Photo By Spc. Jessica Haney | A Ugandan soldier checks a Humvee's fluids as part of preventative maintenance checks...... read more read more
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CONTINGENCY OPERATING BASE SPEICHER, Iraq — In a small room where the 3rd Infantry Division Band usually pumps out rock music, five Soldiers and nine Ugandan security guards attended a presentation on day one of a driver's training course at Contingency Operating Base Speicher, Iraq. The course emphasized the safe operation of Humvees and the Family of Medium Tactical Vehicles.
Sgt. Jesse Henschel, Headquarters and Headquarters Support Company, Division Special Troops Battalion, 3rd ID out of Fort Stewart, Ga., is a battalion master driver and the instructor for the five-day course that certifies and licenses students to drive Humvees and the FMTVs.
"The course teaches the students how to properly perform preventative maintenance checks and services, but mainly focuses on safety," said Henschel, a Ludowici, Ga., native. "We focus on that because when an accident does occur, it will happen with minimal damage."
As part of the training, slideshows help students understand the importance of taking two extra minutes to follow, perform and enforce the standards of safety to help save lives by preventing accidents and assessing any variables that might hinder their driving ability, such as sleep deprivation and limited visibility due to fog or dust.
Sgt. Vincent Mugisha, a Ugandan security guard stationed at COB Speicher as an entry control point guard, said that the class taught him to be more aware of his surroundings.
"The course is a good thing," he said. "It's teaching me to be conscience of my life and other people's lives while driving. It's practical which makes it interesting and will also help me back in the rear in Uganda."
Staff Sgt. Joshua Troche, a paralegal non-commissioned officer for the 166th Regional Support Group, 1st Mission Support Group, 81st Regional Readiness Group out of Puerto Rico, says that the course taught him how to be safe on the road.
"I'm in the course so that I can learn how to drive responsibly," said Troche, a San Juan, Puerto Rico, native. "Once I get my license from the course, I will be able to assist in range operations which needs a licensed Humvee driver."
Not only did the course help teach the drivers safety, but it also taught what to do if the unexpected happens.
"My favorite video is the one where they show how to self-recover a Humvee," said Mugisha, a Kampala, Uganda, native. "It was very informative. I didn't know a Humvee could do that."
On the fourth day of the course, students put all of the information they had learned and applied it to a day- and night-time driving test in a Humvee and light medium tactical vehicle.
The students drove while the instructor graded them on speed, turning corners, stopping and their awareness of other motorists and pedestrians.
After receiving passing grades during the driving and written test, students earned their accident avoidance certification and license, which is valid for four years or until the unit has a change of command.
On COB Speicher, the driver's training course is offered once a month. Soldiers who would like to attend the course can submit a request to their company training NCO.
| Date Taken: | 04.08.2010 |
| Date Posted: | 04.08.2010 09:54 |
| Story ID: | 47843 |
| Location: | CONTINGENCY OPERATING BASE SPEICHER, IQ |
| Web Views: | 366 |
| Downloads: | 296 |
This work, Driver's education in Iraq focuses on safety, by SPC Jessica Haney, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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