The News & Observer January 06, 2011
Home from wars, 82nd hones combat skills
By Kevin Maurer
FORT BRAGG -- During nine years of war, the 82nd Airborne Division has been stuck in an endless cycle of training and deploying, with little time to go back to basics.
The paratroopers, some of whom have deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan many times, found that their combat skills had atrophied. Now, with the whole 18,000-strong unit at Fort Bragg, paratroopers want to hone those fighting skills. That means a return to training that focuses on basic skills such as marksmanship, battle drills and land navigation.
On a cold December afternoon, paratroopers from the 82nd's 1st Battalion of the 325th Airborne Infantry Regiment had already sneaked through the pine forests of Fort Bragg to set up the attack on a hostile village, dodged fighters popping up from holes and raked insurgents with machine guns.
To complete their training mission, the paratroopers had to get inside a compound overlooking a massive range and kill or capture an insurgent leader in a maze of rooms. In a rush, they raced in, blasting "insurgent fighters" - green torsos on mechanical arms.
The mission was loud, violent and the closest thing some of the soldiers have to experiencing fierce combat. It was a marked departure for the North Carolina-based paratrooper unit that has been called on to do everything from humanitarian relief to mentoring Afghan and Iraqi soldiers.
"A lot of stuff that we really hung our hats on as our main focus [has] really shifted by the wayside because there are so many different tasks we have to be at least capable of conducting," said Lt. Col. Charles Masaracchia, 40, from Carlisle, Pa.
Masaracchia took over the 1st Battalion of the 325th Airborne Infantry Regiment last year, three days before the unit deployed to Afghanistan. His men had been in Haiti when they got orders to train Afghan soldiers.
This new training focus comes from Maj. Gen. Jim Huggins, who replaced Maj. Gen. Mike Scaparrott last year. Huggins, 52, has commanded in the 82nd Airborne Division at the company, battalion and brigade levels and remembers when all the division did was train on infantry skills. Huggins said the longer dwell times at Fort Bragg for units returning from overseas have allowed the division to reset its training.
"If we start with the fundamentals and make sure they're proficient in their standard skills set - be it an infantryman, chemical, field artillery or medic - that self confidence at that basic level manifests itself into progress down the road," Huggins said during an interview last month at Fort Bragg.
The 82nd headquarters and the 82nd Aviation brigade already have orders to deploy to Afghanistan this year. At least one of the division's brigades is also expecting to get deployment orders later this year to Iraq or Afghanistan, officials said.
Different missions
The 82nd division must maintain the capability to deploy anywhere in the world.
Pfc. Andrew St. John went to Haiti and Afghanistan with the 82nd's 2nd Brigade Combat Team. The fairly new paratrooper saw two drastically different missions - in Haiti, St. John focused on giving out food and water, and in Afghanistan his unit trained Afghan soldiers.
"It just shows you, as an infantryman, we can do any kind of job there is," said St. John, 20, of Martinsville, Ind.
The new training only increased his confidence, St. John said.
"The skills that they are teaching us are pretty much as real as you can get," he said. "For me, if I have to go I am trained and ready to do it just by stuff like this."
Military experts said a return to this type of combat training was necessary because the Army is too focused right now on counter-insurgency.
"The problem for the future is that the Army must be able to deter and defeat other kinds of forces besides insurgents," said Loren Thompson, a military analyst at the Virginia-based Lexington Institute. "Today's Army is very ready to fight the Taliban but less ready to fight Hitler's Wehrmacht, so it needs to bolster its preparations for dealing with more traditional types of combat. Having a full-spectrum force means being ready for anything."
John Pike, director of Globalsecurity.org , a website dealing with defense issues, said soldiers will need these combat skills.
"We don't know what a future battlefield might look like, but the 82nd's core competencies will probably come in handy in any event," Pike said.
Skills 'perishable'
Back at the range, the paratroopers began clearing the buildings made of concrete. Led by Staff Sgt. Joseph Kress, a 31-year-old squad leader from Phoenix, the paratroopers ran to the building where the insurgent leader was hiding.
"We need a breach man," someone called out.
A paratrooper in the line of troops walked to the front of the line and used a shotgun to blast the locks.
"Go, Go," Kress said as the paratroopers filed into the building.
Inside, the paratroopers faced a long hallway with several doors and sharp corners, perfect hiding spots for the waiting insurgent targets wearing camouflage jackets. Staying in a small group, the paratroopers burst into the rooms, shooting the targets each time. In just over 30 minutes, the paratroopers cleared the insurgents out of the compound.
Afterward, Masaracchia praised his men for working quickly and shooting accurately.
In a few hours, they'd be back on the range, this time at night to do the attack using night vision goggles. Kress looked forward to doing it again - this time faster and better.
"The skills are perishable traits because we just didn't get a chance to do them," Kress said. "Doing this type of training keeps you on the knife's edge."
© Copyright 2011, The News & Observer Publishing Company
