BAMBERG, Germany -- Military Police and support elements from the 630th Military Police Company weren't just learning leadership development skills March 17 - 20; they were adapting the skills.
The Maverick Leadership Development Exercise, a four-day course led by company noncommissioned officers, did everything from matching warriors amongst one another in a combatives pit to resolving a hostage-type situation.
"The key to any effective unit is its leader development," said 1st Sgt. Thomas Buettner. "This is the unit investing time in our leaders to prepare them for today's battlefield."
NCOs do many things, Buettner said. Preparing Soldiers and developing leaders rank among the top priorities. These are things highlighted amid the Year of the NCO and are the reasons why the Army excels.
"I think this is the first step in preparing our unit to deploy once again with new leaders and Soldiers," Buettner added. "We have many young sergeant and specialist team leaders that we depend on to lead our Soldiers in combat. We owe it to them to ensure they are set up for success and are confident that they can be effective leaders. This includes not only MPs, but our support Soldiers as well."
On the first day, paratroopers from 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team showcased some of the battlefield capabilities of the first generation Mine Resistant Ambush Protected vehicles for the Soldiers.
The Soldiers spent roughly five hours crawling underneath and inside the MRAP before riding in the MRAP and maneuvering the weapon system.
"Very few Soldiers in the unit have ever seen the vehicle and none of them have had the opportunity to ride in one," said Staff Sgt. Aaron Kerkhoff, 1st Platoon sergeant. "The information provided during the class described the characteristics, capabilities, and structural design of the vehicle. The knowledge gained by our Soldiers was exceptional. I believe they walked away from the experience with a greater understanding for their responsibilities to maintain the vehicle and better understanding about how they can employ these vehicles and weapons systems to their advantage."
Day two is when the challenges began. The Land Navigation Course had four five-man-fire teams locate six points.
Little did the teams know that an opposition force was also on the same course. The OPFOR's mission was to engage the teams if they were located.
"This forced the leaders not to use roads and to be cautious of danger areas," Buettner said. "Five hours on this course really made the teams hone in on their movement techniques, hand and arm signals, and how to cross danger areas."
There were also other obstacles and objectives that day.
An assault on an enemy weapons cache and safe house, taught the Soldiers many useful skills used in Law enforcement and Military Operations in Urban Terrain.
"This is a great learning tool for all leaders to teach junior leaders how troop leading procedures work and why they are important," Buettner said. "Weapons control and clearing procedures are stringent and systematic. The slightest mistake can be costly."
On the third day, the Soldiers, many of who are Level I and II certified, were taught Modern Army Combatives.
One Soldier, Spc. Cave Bumstead, was able to lock in a rear-naked choke on his opponent.
"Two words," Buettner said. "Warrior Ethos. Every leader wants that in his Soldiers and these troops displayed this spirit by putting every ounce of effort into their objectives."
Later that day, squads had to conduct a deliberate search of the road for Improvised Explosive Devices.
It took nearly 40 minutes to go 200 meters, the first sergeant said, who was observing the training. The use of OPFOR enhanced the IED lane and proved to be challenging for them. The hilly terrain added to the lane as they climbed up and down the hills. Leaders quickly began to understand the importance of battle-focused physical training.
The Soldiers went on to prepare for reflexive fire. After many hours of dry fire, the Soldiers went inside the Engagement Skill Trainer 2000 to rehearse for the final day. More than six hours of dry-fire training was conducted before beginning a reflexive fire range on the EST.
"The facility manager stayed well past his duty that day and we were also able to conduct Escalation of Force Drills with the use of the "Shoot Don't Shoot" scenarios," said Staff Sgt. John Mcvey, 2nd Platoon sergeant. "These scenarios were relevant to the missions in Iraq and Afghanistan. This is a great tool to force leaders to think before they react."
The final day ended with a live fire exercise. Starting from the 25-meter line and shooting at distances of 20, 15, 10, and 5 meters, the Soldiers fired from the frontal, lateral, and kneeling positions. Soldiers engaged the enemy with single and controlled pairs of lethal shots.
"This was no easy task given that we provide Law Enforcement for two communities, Bamberg and Schweinfurt, "Collins said. "Investing in Leader Development is the key to success in any unit. For many of the young and future leaders of this company, Maverick was the first time they have come together and trained with one another since the company re-deployed from Iraq. This was a great experience and I look forward to continuing the tradition."
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