A 2nd Battalion, 8th Cavalry Regiment Trooper attaches glow sticks to the antenna of his Bradley Fighting Vehicle before starting an iteration of a nighttime gunnery Jan. 22, 2021, at the Pabrade Training Area, Lithuania. The Bradley Fighting Vehicle was one of the battalion’s heavy vehicles to participate in a section gunnery to demonstrate their skill and lethality on the battlefield. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Alexandra Shea)

Abrams Tanks are parked in a line on a range before a nighttime section gunnery at the Pabrade Training Area, Lithuania, on Jan. 22, 2021. The tank crews, along with Bradley Fighting Vehicle and mortar sections, completed the gunnery to test the skills of sections to effectively fire the platforms and react to the various scenarios often experienced on the battlefield. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Alexandra Shea)

An illumination round fired by 2nd Battalion, 8th Cavalry Regiment’s mortar section bathes a large area of a range in support of a section gunnery on Jan. 22, 2021, at the Pabrade Training Area, Lithuania. The gunnery tested the skills of Abrams tank, Bradley Fighting Vehicle and mortar crews in realistic scenarios often experienced on the battlefield. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Alexandra Shea)

A Bradley Fighting Vehicle crew fires the main gun during a Jan. 22, 2021, section gunnery at the Pabrade Training Area, Lithuania. The 2nd Battalion, 8th Cavalry Regiment section gunnery tested the skills of the sections and demonstrated battlefield lethality. Abrams tanks and mortar sections also participated in the gunnery. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Alexandra Shea)

A Trooper assigned to 2nd Battalion, 8th Cavalry Regiment fires a .50-caliber machine gun from the top of a Bradley Fighting Vehicle during a gunnery Jan. 22, 2021, at the Pabrade Training Area, Lithuania. The gunnery tested the skills and demonstrated the regiment’s lethality on the battlefield. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Alexandra Shea)

PABRADE, Lithuania – The Pabrade Training Area in Lithuania was silent. The snow-covered ground glittered as the sun slowly rose over the tall pine trees surrounding the training area. A sudden boom followed closely by a short burst of rat-tat-tat from an Abrams tank broke the silence and rang in the start of 2nd Battalion, 8th Cavalry Regiment’s section gunnery Jan. 21, 2021.

“Designate tank,” Staff Sgt. Wyatt Uitich, an Alpha “Animal” Company tank commander, voice crackled over the Abrams’s internal communication system. “Fire.”

“On the way,” his gunner replied.

Uitich and his tank crew were one of about 20 crews who participated in the regiment’s three-day section gunnery. The event is designed to test the skills and lethality of heavy armored units under battlefield conditions.

“This gunnery shows the lethality between the two tanks of the section and the coordination of the tank section,” said Staff Sgt. Delon Williams, Bravo “Eager Arms” Company tank commander. “It gives the section sergeant a vision or field of view to conduct battlefield operations.”

Notional enemy targets are observed in the area by range tower staff and relayed by radio to two tanks occupying the range. The tank section’s turrets swing left and right as they scan their engagement areas and radio back to inform the tower once notional enemy vehicles are spotted.

The scenarios produce several outcomes each section is prepared to handle including receiving enemy fire, notional injuries requiring a nine-line medical evacuation request and a call for fire from mortar sections ready to support from their tree-obscured location.

Though Abrams sections were first to run the gambit of notional enemy invasions, the Bradley Fighting Vehicle and mortar sections each took a turn to prove their battlefield proficiencies.

“The Bradley is used for a number of things such as scouting and for infantry dismounts,” said Staff Sgt. Nathan Bagley, a Bradley Fighting Vehicle platoon sergeant assigned to Charlie “Cobra” Company. “The Bradley and Abrams fit together well on the battlefield through mutual support. We complement each other.”

Each section demonstrated their ability to operate on a battlefield during daylight and night. 2-8 Cav. Reg. mortarmen supported the gunnery using illumination rounds that, once employed, highlight the silhouettes of enemy vehicles by flooding large sections of the range with white light.

“Gunnery proves you can shoot and kill on these weapon platforms,” Bagley said. “Personally, I think Cobra’s Red Platoon is the best platoon in the battalion.”

Bagley is one of several leaders who expressed pride for their section and crews.

“My crew are a great set of guys,” Williams said. “My crew got the top section in the company for the gunnery.”

With gunnery complete, 2-8 Cav. Reg. can move forward with future multinational training events with Lithuanian, NATO-enhanced Forward Presence Battlegroup Lithuania and other NATO allied and partner forces.

Williams summed up the gunnery by saying, “This is a chance to get back to standards before we move on to other training.”