Subscribe
As the mid-morning sun rose, High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle roared to life as Marines loaded themselves and their equipment into the back to begin the day’s training. U.S. Marines with Charlie Battery, 1st Battalion, 10th Marine Regiment (1/10), 2d Marine Division conducted a Tactical Air Control Party (TACP) field exercise at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, May 15 to 22, 2020.
The purpose of a TACP exercise is to help air support units work in unison with artillery. For artillery Marines, this consists of timing gun-fire with air and ground elements. The Marines use radios to communicate with forward observer units, and the artillery is given the time and impact areas of a mission to support the air combat elements.
“The air units will call us and give us a type of mission for support,” said Cpl. Tyler Schuler, a field artillery cannoneer and section chief with 1/10. “Then the air will come in and do their job. It’s important to understand how to work together with the air elements.”
The Marines of 1/10 are currently preparing for a Unit Deployment Program to Okinawa, Japan. TACP training is common for artillery Marines. The difference this time is the additional precautions due to COVID-19. 1/10 is following guidelines given by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) — wearing face masks, maintaining a distance of six feet, and frequently sanitizing commonly used surfaces.
“I think it’s understandable for us to keep training, even though the world is on pause,” said Cpl. Mathew Burchwell, a field artillery cannoneer with 1/10. “Our training values have stayed the same because we are preparing for a deployment.”
The week-long TACP training consisted of dry-fire exercises, emergency displacements, and “Killer Junior” – quick-reaction drills used to give Marines an understanding of how hastily the rounds need to be loaded into the howitzer to complete a mission, allowing them to experience calling in coordinates to fire. This gives artillery Marines an opportunity to employ their expeditionary mindset by encouraging leadership from the small unit level, developing problem solving, and testing their knowledge in a field environment. To the Marines, ‘Killer Junior’ drills proved to be valuable during their training.
“’Killer Junior’ is important to practice because if enemy troops dismount in front of us we are able to take them out up to 800 meters in front of us,” said Cpl. Tyler Schuler, a field artillery cannoneer and section chief with 1/10.
In addition, they conducted movement to fire of M777 A2 Howitzers, which they performed in under four minutes. They also loaded and unloaded equipment and performed preparation procedures throughout the day.
“The reason we practice dry-fire is so the Marines can practice being on the howitzers,” said Staff Sgt. Rodricus Goines, the battery gunnery sergeant with 1/10. “We are making sure they don’t load two rounds at once, knowing what to do if there is a problem, and what would happen if there is a casualty.”
The Marines with 1/10 continue to train for the Combat Effectiveness Test in June 2020 while also preparing for their deployment. At the same time, the Marines are keeping with guidelines and precautions issued in response to COVID-19. Nevertheless, the training provided an opportunity for younger Marines to practice drills they may be unfamiliar with.
“It’s not just for the job, it’s interacting with the young Marines that only have the basic training,” said Goines. “To be able to use your own experiences to mold and shape them as proficient Marines and leaders.”
| Date Taken: | 05.22.2020 |
| Date Posted: | 05.27.2020 10:00 |
| Story ID: | 370769 |
| Location: | CAMP LEJEUNE, NORTH CAROLINA, US |
| Web Views: | 89 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
This work, Controlling Forces: 1/10 performs Fire Ex, by LCpl Reine Whitaker, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
