JOINT BASE LEWIS-MCCHORD, Wash. - How long does it usually take you to get packed, get your household in order and put your car in storage? A while, right? It's probably not something you would want to do in a matter of hours.
This was exactly what Soldiers with Company C., "Chargers," 2nd Battalion, 3rd Infantry Regiment, 3-2 Stryker Brigade Combat Team, practiced during a recent training event known as an emergency deployment readiness exercise that began Feb. 2 and lasted for several days.
The training began with a pre-dawn phone call from leaders to their Soldiers informing them that it was time to go. They then assembled and checked their equipment. Soldiers who stayed in the barracks closed out their rooms and those with vehicles turned them in to the storage lot.
From there they went through the motions of a short-notification rapid deployment as they checked their gear and moved it to the airfield to be loaded onto an aircraft.
"The EDRE is an exercise that allows us to see firsthand the requirements and challenge associated with preparing our Soldiers for a rapid deployment to a combat zone," said 1st Lt. Bruce Rush, a Louisville, Ky., native and platoon leader with Charger Company. "It was beneficial to leaders because we could test our systems and ensure that we understood the tasks necessary to get our Soldiers and equipment ready to fly into combat. It was beneficial for the Soldiers as well because it shows them how they must be ready to deploy when the nation requires."
Working with airmen from the 62nd Airlift Wing, the Soldiers loaded and secured their Stryker vehicles on to C-17 aircraft. The Soldiers then flew out on the aircraft to simulate an actual departure for deployment.
Upon landing, the Soldiers hit the ground running, quickly disembarking their Strykers and moving out to a training site to begin a follow-on mission.
"We practiced not only getting Soldiers and equipment to the aircraft, but also conducted mission planning simultaneously," Rush said. "It was critical to prepare the Soldiers for the mission and make sure they had a solid understanding of the full mission we were undertaking and the purpose of it."
Although the Charger Company has many experienced leaders, there are also a large group of young Soldiers who have never deployed. For them, this was an eye-opening event.
"I learned that doing a rapid deployment is a very stressful process where a lot of things change quickly," said Pfc. Devon Koontz, a Greensburg, Pa., native and a saw gunner with Charger Company. "Timelines change and I have to be ready to respond quickly to changing circumstances. Additionally, as the most experienced Stryker operator in the company, I had to be ready to help the newer drivers with any issues that the trucks have."
It was also a prime chance for these young Soldiers to work with their Air Force counterparts, something they don't often get to do.
"It was good to see the different branches of the military working together, Air Force and Army," said Pvt. Raymond Barth, a Lafayette, La., native and Stryker driver with Charger Company. "The Air Force guys were very effective at their job and getting us loaded onto the birds."
For both the leaders and young Soldiers, this training-like everything else they do-was about improving through practice.
"As with any task, rehearsals are the key to success," said 1st Lt. Charles A. McCawley, a Hingham, Mass., native and a platoon leader with Charger Company. "One of the things that makes the United States Army the greatest fighting force in the world is its ability to rapidly place (Soldiers), weapons and equipment at the decisive point of any operation. In order to ensure that Charger Company will remain proficient, this skill needs to be practiced."
Although the Charger Company is not slated to deploy anytime soon, their Soldiers are now better prepared for the possibility and are ready to take on any mission they might be given.
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