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CAMP SANTIAGO, Puerto Rico – Approximately 1,100 Soldiers, Guardsmen, Airmen and Marines across the U.S. Army and Air Force Reserve, the National Guard and U.S. Marine Corps kicked off exercise Caribbean Thunder 2025 (CT25), a 1st Mission Support Command-led collective home-station annual training with a focus on inter-island sustainment and communications operations in support of Large-Scale Combat Operations (LSCO) in Camp Santiago, Salinas, Puerto Rico, July 28, 2025.
“Caribbean Thunder aims to develop a robust, combat-ready Army Reserve force in the Caribbean,” said U.S. Army Reserve Capt. Michael Rodriguez-Martinez, exercise planner with the 1st Mission Support Command. “This training prepares the force for mobilization and sustained operations by recruiting and retaining talent, strengthening community relations, and establishing Puerto Rico as an alternate joint mobilization platform. It replicates the INDOPACIFIC scenario providing opportunity to improve island-interoperability.”
CT25 begins with training on supporting LSCO, including moving organic equipment at scale, Reception, Staging & Onward Integration (RSOI), Soldier Readiness Processing (SRP), and a Mass Medical Exercise (MME). The goal is to progress from individual and crew-served weapons qualification, drivers licensing, and Combat Lifesaver (CLS/TC3) to platoon-level lanes training.
“This is a yearly exercise where the command tactically deploys and aggregates over 1,000 troops and 21 capabilities into a field training environment with over 200 pieces of rolling stock and its communications equipment,” said Rodriguez.
CT25 culminates in a mission rehearsal exercise (MRX) replicating post-mobilization Culminating Training Exercise (CTE)-like event. The training in Puerto Rico and the other participating islands was designed to enable units to work on customary Mission Essential Tasks (METs), such as expeditionary deployment, establish unit area, conduct unit defense or integrate into higher echelon defense and the units’ own technical METs.
“By doing these tasks, shoot, move, communicate and expeditionary functional training at the beginning of the hurricane season, the 1st MSC simultaneously ensures readiness to deliver Defense Support of Civil Authorities (DSCA) capabilities and combat power when called upon,” said Rodriguez.
Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands hold the only training areas within U.S. Army Reserve control where units can practice contested inter-island operations, to include, but not limited to transportation, logistics, and communications.
“The 1st MSC nests big Army’s first two lines of effort, warfighting and delivering combat ready formations, under Forces Command’s (FORSCOM) win the first fight,” said Rodriguez. “CT25 also aligns under U.S. Army Reserve’s (USARC) first two lines of effort, build combat ready formations and mobilize and deploy, by providing specific training conditions and standards to yield an overall readiness across multiple echelons.”
The exercise will include partner units, such as, 700th Airlift Squadron (USAF), 948 Transportation Company (79 TSC), USMC Combat Logistics Regiment (CLR) 45 in Puerto Rico, the Puerto Rico National Guard, the US Virgin Islands National Guard, and the 244 Expeditionary Combat Aviation Brigade.
“We are striving for all brother and sister services to join CT while further developing Indo-Pacific scenario along with island chain sustainment and logistics training for active and reserve components,” said Rodriguez
Caribbean Thunder 2025 brings over 1,100 Soldiers, Airmen, Guardsmen and Marines under a 1st-MSC-led training for Large-Scale Combat Operations and island-chain mobilization, signal communications, and logistics home-station annual training event across Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, while concurrently running 1st MSC-led engineering projects and an Innovative Readiness Training (IRT) missions across other islands in the Caribbean.
| Date Taken: | 07.28.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 07.31.2025 15:09 |
| Story ID: | 544223 |
| Location: | SALINAS, PR |
| Web Views: | 367 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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