FORT KNOX, Ky. – U.S. Army Reserve and active-duty engineers reshaped the battlefield during annual training. Soldiers from the 779th Engineer Company and the 15th Engineer Construction Company, led by 1st Lt. Nathan Olen as the OIC, Staff Sgt. Lucas Shingtleton, as NCOIC, and Staff Sgt. Aaron Overstreet, as site representative for active duty, teamed up to build new marksmanship lanes for the Army Reserve Marksmanship Unit, moving approximately 9,000 cubic yards of earth to transform the French range into a functional range.
Army Reserve Sgt. 1st Class William Snively led the survey mission, bringing 30 years of civilian surveying experience to the project. Using the Trimble S7 total station, Sgt. 1st Class Snively trained Soldiers to read grade stakes and identify elevation highs and lows, critical steps that ensured the safe and accurate construction of berms and backstops.
Under his guidance, Soldiers applied new technical skills in real-world conditions.
“This year’s mission was more technical,” said Spc. Tyler Lipscomb, “Last year’s annual training, we did more demolition, and this year, we are doing berms, which is something new to me. We are learning about grade and the grade stakes to see whether you need to cut or fill.”
The mission required a coordinated effort across multiple specialties in addition to surveying. While survey teams marked the terrain, 12N horizontal construction engineers operated heavy equipment to cut and fill the ground. At the same time, 91-series mechanics and 92F fuelers kept the machinery operational and mission-ready.
The joint effort improved range infrastructure for marksmanship training and strengthened interoperability between Reserve and active-duty forces. The project provided valuable hands-on experience, reinforcing technical proficiency, teamwork, and overall readiness for all Soldiers involved.
| Date Taken: | 06.04.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 06.09.2025 15:09 |
| Story ID: | 500101 |
| Location: | FORT KNOX, KENTUCKY, US |
| Hometown: | FORT KNOX, KENTUCKY, US |
| Web Views: | 12 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Range Transformation at Fort Knox, by SSG Giovanny Lopez, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
