Speaking the Same Language: Allies Harmonize Calls for Fire

Photo By Sgt. Marcus Floyd | Sgt. Bradley Stacks, a fire support sergeant with the 1st Battalion, 41st Field Artillery Regiment, looks out onto a firing range June 11, 2015 at the Drawsko Pomorskie Training Area in Poland from an M7 Bradley Fighting Vehicle as German and U.S. artillery and mortar units train together during Saber Strike 15, a long-standing U.S. Army Europe-led cooperative training exercise. This year’s exercise takes place across Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Poland, and is designed to improve joint operational capability in a range of missions as well as preparing the participating nations and units to support multinational contingency operations. There are more than 6,000 participants from 13 different nations. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Marcus Floyd, 13th Public Affairs Detachment)  

DRAWSKO POMORSKIE, POLAND

06.11.2015

Story by Spc. Marcus Floyd 

7th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment

DRAWSKO POMORSKIE TRAINING AREA, Poland — Language plays an important role when different groups come together, and, often times, overcoming the language barrier may prove difficult.

In multinational operations, however, the ability to speak with one another is only half the battle. Ensuring different nations' militaries can operate together means having procedures and systems that work together seamlessly. At Saber Strike 15 in Poland, soldiers from U.S., German and Canadian fire direction centers are overcoming this challenge, calling for fire in a mutually understandable way.

“It's an excellent opportunity to be out here, especially in Poland and Europe, and represent Canada and work with multiple nations,” said Canadian Capt. Mike Kelly, forward observation officer. “That's not an opportunity we get everyday, so we're definitely making the most of it, and it's excellent cross training.”

Part of Atlantic Resolve, an ongoing multinational partnership focused on joint training and security cooperation between NATO allies, Saber Strike 15 is a long-standing U.S. Army Europe-led cooperative training exercise. This year’s exercise takes place across Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Poland, and is designed to improve joint operational capability in a range of missions as well as preparing the participating nations and units to support multinational contingency operations. There are more than 6,000 participants from 13 different nations.

Throughout the exercise, forward observers from these different nations are training together on various ways to call for indirect fire.

Using a link system, Artillery System Cooperation Activities, the Germans can coordinate indirect fire with their NATO allies.

With the ASCA system, forward observers in the field, whether U.S, German, Polish, or Canadian, can send information to a German fire direction center. Once the information is gathered, it is translated from one nation's system to another and then distributed to the proper indirect fire system — whether U.S. mortars, German howitzers, or any combination.

“We get our fire coordinates from our observation troops outside in the field and then all the data comes together,” said German Capt. Maximilian Beenisch, an intelligence officer with Artillery Battalion 295. “So we can decide which platoon is going to shoot against the enemy, the American or the German platoon.”

This is the first time Beenisch and his soldiers have had an American command post linked to their fire direction center.

In addition to using tools like the ASCA, the Germans and the Americans are finding more ways to train effectively. However, it hasn't been without its challenges.

Whenever two different countries operate together but aren't really using the same fire direction control center, it becomes difficult to correctly time the rounds fired, particularly illumination rounds, said Sgt. Bradley Stacks, a fire support sergeant with 1st Battalion, 41st Field Artillery Regiment.

To overcome these difficulties, Stacks and his soldiers have used more traditional methods of transferring information.

By calculating exactly how long it will take for the illumination round to properly illuminate the battlefield, Stacks and his soldiers are able to ensure the Germans have the exact timing to properly coordinate and fire their explosive rounds when proper illumination is available to their observers.

“I definitely feel that after we leave here, (my soldiers) will have a better understanding of their jobs and what they need to do to get to the higher levels of their careers,” Stacks said.

Throughout the training, the U.S., Germans, and Canadians have discovered that despite their differences, there are many similarities.

“I had a German guy get in my vehicle yesterday and he was pointing out things that they use that we also use like a GPS system,” Stacks said.

For Stacks, knowing their systems are similar helps to build confidence in multinational missions.

“If we were in a combat situation with our German allies, and I was out of range of my assets, knowing their assets are similar and use almost exactly the same format that we do builds confidence, because I know I can call up to that asset and use my form to call for fire, and they'll understand it,” he said.

Saber Strike will continue for another week where the soldiers will continue to train along side one another.

• Date Taken: 06.11.2015
• Date Posted: 06.11.2015 13:55
• Story ID: 166282
• Location: DRAWSKO POMORSKIE, PL