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Convoy exercises sending live rounds downrange

Army News Service

Release Date: 3/9/2004

By Maj. Matt Leonard

FORT DIX, N.J. (Army News Service, March 9, 2004) -- Many commands across the Army are now offering convoy training to prepare Soldiers for the dangers they may face in Iraq.

"Convoys and traffic control points are the two ways that an engineer can die in Iraq," said Capt. Brian Van de Wal, headquarters detachment commander of the 854th Engineer Battalion, a mobilized Army Reserve unit out of Kingston, N.Y.

News reports highlight the danger associated with moving soldiers and material throughout portions of Iraq. Convoys have encountered snipers, improvised explosive devices and deliberate ambushes by insurgents.

A range especially designed for convoy operations opened in January at Fort Sill, Okla. Then the 91st Division, (Training Support) began teaching convoy defense at a special range at Fort Bliss, Texas. And the 78th Division (Training Support) developed an innovative convoy exercise for deploying Soldiers at Fort Dix, N.J.

The training divisions are AC/RC units that include active component, U.S. Army Reserve and Army National Guard Soldiers. They are responsible for the mobilization training of Guard and Reserve units in their regions.

The convoy training uses live ammunition and was designed for combat-service and combat-service-support Soldiers headed for Iraq.

"Firing live-rounds from a moving vehicle is something I've never done before," said small-wheeled mechanic Spc. Jason DeAndrea of the 854th Headquarters Detachment at Fort Dix

The training, developed primarily by Maj. Mark Sweeney of 1st/311th Battalion , and Capt. Christine Borgognoni, 1st/309th Battalion, evolved from concept briefs at Fort Bragg, N.C., smart cards and lessons learned coming out of Iraq. To meet the needs of Operation Iraqi Freedom-2, it had to come together quickly. The program of instruction was developed in mid-January, new trails were cut at the ranges, and by the end of the month the first units were running the course.

"The intent was to give CS and CSS units an experience where they're moving and firing live ammo at the same time," said Sweeney, "We expose them to situations they will potentially see in country -- snipers, IED, RPG attack, civilians on the battlefield, casualty procedures."

The course, made by combining two tank and two small-arms ranges, puts together everything the units have been doing from individual weapons to convoy operations.

'It was a good way for us to check out the training we had," said Sgt 1st Class Dennis Rayburn, Platoon Sergeant with the 3664th Maintenance Company, "and work out coordination between our soldiers and our leaders."

"The course exercises their leadership to make decisions quickly and have command and control of their convoy," said Sgt 1st Class Derward Parker, Observer/Controller-Trainer, 1-311th, "They receive information from their convoy elements and relay it to their higher commander."

"We are a maintenance unit, not infantry -- but we handled everything pretty well," said Rayburn, "And with live-fire it will increase the confidence of the Soldiers to work as a unit with their weapons 'hot'."

"We're a provisional unit with 80-percent fill, so this is the first time we've worked together," said Van de Wal. "This gave us an opportunity to practice call signs, call checkpoints, work SOPs . now I feel like we're in pretty good shape."

(Editor's note: Maj. Matt Leonard is the 78th Division public affairs officer. Maj. Theresa Nelson, the 91st Division PAO, also contributed to this article.)