• Military Menu                       

• Introduction
• Systems
• Facilities
• Agencies
• Industry
• Operations
• Countries
• Hot Documents
• News
• Reports
• Policy
• Budget
• Congress
• Links

• WMD
• Intelligence
• Homeland Security
• Space

Immediate Response '03

Paratroopers from the U.S. Army Southern European Task Force and the Polish 6th Airborne Brigade parachuted into Poland late one night during the opening phase of Exercise Immediate Response '03. This operation was a computer-assisted command post exercise lasting June 6th through 10th, 2003. The airborne assault simulated the seizure of an airbase for the introduction of additional U.S. forces.

Two aircraft, one Polish and one American, dropped approximately 50 paratroopers allowing the soldiers from the two armies to exchange jump wings. Six Polish jumpers, who jumped from the American C-130, had to adjust their exiting procedures to coincide with their American counterparts. Whenever US troops jump, as soon as the jump master gives the go, everybody immediately goes and follows each other out. The Polish soldiers jump totally differently, so they had to do a lot of rehearsals. One thing they do is an individual tap out. Each soldier will stand in the door and wait for a tap out.

Following the airborne insertion, soldiers from SETAF and the Polish 6th Airborne Brigade immediately began establishing the forward command and control headquarters and preparing for the arrival of the U.S. 1st Infantry Division, 2nd Brigade forces that will be needed during the non-combatant evacuation (NEO) exercise, which simulates the evacuation of American citizens from a potentially hostile environment. Immediate response '03 is part of the Military Cooperation Initiative launched between the U.S. and Poland in 2002 to enhance capabilities for future bilateral, coalition or alliance operations.

The purpose of Immediate Response '03 is to enhance joint and combined interoperability, conduct bilateral training with a partner nation and exercise command and control functions from distributed locations during a NEO exercise. The main exercise participants are the headquarters of the U.S. Army Southern European Task Force (SETAF), elements of the Polish 6th Airborne Brigade and the 2nd brigade of the U.S. 1st ID. Crossing cultural boundaries, soldiers from both countries are gaining valuable experiences during the exercise. Polish soldiers are embracing the experience to work with their American counterparts.