FORT DRUM, N.Y. (May 12, 2016) -- Fort Drum just got a little safer. Sentinel Radar operators and mechanics participated in a training course May 3-5 at Fort Drum to hone their skills and become familiar with the newest version of the system, the AN/MPQ-64A3, which if called upon, can cover the Northeast region.
The Sentinel Radar system provides a complete picture of air threats for commanders and ground troops at the division level, and it is an integral part of our overall defense picture in the North Country and abroad. The systems, which were delivered to Fort Drum in October, have found their home with Headquarters and Headquarters Battalion, 10th Mountain Division (LI).
When he arrived at Fort Drum in 2012, Sgt. Nicholas Moscillo, the Sentinel Radar noncommissioned officer in charge with HHBN, watched his beloved Sentinels roll out the gate with no expected date of return. Now that his team has the equipment they need to train, he's looking forward to getting his team up to speed.
"This is important because now we can legitimately do our jobs and train for future deployments," Moscillo said, adding that this was the first time his younger Soldiers had seen this model of Sentinel.
Pfc. John Magee, a Sentinel Radar operator with HHBN, attended the three-day training. He said he is excited to get more hands-on time with the system. He said this was a great opportunity for him to get experience with the new A3 model, since he was only able to work with the A1 model in advanced individual training.
"We have to spin the radar for 30 hours a month to make sure it's operational and ready to go," Magee said. He added that working with the maintainers from across the division was a big plus to the training, which was more maintainer-focused than operator-driven.
Jess Collins, the Raytheon trainer for the region, said the group he worked with at Fort Drum was one of the largest he's had at any installation to date. He said his main job is to guide the Soldiers working on the equipment and let them make mistakes in training, so they'll know what to do in combat.
Collins said the most important thing students take away from the training is confidence.
"If they're not confident, the commander isn't confident. If the commander isn't confident, we're all in trouble," Collins added.
Confidence is something Sgt. Manuel Portela, a radar repairer with 210th Brigade Support Battalion, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, definitely gained during the training.
Portela commented on the importance of the Sentinel in creating a complete air picture for the division and the necessity for continuous training events like this one to keep skills sharp.
He also found an unexpected perk to the training.
"To be able to network with a lot of these guys I didn't even know were here, from different brigades and different shops is great," Portela said.
He added that because 94M is one of the lowest density military occupational specialties in the Army, it helped to know he could lean on other radar repairers on Fort Drum to troubleshoot issues in the future.
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