A Day in the Life of a Dragon Driver

By Maj. Lloyd Bedford, 1 ABCT Public Affairs, 1st Cav. Div.September 21, 2017

A Day in the Life of a Dragon Driver
1 / 4 Show Caption + Hide Caption – From left to right Pvt. Dakota Wright, Spc. David Bone, Staff Sgt. Quang Huynh, Pvt. Michelle Alvarado with their Paladin "CHAOS" 1st Section, 1st Platoon, Charlie Battery, 1st Battalion, 82nd Field Artillery Regiment, 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
A Day in the Life of a Dragon Driver
2 / 4 Show Caption + Hide Caption – (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
A Day in the Life of a Dragon Driver
3 / 4 Show Caption + Hide Caption – (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
A Day in the Life of a Dragon Driver
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FORT HOOD, Texas -- Pvt. Michelle Alvarado of Queens, New York, an M109A6 "Paladin" driver with 1st Platoon, Charlie Battery, 1st Battalion, 82nd Field Artillery Regiment "Dragons", drove her Paladin crew to success during Table 18 of the Combined Arms Live Fire Exercise from Sept. 11-15.

Alvarado is a member of a four-person Paladin crew, whose job is to shoot, move and communicate with all elements on the battlefield. As a member of the Dragon Field Artillery Battalion, she and her crew are responsible for providing effective indirect fires in support of combat operations, and to allow friendly units the ability to maneuver around the battlefield.

"Alvarado's job as a driver is much more than just driving", said Staff Sgt. Quang Huynh, chief section sergeant for 1st Platoon, Charlie Battery. "She also keeps track of ammunition counts, fuses, charges and primers. It's a very difficult job for a new private, but she tackled the job head on."

Another duty performed by a Paladin driver is to keep track of preventive maintenance checks and services, also known as PMCS. While she is not the only Soldier maintaining the vehicle, the responsibility of maintenance is primarily belongs to the driver.

"When she wakes up, maintenance is her focus", said Staff Sgt. James Norman, platoon sergeant for 1st Platoon, Charlie Battery. "Her ability to identify any faults on this vehicle during PMCS is absolutely critical. She is learning quickly and is among the best drivers in the battery."

"Alvarado is very head-strong and detail oriented in everything she does", said Huynh. "She is always finding better ways to do things and will make a great leader."

While being a driver for a Paladin can be time consuming and exhausting, with all the maintenance it requires, it can also be very rewarding.

"The best part about my job is the driving", said Alvarado. "As a driver you're in a hatch, so you're up front in a small position and your whole surrounding moves. That's pretty awesome!"

Table 18 is designed to test an artillery battalion's management systems while under extreme stress in a field environment. It is the job of the battalion to prepare the batteries by managing their reporting, supply, fuel, ammunition and chow over the course of the four to five day exercise. This is all happening while the batteries are receiving fire missions to engage targets with real ammunition in the Fort Hood training area.

"The hardest part of my job is constantly waking up and maintaining the gun during the night", said Alvarado. "Every hour to two hours, I need to start up the Paladin so the gun doesn't die and is ready for fire missions."

Table 18 was the culminating training event for 1-82 FA, in preparation for their deployment to the National Training Center at Fort Irwin, Calif. in the coming weeks. Approximately 500 Soldiers participated in the exercise, certifying over 15 Paladin crews for future operations.

"Field artillery is a team effort", said Alvarado. "To get one round fired, we need our forward observers to first identify the target and then the Fire Direction Center to tell us where to shoot. It's crazy how it all comes together."