Photo By Master Sgt. Douglas Roles | ALI AL SALEM AIR BASE, Kuwait — Spc. Angel Dean (right), a forklift operator, helps...... read more read more
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By 2nd Lt. Matthew Buyer
Alpha Company/1-62 ADA Unit Public Affairs Representative
ALI AL SALEM AIR BASE, Kuwait – As the sun sets on American Soldiers deployed to Southwest Asia, the members of Alpha Battery, 1st Battalion, 62nd Air Defense Artillery Regiment, hold their heads high after completing rigorous training. The unit has just completed a Table VII gunnery certification in preparation for the culminating evaluation.
In that event, the Table VIII, Patriot battery crews exercise expeditionary capabilities including movement and emplacement on a new site under austere conditions. A Table VII enables the battery commander to verify that his or her unit is mission ready, while a Table VIII is evaluated by a battalion evaluation team for final certification purposes.
The day began with a morning briefing given by Capt. Cesar Telles, commander of Alpha Battery, and a native of Round Rock, Texas. During the brief, he expressed his goals for the training.
The commander emphasized the importance of each individual team excelling in its assigned tasks. He stressed that the battery is graded as a whole; if one team fails, it has the potential to fail the entire battery. Following the operations order brief, a safety brief was given by the battery leadership.
First Sgt. Philip Haberstroh, first sergeant for Alpha Battery, and a native of Carney, N.J, emphasized safety of the individual during all operations.
“At the end of the day, safety is our primary concern because the Soldier executes the training,” said Haberstroh.
Following the brief, graders were assigned to evaluate different Prepare for Movement and Emplacement (PM&E) teams. As the teams went through the PM&E procedures, the graders ensured the standards were met and the commander’s guidance of safety was achieved.
The Officer in Charge (OIC) gave the command to start the Table VII evaluation, and with that command the soldiers immediately sprang into action, executing the drills with precision and vigor. The training is crucial with the importance of the mission highlighted by the strict time limit set by air defense doctrine.
First Lt. Colton Kiselica, Alpha Battery, and a native of Charleston, W. Va., served as the OIC for the operation. Through his leadership, soldiers effectively trained and prepared for the expeditionary certification.
“The Soldiers were motivated and ready to execute the training,” said Kiselica.
All teams executed the drills in coordination with one another. Patriot systems are complex, requiring exact steps to be followed to ensure no damage to the equipment or injury to the soldiers. The equipment is prepared for movement and staged for a convoy to the follow on site.
The final stage of the evaluation is upon the occupation of a new site. Teams maneuver the equipment onto the prescribed locations and emplace the systems in the reverse order as to when they prepared for movement. The Table VII is complete once all systems are emplaced and the engagement control station is postured to provide air and missile defense to select specific assets.
Following the completion of the Table VII, the battery gathered in the conference room in their deployed location. The graders went over the evaluation of each PM&E team in order to highlight some of the common mistakes in order to prevent them from happening again. This allowed for a collaborative effort between all members of Alpha Battery, and once again emphasized the importance of the mission.
The unit commander congratulated his soldiers on a job well done and discussed the way ahead.
“Events like this Table VII allow us to maintain and improve our expeditionary capability,” said Telles.
| Date Taken: | 04.18.2018 |
| Date Posted: | 06.14.2018 02:00 |
| Story ID: | 280854 |
| Location: | KW |
| Web Views: | 215 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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