Photo By Staff Sgt. David Bolton | U.S. Army Pvt. Cory M. Perry, an infantryman with Alpha Company, 1st Battalion, 149th...... read more read more
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ARTEMUS, Ky. – Artillery simulators, grenades, convoy attacks, casualty evacuations, combatives, and fast roping from UH-60 Black Hawks; all part of the annual training that soldiers of the Kentucky National Guard’s 1st Battalion, 149th Infantry Battalion experienced at the Harold L. Disney Training Center outside Barbourville, Ky., July 16-27.
“A lot of these guys are new recruits fresh out of basic, so it’s good training for them,” said Sgt. 1st Class Dennis Bumgardner, senior noncommissioned officer for Bravo Company of the 1-149th.
The training these soldiers received was not just to improve their skills in various fieldcrafts, but also to prepare them for high-level stress combat situations. In order to accomplish this goal, other soldiers who were with the 149th Maneuver Enhancement Brigade that deployed over 1,300 troops to Iraq, assisted with the different training lanes.
“We want these guys to get a feeling of what combat is like,” said Spc. Thomas D. Gross, an indirect-fire infantryman and acting trainer with Alpha Company of the 1-149th. “Being here lets us spend more time with the new guys and gives us a chance to train them to be comfortable under stress.”
Adding to the stress, daily rain showers kept the training areas constantly muddy. Grass, mud, and water covered the otherwise clean uniforms as the soldiers crawled under barbed-wire obstacles, ran through the soggy underbrush and dangled from ropes in the cloudy skies.
To enhance their training, another Kentucky Guard unit, the 2nd Battalion, 147th Aviation Regiment, augmented the 1-149th by providing the aircraft and aerial support for casualty evacuations, land navigation, special purpose insertion/extraction system (SPIES), and fast rope insertion/extraction system (FRIES); making the training a joint exercise.
“The training gets us where we need to be, it’s nice to be able to get a sense of the heat of the moment,” said Pfc. Markus W. Higgs, an infantryman with Bravo Company of the 1-149th.
The annual training of the 1-149th will last until July 27 at which point the soldiers will break down their field tents, pack-up their gear, and head back their homes for some well-deserved rest.
| Date Taken: | 07.24.2012 |
| Date Posted: | 08.13.2012 15:36 |
| Story ID: | 93135 |
| Location: | ARTEMUS, KY, US |
| Web Views: | 121 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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