336th Military Police Battalion
The 336th Military Police Battalion (USAR) enjoys the distinction of a truly unique role in the Army by having two diverse and challenging missions. First is the ever present need to prepare for war by leading and training our combat military police forces to conduct combat operations against enemy forces in the rear area, and expedite battlefield movement of critical resources. Second is the peacetime garrison environment for law enforcement, criminal investigation, terrorism counter-action, physical security, corrections, and crime prevention. This mission focuses on the human aspects of law enforcement and reflects the military police motto "Of the Troops and For the Troops".
Just as the infantry is trained to conduct combat operations on the front lines, the military police corps is trained to detect and deter the enemy in the rear area, protecting command posts, communications centers, and vital resources. MP training emphasizes leadership, tactics, physical training, maintenance and supply. Additional areas of study include military police operations, civil and military law, weapons training, personnel administration, and communications skills. MPs also attend specialized courses such as airborne, air assault, and ranger to support them in their assignments.
In March 2001 military Police and engineers took over Camp Dobol, Fort Dix, as nearly 400 soldiers honed their skills for deployment with the 29th Division to the Balkans. The 28th Division of the Pennsylvania Army National Guard deployed for Stabilization Force XII. Comprised mainly of 29th Infantry Division (Light) soldiers, the mobilization is the largest Reserve component call up since Desert Storm. It includes soldiers from more than 20 states, half a dozen Regional Support Command and active duty units, plus tons of equipment and hundreds of vehicles.
Recent Stability and Support Operations (SASO) training provided by the 78th Division's 5th Brigade, which included the 143rd Forward Support Battalion of the Connecticut Army National Guard, focused on training tasks that a logistics organization would face in Bosnia. For this four-day training period, the lanes were changed to reflect mission tasks for the 229th Engineer Battalion, Fredericksburg, Va., and the United States Army Reserve's 372nd Military Police Company, Cumberland, Md., which belongs to the 336th MP Battalion, headquartered in Pittsburg, Pa.
Under the 78th Division, observers and controllers using lanes training crawl-walk-run methodology, soldiers are required to perform various tasks associated with the collective training of an entire operation in four to six lanes that are associated with their jobs. Each of the lanes contain tasks that are theater specific for all soldiers going to the region such as how to conduct a convoy or manage an unexploded ordnance situation, to name a few of the training events. The lanes are designed to reflect actual conditions in Bosnia as much as possible.
All training begins when soldiers take control of the base camp. The moment soldiers arrive, the training begins with the stress associated with deploying to a foreign nation. Soldiers receive their training mission at the base camp before convoying to respective lanes training areas. In the case of the engineers tasks, they had to be successful at convoying and observing the clearing of a minefield by international authorities. For the MPs, force protection for a base camp, and providing secure convoy movements were critical for the MP training.
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