Deploying to Iraq? Lessons from an infantry company commander

Infantry Magazine, Jan-Feb, 2004 by Daniel Morgan

Home Station Training

You must train your Soldiers in battle drills and take the necessary preparations prior to your arrival. We learned as we went along day-by-day. AARs and hotwashes every time are key to success, but training at home station or in an intermediate staging base (ISB) can greatly improve your chances for success and survival. Second, units must prepare their vehicles for patrols and force protection in static positions. Third, everyone needs to critique themselves and the unit to refine and improve their actions on the battlefield.

Actual training for this threat environment remains fairly standard--minus certain non-standard situations not found in many mission training plans (MTPs). The urban environment in Iraq can be replicated at any military post urban training site. I would focus on four aspects in training:

[] Marksmanship;

[] Casualty evacuation (CASEVAC), including aerial;

[] Enter and clear a building and room; and

[] React to contact from a vehicle, a non-standard task and dismounted.

Each of these training areas must be graduated in difficulty and in an urban threat environment. A unit that trains on these areas with an unrelenting focus and discipline will succeed in this environment.

Marksmanship is the core of excellence for an infantry Soldier. Their proficiency in killing wins the battle. The more you suppress a target here without killing or wounding the enemy, the bolder he becomes in attacking you. You need to train your Soldiers to aim, fire, and kill. If an enemy opens fire with an AK-47 aimlessly, which most do, you should be able to calmly place the red dot reticule of your M-68 optic device on his chest and kill him with one shot. If you do this, the rest will run and probably not come back. This skill takes training, patience, and sadly, experience.

Units must familiarize themselves with every weapon system in a battalion. Soldiers must know how to load, fire, clear, and reduce stoppages and misfires of every crew served weapon. In combat, due to personnel changeovers, a Soldier may be behind a mounted .50 caliber machine gun or M240 machine gun at any given time. He does not need to be qualified, but he needs to know how to operate the weapon. Units must set up concurrent training at every range, utilizing training on every weapon. Leaders should also familiarize their Soldiers with hands-on training with foreign weapons, including AK-47s, (RPKs), rocket propelled grenade (RPG) launchers and warheads, and PKMs (Pulemyot Kalashnikov machine guns). Soldiers will deal with these weapons daily.

Soldiers need reflexive and quick fire training, using burst fire. Do not ignore 9mm, M249 Squad Automatic Weapons and shotguns. This training is the most practical aspect to succeeding in this urban combat. As the Soldier's proficiency increases, leaders need to reduce target exposure on computerized ranges. Enemy insurgents fire from rooftops and then hide, popping up and down. Second, practice weak side shooting and tactical magazine changes on the reflexive firing range. Third, conduct a terminal effects demonstration on engine blocks, vehicle doors, concrete, and various materials, using FM 3-06.11 as a guide. This training will help leaders choose the right weapon system and facilitate decision-making in combat. Lastly, let your Soldiers move around on the range--from the zero range to the qualification range--with loaded weapons, allowing the reinforcement of muzzle awareness and safety.