FORT HOOD, Texas - The Soldiers of the 4th Brigade Troops Battalion, 4th Sustainment Brigade immersed themselves in convoy live fire training last month. The primary focus for the Wolfpack Battalion was battle drills, convoy operations, and teamwork.
The training began weeks ago and culminated on Apr. 29 as each company within the battalion formed teams of gunners and drivers to navigate the Jack Mountain range.
"The first day they got here they went to training area 306 and conducted battle drills all day," said 2nd Lt. Miley Massed, a platoon leader for the 418th Transportation Company, 553rd Combat Sustainment Support Battalion. Massed also served as an observer controller throughout that training period.
Wolfpack Soldiers saddled up in their vehicles and pushed through the course on multiple runs on the second day of the training. Each unit was assessed on how well they reacted to enemy targets, both stationary and moving.
"What I was looking for was that the gunners were traversing to where they were being told to go and not flagging each other," said Massed.
The gunners continued to engage targets as the convoys moved deeper into the range. Soldiers inside the vehicles were also tested on how well they reacted to enemy contact when the convoys stopped.
The troops inside were armed with M-16s as they dismounted the vehicles and fired at targets alongside the road. The convoys were also hit with simulated improvised explosive devices and had to react accordingly.
"Everyone goes through this, especially prior to a deployment. They need this to make sure as they travel from one forward operating base to another that they can get there successfully and know what to do in case of an emergency," said Sgt. 1st Class James Williams, Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 4th BTB, and an observer controller alongside Massed.
Between iterations, units would move to an indoor facility to view their progress via video from cameras that were attached to the rear of their vehicles providing live footage to the control tower. That gave Soldiers and leaders the opportunity to learn from their experiences.
"This training brings a lot to the plate. Some of the scenarios were based on people's personal experiences," said Williams. "Anything can go wrong at any given time and it's important to train these Soldiers to react to that now before they face the real thing."
"We try to make it as tough and realistic as possible, so if they do encounter something, on deployment, they'll be able to react," he said.
Capt. Daniel Robinson, the commander of the 297th Inland Cargo Transportation Company, 4th BTB, watched his Soldiers from a trail vehicle during the training.
"I hope they got something out of it. It's better to learn and train hard here in Texas than in theater," said Robinson. "It's all about teamwork and having a unified front."
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