POLAND - Paratroopers from the U.S. 173rd Airborne Brigade, Poland's 6th Airborne Brigade and Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry conducted training here June 11 on airfield seizures.
The training was a culminating point of weeks of training in the forests of the training area here, requiring the paratroopers to overcome language barriers, tactical differences and understanding the capabilities of each other's weapons systems.
Brig. Gen. Adam Joks, commander of the 6th Airborne Brigade, said even though Polish and U.S. troops have worked closely together since 2004 during contingency operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, current training goals aim for success in high-intensity warfare.
"Through this training we are building a common understanding," said Joks, adding that interoperability is the key to taking control of the battlefield when forces from multiple countries come together. "We use different weapons and speak different languages but the end state is the same. We create a better understanding within each soldier about tactics, techniques and procedures in airborne operations."
Building up to the airfield seizure, the allied paratroopers on tasks such as assaulting a compound, establishing a perimeter defense and conducting raids via helicopter insertion.
After the exercise, the paratroopers sat down together over lunch to evaluate the training and discuss parts to sustain and improve.
1st Lt. Matthew Garnier, a platoon leader in Company C, 1st Battalion, 503rd Infantry Regiment, and a native of Raleigh, N.C., described the training as a "huge learning experience."
"The Polish army is very professional and a very good, elite force," said Garnier. "I think this is an opportunity for Soldiers to gain a new perspective, a widened world outlook, and see how other units work."
Approximately 600 "Sky Soldiers" from the 173rd Airborne are in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland, as part of an unscheduled land-forces exercise to demonstrate commitment to NATO obligations and sustain interoperability with allied forces.
Sgt. 1st Class Eugene Barnes, of Freemont, Mich., a platoon sergeant in Company C, agreed saying, "It's not every day that a U.S. Soldier gets hands on training with Polish weapons."
"We worked with the Polish during the deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan, but we really didn't have the opportunity to learn much about how they were organized, how they trained, the weapons they used," said Barnes. "Understanding our differences and those things that are alike will help us carry out missions more effectively."
In most militaries, airborne units are considered an elite force. Operations are intense and typically call for insertion behind enemy lines in order to capture strategic locations such as airfields, supply depots and military compounds. Garnier said that without combined training such as this, real-world missions with their allies might prove somewhat difficult.
"They use a machine gun differently. They use a mortar differently," said Garnier. "They perform maneuvers in the woods differently-not better or worse, just differently."
Lt. Horacio Rivas, of Orlando, Florida, is battle captain for 1st Bn. troops in Poland and responsible for coordinating training between the 173rd Airborne and the Polish Army. He described paratroopers as coming from all branches.
"For instance," said Rivas, "Infantry paratroopers conduct clearing the airfield and holding the perimeter. Signal paratroopers conduct the communications piece, so that communications between units and commanders are on target."
Rivas called the partnership between nations "fruitful."
"We have the opportunity to understand how they carry out tactics, techniques and procedures, as well as troop leading procedures," said Rivas.
Polish officer and non-commissioned officer corps are somewhat different than U.S. and Canadian leadership structure. According to Rivas, a Canadian squad and a Polish squad were integrated with each of the 173rd Airborne platoons, requiring platoon leaders to work very closely with their allies to complete the mission.
"In my opinion," said Rivas. "It is important to train together because they are our allies. If we ever have to work together, it is important to have a history of training together and that will ensure everything goes smoothly. We must understand each other's way of completing a common goal."
Canadian Army Maj. James Thamer, commander of Company B, 3rd Battalion, Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Inf., said training with U.S. and Polish Forces reaffirms his country's commitment to NATO. He believes there is a synergistic effect that members of all three Armies will benefit from.
"This is a great opportunity for my company to train with our NATO Allies-Polish Forces and American Forces-we don't always get a chance to train together so this is a great opportunity for us to learn from them and them from us," said Thamer. "There are a lot of differences and similarities and this gives us an opportunity to work and fight shoulder-to-shoulder and work on our war fighting skills together."
Thamer thinks his paratroopers will go home a better-trained force after the multinational training.
"I think we will see more forces training together in multi-lateral environments like this in Central and Eastern Europe," said Thamer. "We are really fortunate to be able to have this opportunity to work side by side with our allies."
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