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Benning training mobilized IRR Soldiers

By Melissa House
September 9, 2004

FORT BENNING, Ga. (Army News Service, Sept. 9, 2004) -- When the Army announced its plans to order 5,600 Soldiers in the Individual Ready Reserve to active duty for possible deployment with the next Operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom rotations July 1, Fort Benning units were already working out ways to train those Soldiers.

Several months ago, post officials pulled out the rapid train-up memorandum of instruction to get ready to accept involuntarily mobilized Soldiers. The first of those Soldiers arrived at Fort Benning Aug. 31, some diverted from Fort Jackson, S.C., and Fort Leonard Wood, Mo. The diversion eases the burden on those installations, which expect to process anywhere from 600-800 IRR Soldiers per month.

Currently, all 11-series Soldiers process through the post's CONUS Replacement Center, where they receive refresher training in common tasks and MOS-specific refreshers, said CRC commander Lt. Col. Gary Spry. With the added mission, Fort Benning will now process IRR Soldiers with other job specialties as well. They'll receive seven days of common task training, then receive a set of temporary-change-of-station orders sending them to their MOS school for refresher.

Spry said the CRC normally processes Soldiers already on active duty but has been training IRR Soldiers who voluntarily activated since June. Since the 30th Adjutant General Battalion (Reception) is full because of the increase in the Infantry Training Brigade's mission, the CRC will now assess the involuntarily mobilized IRR Soldiers onto active duty.

"We'll house, feed and clothe them," Spry said. "We're lined up with the initial-issue point to issue clothing if they need it."

Soldiers will also receive their CTA-50 and OCIE items. Female Soldiers, he said, will go to the Military Clothing Sales Store for their clothing issue.

To help train the extra Soldiers, the CRC will be augmented by Detachment 1, 330th Battalion, 1st Brigade, 84th Division - an 18-man one-station unit training company mobilized Sept. 7, said Maj. Al Lugo with the Installation Operation Center. The company will conduct all the CTT for the rapid train-up.

"It's 70-plus hours of training," Lugo said.

In the meantime, the Basic Combat Training Brigade provided six drill sergeants to train those who arrived before the OSUT company mobilized.

Spry said the CRC has had a good relationship with the ITB since they began training the voluntary mobilizations in June. The IRR Soldiers they process will eventually join a CONUS-based unit in enough time to train with that unit before it deploys into theater.

Lugo said a mobilization-assistance team from the Human Resources Command at St. Louis is on the ground to manage issues that may arise with the involuntarily mobilized Soldiers. Post agencies like Army Community Services will work with the Soldiers to help provide them with information for their families.

Although Spry said the number of extra Soldiers Fort Benning is being asked to train is relatively small, they are prepared to accept more if the Army needs to redirect more Soldiers from the other installations.

(Melissa House writes for The Bayonet newspaper at Fort Benning. This article was also posted to the TRADOC News Service.)