2nd Cavalry Regiment alongside NATO Allies at Saber Junction 15

By Sgt. 1st Class Amy Wieser Willson, 116th Public Affairs Detachment, North Dakota Army National GuardApril 15, 2015

Load Up
1 / 6 Show Caption + Hide Caption – A Soldier with 1st Platoon, Regimental Engineering Squadron, 2nd Cavalry Regiment, runs into an M1132 Stryker engineer squad vehicle April 13, 2015, during Saber Junction 15 at Joint Training Military Area in Hohenfels, Germany. The regiment is condu... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Maneuver
2 / 6 Show Caption + Hide Caption – A Soldier with 1st Platoon, Regimental Engineering Squadron, 2nd Cavalry Regiment, maneuvers an M1132 Stryker engineer squad vehicle through a cleared lane in a mine field April 13, 2015, during Saber Junction 15 at Joint Training Military Area in Ho... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Talking
3 / 6 Show Caption + Hide Caption – 1st Lt. Sebastian Smoak, platoon leader for 1st Platoon, Regimental Engineering Squadron, 2nd Cavalry Regiment, speaks to his platoon sergeant, Staff Sgt. Marvin Blaise (standing near the M1132 Stryker), following a situational training exercise Apri... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Preparing
4 / 6 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Polish Army Pfc. Thomas Hrynkiewicz prepares his gear for a situational training exercise April 13, 2015, during Saber Junction 15 at Joint Training Military Area in Hohenfels, Germany. He's one of 4,700 military members from 17 countries conducting ... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
MILES
5 / 6 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Sgt. Michael Kwiatkowski (left), attached to the 1st Squadron, 2nd Cavalry Regiment, explains how to set up MILES (multiple integrated laser engagement system) for weapons before a situational training exercise April 13, 2015, during Saber Junction 1... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Getting lasered
6 / 6 Show Caption + Hide Caption – U.S. Army Capt. Matthew J. Tina, an observer controller with Grizzly Team, helps Polish Army Sgt. Peter Lau prepare his MILES (multiple integrated laser engagement system) harness prior to a situational training exercise April 13, 2015, during Saber ... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

HOHENFELS, Germany -- With 14 NATO countries by its side, the U.S. Army's 2nd Cavalry Regiment recently kicked off Saber Junction 15 here at the Joint Multinational Readiness Center, Hohenfels, Germany.

It's yet another step toward greater interoperability in Europe for the United States' longest serving regiment.

"Our training opportunity at Saber Junction demonstrates the strength of the alliance," said U.S. Army Col. John V. Meyer III, 78th Colonel of the Regiment. "This is not a U.S.-only training exercise."

In total, about 4,700 military members from 17 NATO and partner-nation countries are working together during Saber Junction 15. Fourteen of those countries are serving alongside the regiment, while the others are joining with the U.S. Army's 1st Battalion, 4th Infantry Regiment as opposing forces during force-on-force exercises next week.

"The regiment's mission at Saber Junction is to increase our readiness as a regiment in the United States Army to deploy, fight and win," Meyer said. "And we're doing this as part of 'Strong Europe,' so we have three missions inside of the campaign plan: No. 1 is to assure our allies, No. 2 is to deter adversaries, and No. 3 is to enable the alliance."

Two key pieces of those missions, Meyer says, are increasing readiness and creating relationships within the alliance. This comes through developing the regiment's leaders, working on the mission command operating systems, and building trust and confidence throughout the NATO force.

The exercise began with a deployment readiness exercise and airborne operations into Romania before transitioning to JMRC, where U.S. Soldiers and allies are conducting situational training exercises together in preparation for next week's decisive action training exercise, or DATE.

"I think coming to a decisive action training environment is a perfect opportunity for (Soldiers) to really increase their MOS (military occupational specialty) competencies, to get familiar with their equipment, and to really take pride in what they do as combat engineers," said U.S. Army 1st Lt. Sebastian Smoak, 1st platoon leader, Alpha Troop, Regimental Engineer Squadron.

The regiment's seven squadrons -- primarily comprised of infantrymen, in addition to engineers, reconnaissance and regimental support -- continue to focus on a variety of other scenarios this week, including clearing routes, quickly establishing base camps and emplacing obstacles. Through it all, the multinational forces work side by side, learning one another's operating tactics and techniques.

"Our training needs to be focused not only on enhancing the combat power of our unit, but also on a stronger Europe and interoperability," said U.S. Army Maj. Neil Pentilla, 2nd Cavalry Regiment public affairs officer.

Later, the exercise will evolve from a scenario-based esercise into a full-scale one incorporating all of the military players. This includes 150 others role playing as civilians on the battlefield in the small villages scattered throughout the 163-square-kilometer training area.

"Across the world, it's really fun to see how different nations integrate," said U.S. Air Force Capt. Jack Fine, joint terminal attack controller and air liaison officer. "It allows a greater understanding of where people come from, and it gives a better base to how we do operations."

Related Links:

2nd Cavalry Regiment

2CR early-entry into Romania

U.S. Army Europe

Joint Multinational Training Command

Saber Junction