JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska - Soldiers from U.S. Army Alaska and the Indian army tested combined tactics during an air assault and raid mission at Site Summit on Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson Nov. 11 to conclude the field training exercise portion of Yudh Abhyas 2010.
Soldiers and leaders from both armies spent several days conducting classes, combining troop leading procedures and rehearsing to ensure they could successfully conduct the mission as one team.
"This mission was the culmination of all our work for the past couple of weeks. It was the last mission, the big mission and a very important one. A lot of preparation went into it. We've done nothing but training with the Indian soldiers and it's been awesome," said Sgt. Steve Faulkner, team leader with Bravo Troop, 1st Squadron (Airborne), 40th Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 25th Infantry Division.
The mission included three parts: security, support and assault. The Indian soldiers were among the main effort in charge of clearing the area.
The training and rehearsals ensured that each team knew their part and that everyone was on the same page.
"The training we performed prior to this mission allowed them to understand our tactics and us to understand theirs and it eliminates any confusion," said Spc. Ross Berger, cavalry scout with Bravo Troop, 1-40th CAV. "It's good to see how they operate because we've learned a lot from them Ac"a,! tactics that we've never thought of."
It's crucial to mission success that everyone involved has the ability to work well together Berger added.
"I was surprised how exceptionally well we all worked together and meshed. There hasn't been an instance of confusion. We understand each other really well," Faulkner said.
Both armies have similar doctrine, which made the combining operations a lot smoother, he added.
"Tactically, they are really sound," Faulkner said. "We just gave them a little bit of instruction on the equipment, which is, of course, necessary when using something unfamiliar."
The majority of the exercise focused on combined military operations between the two armies, but Faulkner believed that camaraderie building was the most important aspect of exercise Yudh Abhyas 2010.
"This was about teamwork between two armies. I went into this not hoping to gain anything. I wasn't aware of how they operated, but when we started having classes and working together it really changed my perspective," Faulkner said. "We've learned a lot from each other and we understand each other. It's important to have that confidence in how we work together. If it came down to a real-world operation, I think we could do it and do it well. That's why exercises like this are important."
Yudh Abhyas is a regularly-scheduled bilateral, conventional-forces training exercise, sponsored by U.S. Army, Pacific and the Indian Army. The exercise is designed to promote cooperation between the two militaries to develop U.S. Army Pacific and USARAK relationships with India and promote interoperability through combined Military Decision Making Process, battle tracking and maneuvering forces, and exchange of tactics, techniques and procedures.
U.S. Soldiers and their Indian counterparts are conducting a command post exercise, airborne operations training, marksmanship and tactical training to improve partnership readiness and cooperation between the armies of India and the United States during Yudh Abhyas 2010.
Photos from the air assault and raid on Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/usarpac/sets/72157625288366066
Video from the air assault and raid on DVIDS:
http://www.dvidshub.net/video/100439/yudh-abhyas-2010-air-assault-site-summit
Follow Yudh Abhyas 2010 on the web at http://www.usarpac.army.mil/ya10, Facebook http://www.facebook.com/pages/US-Army-Pacific/113619942022854 and Flickr http://www.flickr.com/photos/usarpac/sets/72157625288366066.
Social Sharing