GRAFENWOEHR, Germany --
The Soldiers of the 18th Combat Sustainment and Support Battalion (CSSB) had been under fire before, but the pounding that their convoy was taking on the afternoon of February 23, 2012 was unlike anything they had ever experienced.
They anticipated trouble, and were skirting a hostile village without incident. Then, as they headed into the plains again, on a dirt road in a narrow swale between low rolling hills the convoy became caught in a complex, escalating crossfire of automatic weapons and Rocket Propelled Grenade (RPG) fire.
The convoy was under attack by seasoned veterans, hit-and-run experts who knew the terrain, and who adroitly changed their positions after making sustained bursts into the convoy, exploiting the surprise of the attack to its fullest.
Just east of the conflict, in the command post Tactical Operations Center (TOC) the steady chatter that reflected the knocking about of their fellow CSSB comrades in the field reached a critical stage. Everyone was concentrated on the tipping point of the firefight: The convoy needed to shake off the surprise of their situation and begin to switch from defense to offense, get out of the crossfire and moving again.
Although the strain and concern was apparent, their previous training and experience asserted itself; cool heads went about their duties. Information flowed, options were given, some adopted, others considered, weighed and rejected. The scene seemed to be unfolding too quickly for some, but the cumulative strength and concentration of the TOC Soldiers began to shift the balance of the situation from reactive to proactive.
Vehicles, "friendlys", sped up from the rear, helicopters circled above and harassed the attackers as dismounted Soldiers cut them off from new positions. The convoy began to move.
Although the attack had taken place in a replicated, virtual landscape, the tension in the classroom began to ease dramatically, and one of the convoys 'attackers', Dave Meyers, began to laugh.
"The scenario may be a simulation, but those signs of relief certainly aren't!" Meyers is a simulation facilitator at the Joint Multinational Training Command's Simulation Center, and he and his 'attacker-accomplices', Gary Hamric and Faraon Lopez were visibly pleased with the effect their simulation scenario had on the Soldiers in the convoy.
When the three received the news of how the attack had effected the Soldiers in the command post, located in an adjacent building 20 feet from their control desk, and that the TOC Soldiers had handled the scenario fairly well, the three facilitators paused for a minute, then quickly started talking amongst themselves. "We've got to think of some new ways to really throw them off their game over there." Lopez said, quoting Spinal Tap guitarist Nigel Tufnel. "We really need to turn-up the pressure to 11!"
That's setting the bar pretty high. The 18th CSSB is no push-over. They've deployed and operated in some fairly difficult and obscure regions. In the last five years, the 18th has deployed to Iraq for Operation Iraqi Freedom, Hungary in support of Operation Joint Endeavor/Guard, supported NATO operations as part of Operations Allied Force and Shining Hope in Tirana, Albania, and conducted three Kosovo Force rotations at Camp Able Sentry in Macedonia. In 2010, the battalion served as the command and control element for Saber Strike 11, a cooperative training effort aimed at improving interoperability and preparing Latvian, Estonian, and Lithuanian and U.S. troops for upcoming deployments in support of the International Security Assistance Forces in Afghanistan.
One of the unique aspects of this particular training is that a unit such as the 18th CSSB underwent this kind of intense training prior to deployment, but that is no longer the case. This is part of a JMTC training package for a non-deploying unit, a mix of Joint Multination Readiness Center (JMRC) / JMSC training, an improved support package that balances simulations modules with training in the field.
"It is the first command post exercise for a non-deploying unit in many years to receive a combined JMRC/JMSC support package." said LTC Robert Young, Chief of JMSC's Operations Division. "It's also the next step that builds upon the USAG-G Force Protection exercise we conducted in December of 2011 and another of our steps towards future integration of our simulation capabilities in support of maneuver training at Graf."
The December 2011 Young refers to was Europe's first fully digital force protection exercise, designed for the United States Army Grafenwoehr Garrison. The all-day event took place in two adjacent buildings on the Grafenwoehr Training Area's Camp Aachen. Emergency responders and others negotiated tasks in a 3-D replica of the Grafenwoehr military community, including roads, gates, schools and the Netzaberg housing complex, while garrison leaders were able to collect information and make decisions next door in an emergency command post.
The training designed for the 18th CSSB is the first to build on and improve upon that success and technical know-how of that exercise, and another step towards JMSC's focus on integrating their simulations capability in support of maneuver training.
The December exercise also proved to be a significant cost saver for the United States Army, Europe, when compared to previous Force protection exercises both in Europe and in the United States and JMSC was quick to appropriate the lessons learned from their previous efforts and channel them back into the exercise they designed for the 18th CSSB.
"When it's done right - a realistic experience for the participants - simulations training yields two important and immediate results." said Major Adam Schlang, a Team Leader at the Simulations Center. "Our simulations prepare leaders and Soldiers for combat without endangering life or equipment. The training is updated and tailored to what Soldiers will actually encounter in actual combat situations, when they need to accomplish the mission they're ready."
Schlang then tapped the table to emphasize his next point, "The second result you get with simulations is solid cost savings, because when a unit has gone through an exercise in one of our virtual environments they literally know where to start and how to get underway when they begin training in the real world, at one of our ranges or maneuver areas."
"You can see this when you compare a unit that has trained first with us at JMSC and one that hasn't: The JMSC trained unit has been in a cumulative rehearsal, even though many of the younger Soldiers think they are "gaming" - for their training out on the non-digital ranges in the real world; upon arrival they literally know where they need to be, where their place in the organization is, for example where to park their equipment, or how to get underway, because they've already done it many times in a virtual world. There's no hesitation or confusion in this unit-- and a minimum of start up or wasted time getting going." said Schlang.
"That translates directly into cost savings, and just one example of the ripple effect that simulations training has on overall training costs. I could tell you about the cost savings of simulations on fuel costs and wear and tear on vehicles too." said Schlang. "Our website says 'We leverage the power of technology to train Soldiers for war and peace -but we're using that same leverage to save taxpayer dollars too."
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