Photo By Kimberly Hackbarth | Military policemen with Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 4th Stryker Brigade...... read more read more
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JOINT BASE LEWIS-MCCHORD, Wash. – Faster and lighter than a Stryker. More protected than a Humvee. A smoother ride than a Mine-Resistant Armor-Protected vehicle. More suppressive firepower than all three.
Soldiers of 4th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division’s Military Police Platoon trained on their new M1117 Armored Security Vehicles for two weeks and tested them on ranges here April 4-5.
The brigade is one of the only units on JBLM to have the turreted, all-wheel drive vehicle introduced by Textron more than a decade ago.
Both the 3rd and 4th SBCT’s of the 2nd Inf. Div. have six of the multi-layer armor vehicles that provide ballistic, blast, and overhead protection.
“We did our training with the 3/2 MPs and trained side by side with them,” said Spc. Anthony Keeton, a military policeman from Santa Rosa, Calif.
Because 4th SBCT’s soldiers weren’t licensed on or issued the ASVs yet, the class started out training on 3rd SBCT’s vehicles, which, to Keeton, reflected how his sister brigade recently began forming its MP platoon last fall.
“I think it’s a little bit significant because we were the first MPs to be [assigned] to a Stryker brigade and now they’re falling in under a Stryker brigade, so it’s a new experience for them,” Keeton explained.
The MPs would first go through the classroom portion of training and learn how to start the vehicle and decipher the driver’s panel along with other important information, then they would go into the vehicle and apply the knowledge.
“What we did in the classroom was supported by our hands-on training,” Keeton confirmed.
Soldiers learned how to maintain each of the three positions in the vehicle: driver, tactical commander, and gunner, which Keeton said is imperative during military operations.
“Just because I’m TC-ing the vehicle, I also know the driver’s responsibilities, I also know gunner’s responsibilities, because you never know what’s going to happen and if you’re going to have to step in,” he said.
Sgt. Geoffrey Hillers, who rode in Strykers throughout his 2009-2010 Iraq deployment with the unit, hasn’t been won over by the ASVs just yet.
“Right now I’m kind of up in the air about it,” said the team leader from Rockford, Ill. “I think I just need a little more time to get used to it since we’ve only been learning it for about a week and a half.”
After having familiarized themselves with Strykers during the year in Iraq, switching to a new vehicle is going to take time.
“It’s different than what we’re used to and it’s going to take a lot of work and a lot of repetition to start getting used to the weapons systems or the vehicle itself,” Hillers said.
Spc. Kyle Zimmerman, another MP, prefers the more spacious Strykers over the four-seat ASV, Humvees and the sometimes bumpy ride of an MRAP.
However, he did come up with one scenario where he’d rather be TC-ing inside his new vehicle.
“Let’s say our convoy takes an IED followed by an ambush. This would be a great vehicle to go ahead and cover that downed vehicle, lay down some suppressing fire power while the vehicle’s recovered,” the Lodi, Calif., native explained. “That’s one of the functions as an MP -- security for convoys and such.”
The impressive firepower of the vehicle is part of its appeal to the MPs.
During the range portion of training, soldiers were able to fire both the MK-19 40 mm grenade machine gun and the M48 .50-caliber machine gun mounted on top of the ASVs.
Zimmerman, Hillers, and Keeton all agreed that ranges are necessary when learning how to use the new vehicles.
“It’s a good chance for them to get hands on the weapon and actually fire it,” said Zimmerman, who noted that most of his peers haven’t fired either gun since basic training.
With the vehicle’s firepower, mobility, and protection capabilities, it is another combat multiplier for the brigade.
“I feel it’s a great asset that we now have,” Keeton said.
| Date Taken: | 04.04.2011 |
| Date Posted: | 04.04.2011 20:15 |
| Story ID: | 68278 |
| Location: | JOINT BASE LEWIS-MCCHORD, WASHINGTON, US |
| Web Views: | 950 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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