OSAN AIR BASE, South Korea -- More than 60 Soldiers from 2nd Battalion, 1st Air Defense Artillery participated in a professional development seminar, dubbed the "Patriot University," Jan. 7-8 at Camp Carroll.
The seminar was designed for Soldiers whose military occupational specialties revolve around the Army's Patriot system with emphasis on early warning and engagement operations.
Patriot is a long-range, high-altitude, all-weather system that is regularly and rigorously tested under real-world conditions. The system can counter threats from tactical ballistic missiles to cruise missiles as well as advanced aircraft and is continuously upgraded to keep ahead of evolving threats.
"It's extremely important that the Soldiers in our unit understand the system they work with," said 1st Lt. Eric Terwilliger, 2-1 ADA tactical director and one of two facilitators of the seminar. "This course presents the fundamentals and briefly introduces the more advanced concepts of the system and our role in the Republic of Korea."
During the seminar, Soldiers discussed a myriad of ADA topics including Tactics, Techniques and Procedures; certification requirements at the individual, crew and battery levels; and equipment capabilities against air-breathing and missile threats.
"Learning the specifics of our system and the capabilities was helpful for me as I learn my job and my role in protection of the ROK," said Spc. Barry Robinson, an air defense artilleryman assigned to Delta Battery, 2-1 ADA.
In addition to learning more about the Patriot system, guest speaker Capt. Gabe Jimenez, 35th Air Defense Artillery Brigade fire control officer, briefed the air defense operations that would take place in the event of a North Korean attack.
The brief by Jimenez brought a sense of realism to the mission of ADA on the peninsula.
"It was a great way for new Soldiers to really understand the true threat we train for in Korea," said Sgt. Joshua Carabajal, a Patriot fire control enhanced operator/maintainer assigned to Delta Battery, 2-1 ADA.
"A lot of new Soldiers don't really understand how real the threat is with the amount of freedom they have here," he said. "It was very informative and I learned a lot of great new information that I was unaware of."
The next "Patriot University" will take place July 2015 and looks to expand upon the material presented.
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