By Maj. April N. Olsen
40th Public Affairs Detachment
KUWAIT - While touring facilities that provide deploying unit commanders an opportunity to conduct training vital to the mission in Iraq, U.S. Central Command commander Adm. William Fallon spoke Sunday with Soldiers of the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division.
"You are the last of the big plus ups," he told the troops from the "Spartan" brigade. Fallon said he would be relying on their work to "stabilize" some of the hottest regions of Iraq.
The CENTCOM commander was touring facilities in Kuwait when he visited Soldiers from Fort Stewart, Ga., who were conducting final preparations and receiving training at the Camp Buehring Training Village for their move forward into Iraq.
The Soldiers were conducting training at the Medical Simulations Traininng Center. The MSTC, like other training opportunities at the Training Village, applies the latest lessons learned from combat in Iraq.
"We are in the warfighting business and we must provide the best training to the warfighters about to go into Iraq," said Col. Dave Rodgers, the chief of Training and Exercises for Third Army/U.S. Army Central.
The military and civilian trainers, instructors and technicians at the Training Village do this by taking proven tactics, techniques and procedures while ensuring the training remains relevant and current for the fight, Rodgers said.
"We pull information and lessons learned from a number of sources," said Capt. Kenneth Smith, a training officer with Third Army/U.S. Army Central. "We're linked to multiple organizations including Multi-National Corps – Iraq, Combined Joint Task Force-82 in Afghanistan, the Assymetric Warfare Group, and of course the Center for Army Lessons Learned."
Access to those lessons learned is only one part of providing the most recent and relevant training for troops heading into combat. The task of applying those lessons falls to the trainers who must conduct the analysis.
"Most of our trainers are recent combat veterans, and this helps lend credibility to the training," Smith said.
A cadre ranging from active duty Soldiers to simulations systems technicians, former infantry commanders and retired Special Forces Soldiers, Smith said is a strength of the Training Village, part of the USARCENT Kuwait Armed Forces Training Center, and is leveraging those real-world experiences to the training arena.
"We work real hard to make sure the instructors' skill sets match with what they are training," he said.
Deploying units spend about two weeks at Camp Buehring before heading into Iraq. Unit commanders can take advantage of a number of training opportunities such as an Engagement Skills Trainer, a simulated urban combat course, the Humvee Egress Assistance Trainer, and Improvised Explosive Device Defeat training.