Photo By Scott Sturkol | Illinois law-enforcement personnel with the Lee County Sheriff’s Department and...... read more read more
Subscribe
Even though large exercises such as the Combat Support Training Exercise and Global Medic finished operations at Fort McCoy in late August 2017, thousands more service members are training at the installation in September.
Most training in September at Fort McCoy will be battle-drill training (BDT) and extended combat training (ECT), according to Range Support Specialist Larry Sharp with the Directorate of Plans, Training, Mobilization and Security (DPTMS) Training Coordination Branch.
The September training calendar is filled with a variety of training, including events planned with the Marine Corps’ 3rd Civil Affairs Group out of Illinois in early September for extended combat training. Marine Corps units based in the Midwest often have conducted training at Fort McCoy in the past because of the installation’s capabilities and capacity.
“Fort McCoy is just a short drive for us, and the training areas here are very good,” said Maj. Andrew Carl, logistics officer with Marine Air Control Group 48 of Great Lakes, Ill., who has trained on post in the past. “Additionally, the Fort McCoy staff is very user-friendly and accommodating for everything we do.”
Also in September, more than 700 Soldiers with the Army Reserve’s 646th Regional Support Group of Madison, Wis., will be on post for several days of battle-drill training. This training includes completing annual Soldier Warrior Tasks, weapons qualification, and more.
Soldiers with the Illinois National Guard’s 106th Cavalry will be completing training on crew-served weapons and other tasks. Crew-served weapons can include the M240, M249, and M2 Browning .50-caliber machine guns as well as the MK19 grenade launcher.
The month also includes training by both Navy and Army ROTC cadets from Minnesota and Wisconsin. Lt. Col. Michael Gibson, professor of military science at Marquette University in Milwaukee, has held training for ROTC cadets at Fort McCoy in the past and said it’s a great location.
“Fort McCoy is one of the nicest bases for training,” Gibson said during a past training event. “It has awesome villages, awesome (combat outposts), and … provides the space where we can train like this because we don’t have the resources to do that where we are. We can get a lot of bang for our buck here. … Fort McCoy has some of the best facilities I have seen in my career, and it’s pretty impressive.”
DPTMS Training Coordination Branch Chief Craig Meeusen said the installation is a popular stop for law-enforcement agencies to complete training, as well. The Combined Arms Collective Training Facility and the live-fire shoot houses at Range 36 are among the facilities used consistently and several law-enforcement units will train at Fort McCoy in September.
“The variety of people coming here to train shows that we have the facilities that few other places have,” Meeusen said. “People select to come here because they know the installation staff will work together as a team to support what the unit wants to have done. … Our staff has always had a unique reputation of what kind of support they can bring to training.”
In addition to BDT, ECT, law-enforcement training, and ROTC training, many Fort McCoy tenant organizations will be holding institutional training during the month. This includes training by the Staff Sgt. Todd R. Cornell Noncommissioned Officer Academy, Regional Training Site (RTS)-Medical, RTS-Maintenance, and others.
Fort McCoy has supported America’s armed forces since 1909. The installation’s motto is to be the “Total Force Training Center.” The post’s varied terrain, state-of-the-art ranges, new as well as renovated facilities, and extensive support infrastructure, combine to provide military personnel with an environment in which to develop and sustain the skills necessary for mission success.
Today, Fort McCoy has become the Army’s premier Total Force Training Center for Army Early Response Force early deployers to meet the Army's operational demand requirements. Learn more about Fort McCoy online at www.mccoy.army.mil, on Facebook by searching “ftmccoy,” and on Twitter by searching “usagmccoy.”
| Date Taken: | 09.05.2017 |
| Date Posted: | 09.05.2017 14:01 |
| Story ID: | 247149 |
| Location: | FORT MCCOY, WISCONSIN, US |
| Web Views: | 96 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Thousands more service members train at Fort McCoy in September 2017, by Scott Sturkol, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
No keywords found.
