Trading weapons: Building stronger alliances

Photo By Sgt. Marcus Floyd | U.S. Army Sgt. Scott Pearson, a Soldier with P Troop, 4th Squadron, 2nd Cavalry Regiment, participates in a combined rifle qualification range with Polish soldiers Aug. 18, 2015, at the Wedrzyn Training Area in Poland. The training is part of Operation Atlantic Resolve, an ongoing multinational partnership focused on combined training and security cooperation between NATO allies. Led by the mission command element of the 4th Infantry Division and in conjunction with European partner nations, Atlantic Resolve is intended to improve combined operational capability in a range of missions and ensure the continued peace and stability of Europe. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Marcus Floyd, 7th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment)  

WEDRZYN, POLAND

08.18.2015

Story by Spc. Marcus Floyd 

7th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment

WEDRZYN, Poland — Soldiers with P Troop, 4th Squadron, 2nd Cavalry Regiment participated in a combined rifle qualification range with Polish allies August 18, 2015 at the Wedrzyn Training Area in Poland.

Although qualifying with a weapon is nothing new to most Soldiers, qualifying on another country's ranges provides insight into how one another operates.

“We're out shooting the Polish M4 qualification table using our M4s,” said U.S. Army 1st Lt. Matthew Anderson, a platoon leader with P Troop. “So we can see how [the Polish] qualify on their weapon so we can understand how they operate a little better.”

To qualify on the Polish M4 range, the Soldiers with P Troop ran to their firing position while loading a magazine and fired from two different firing positions: the prone and kneeling positions.

In addition to qualifying on a Polish range, the Soldiers fired several weapons used by the Polish army, which included a Polish variant of the U.S. Army M240B automatic machine gun.

“It's pretty exciting because you get to know how good of a shooter you really are when you qualify on another country's range,” said Pfc. Rasjon Buford, a soldier with P Troop. “It feels good to shoot other weapons because we're used to [our weapons], so it'll be nice to shoot someone else's weapons and see how they work.”

Although qualifying on ranges and trading weapons might appear simple, ultimately it helps to strengthen the bonds between allies.

“It's important because when we work together for future events we're able to understand how they operate and how they shoot,” said Anderson. “Ultimately it will build a stronger alliance.”

The training is part of Operation Atlantic Resolve, an ongoing multinational partnership focused on combined training and security cooperation between NATO allies. Led by the mission command element of the 4th Infantry Division and in conjunction with European partner nations, Atlantic Resolve is intended to improve combined operational capability in a range of missions and ensure the continued peace and stability of Europe.

• Date Taken: 08.18.2015
• Date Posted: 08.18.2015 16:10
• Story ID: 173455
• Location: WEDRZYN, PL