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Eastern Action

EASTERN ACTION is a USCENTCOM directed, Third Army/ARCENT executed, biennial exercise conducted in Qatar. This joint/coalition field training exercise focuses on small unit ground tactics, combining U.S. Naval support and mechanized/armored Company sized elements with Qatarian Ground Forces. EASTERN ACTION is designed to improve the self-defense capabilities of the Qatari military. ARCENT-Qatar is a forward headquarters command of the Third U.S. Army. Qatar, a small country that shares its borders with Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, is smaller than Rhode Island in both size and population.

The 3rd Infantry Division's 1st Battalion, 15th Infantry Regiment, formed Task Force 1-15 and hit the desert sands of Qatar during the summer to participate in Exercise Eastern Action '99, a coalition-building effort to prepare for contingencies in Southwest Asia. The exercise was conducted on the southern training area of the US Army Central Command-Qatar. This was only the second time the Army has ever held an exercise with the Qatari army. Eastern Action '99 helped to test ARCENT-Qatar's readiness and to train soldiers with the Qataris in this remote area.

The purpose of the exercise was to practice joint reception, staging, onward movement and integration. The Army did this by issuing our pre-positioned Bradley fighting vehicles, armored personnel carriers and the M88 recovery vehicles to a unit that would use them in combat. The exercise also allowed U.S. soldiers to work side by side with Qatari troops. The importance of ARCENT-Qatar's participation in coalition and joint training was highlighted by military actions in the region. Operations Desert Thunder I and II, and Desert Fox in 1998, demonstrated the need for rapid coalition response to Iraqi aggression.

Eastern Action '99 is one way that ARCENT-Qatar remains prepared for contingencies and coalition/joint operations. ARCENT-Qatar is able to quickly build up forces by flying troops in and issuing equipment that's already there.

The TF 1-15 soldiers trained and practiced writing operation orders, troop-leading procedures, vehicle patrols and personnel dismounts with the Qataris. The American soldiers discovered new things by working with their counterparts. Temperatures reached 130 degrees as TF 1-15, augmented by two Air Force A-10 Thunderbolt II attack aircraft, continued maneuvers and live-fire training with the Qataris. The soldiers called the sound of the tracked vehicles moving across the desert sand "rolling thunder."

The soldiers learned that constant communications among the task force, higher headquarters and the Qataris improved their ability as a coalition team. For the soldiers, using the pre-positioned equipment and training with the Qataris made the events in this exercise identical to what they would do if they were called up for a contingency. The exercise provided a realistic training opportunity. One of the best things about this exercise is that it used the same tanks that would be used in battle.