‘Die Hard’ battalion conduct UAS training in Poland
U.S. Army story by Spc. Yon Trimble
ZAGAN, Poland – U.S. Army Soldiers with Delta Company, 1st Engineers Battalion, 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division, conduct training with Unmanned Aircraft Systems at Trzebien, Poland, May 7, 2019.
Unmanned Aircraft Systems operators and repairers are two separate jobs in the army, and in Delta Company, they both work and train together to accomplish their mission.
“Today we are training the operators (15W) and at the same time the maintainers (15E) because they are both partners,” said U.S. Army Sgt. Madeliene R. Biltz, a maintenance chief from San Diego, California, assigned to Delta Company, 1st Eng. BN, 1ABCT, 1ID. “We launch and they operate once the UAV goes up.”
1st Eng. BN, 1ABCT, 1ID is from Fort Riley Kansas and is currently deployed to Europe in support of Atlantic Resolve.
“Here, we’ve been in a field environment the entire time,” said U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Cork M.K. Nystrom from Santa Fe, New Mexico, production control noncommissioned officer in charge assigned to Delta Company, 1st Eng. BN, 1ABCT, 1ID. “Which is great! Because this is where we get the best training.”
As part of Atlantic Resolve, 1ABCT, 1ID is deployed to Europe for nine-month rotations to conduct bilateral, joint and multinational training events in Bulgaria, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and Romania.
“In Kansas, we knew everyone there, had everything that we needed and all the resources were available,” said Biltz. “Here, everyone is far away and we have to coordinate with people in Germany and other parts of Poland.”
Atlantic Resolve gives Soldiers the opportunity to learn new skills and increase the lethality of the unit.
“Training is a lot more interesting and more realistic,” said Nystrom.