar air-assault operations with their host-nation partners, setting the conditions for simultaneous parachute assaults the night of Sept. 5 into Latvia and Lithuania by approximately 700 NATO paratroopers from the 173rd Airborne, U.S. Air Force, Royal Canadian Regiment and the Italian Folgore Brigade.
| Date Taken: | 09.03.2014 |
| Date Posted: | 09.09.2014 10:29 |
| Story ID: | 141522 |
| Location: | DRAWSKO POMORSKIE, PL |
| Hometown: | DEERFIELD, IL, US |
| Web Views: | 469 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
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