Texas Guard Troops Maintain Combat Edge

Defend America News ^ | Oct 13, 2005 | Army Master Sgt. Lek Mateo

[SandRat]

U.S. Army Cpl. Billy J. King, of Burnet, Texas, and a designated unit marksman with Company B, 2nd Battalion, 142nd Infantry Regiment, 56th Brigade Combat Team, 36th Infantry Division, Texas Army National Guard, sets his sights and prepares to engage a target down range with his M-24 sniper rifle during a training exercise in southern Iraq. U.S. Army photo by Master Sgt. Lek Mateo More Photos

Texas Guard Troops Maintain Combat Edge
The soldiers try to conduct as much training as they can between their combat missions in order to hone their marksmanship skills and refine their battle drills.
By U.S. Army Master Sgt. Lek Mateo 56th Brigade Combat Team Texas Army National Guard ALI AIR BASE, Iraq, Oct. 13, 2005 — Every soldier must know and be proficient in the combat fundamentals of shooting, moving and communicating if they are to survive in a combat situation -- especially in Iraq. The infantrymen of Company B, 2nd Battalion, 142nd Infantry Regiment, 56th Brigade Combat Team, 36th Infantry Division, Texas National Guard, are well aware of the importance of maintaining their combat edge -- particularly that of being able to fire their weapons and hitting a target under fire with deadly accuracy. "It doesn't matter if you are an infantryman, cook or a mechanic; you always have to be prepared in case the fight comes to you." U.S. Army Spc. Jorge Silva The unit soldiers try to squeeze as much training as they can between their combat missions in order to hone their marksmanship skills and refine their battle drills on a coalition rifle range located in southern Iraq. U.S. Army Sgt. Ephraim A. Gomez, of Hondo, Texas, is a rifle team leader of the 2nd Battalion, 142nd Infantry Regiment. He explained that the training is very beneficial because it gives his soldiers the confidence in their weapons and allows him as a leader to evaluate his men in a controlled environment to see if they need any additional marksmanship training. "It's very important to give our soldiers some trigger time so that they can maintain confidence in their weapons and shooting abilities," he said. Gomez noted that his soldiers have not had to fire their weapons in a combat situation on any of their patrols in the nine months they have been in Iraq, but he stressed that they cannot let their guard down and everyone on the team must be ready to react and fire their weapon and hit a target while under fire. "We want shooting to be second-nature for our soldiers so they won't hesitate when the time comes on the field of battle," Gomez said. No one on the team knows the importance of marksmanship training more than Cpl. Billy J. King, who is the unit designated marksman.	The Burnet, Texas, native was assigned the important position because of his exceptional shooting ability and his training to engage targets miles away that cannot be seen by the naked eye with his high-powered M-24 sniper rifle. King said that marksmanship is a very perishable skill that soldiers can lose if they don't fire their weapon. He added that constant training is very important for everyone, especially those in a marksmanship role, because they are trusted by other soldiers to make the split-second decision and take the shot that may save someone's life. "As a marksman you get only one chance to make the critical shot," King said. "And that round needs to count." Besides firing their personal and crew served weapons, the soldiers also had a chance to employ other weapons in the infantryman's arsenal that is designed to produce multiple casualties. Spc. Jorge Silva, of Laredo, Texas, tried to keep his cool and stay focused as he prepared an M-18Al Claymore mine for detonation at a cardboard target down range. Silva confided that he had butterflies in his stomach because this is the first time that he has fired a real claymore mine and was pretty nervous. His hand trembled as he carefully inserted the blasting cap into the body of the anti-personnel mine and aimed it at the base of the target while lying in the prone position under in the hot sun. Safely protected behind an earthen berm, Silva yelled out "Fire in the hole!" three times and squeezed the firing device, which sent a volt of electricity down a 100-foot wire to detonate the mine. The detonation caused a loud explosion and sending thousands of small pellets into the target. Afterwards, Silva said he felt much more confident. He stressed that every soldier in the unit needs to be familiar and be able to fire all their weapon systems because if one of them goes down then someone else needs to be able to pick up the weapon and continue the mission. "It doesn't matter if you are an infantryman, cook or a mechanic; you always have to be prepared in case the fight comes to you," Silva said

[SandRat]

Texas "T" Div Guard PING

[txradioguy]

Allow me to proudly brag that when I was in the Tx. Army Guard....that MSG Mateo...the autohor of this story...was my platoon sergeant.

HOOAH!!

[PGalt]

Very good article. Thanks for posting and your continued service.

[Calpernia]

"It doesn't matter if you are an infantryman, cook or a mechanic; you always have to be prepared in case the fight comes to you."

U.S. Army Spc. Jorge Silva

[Alamo-Girl]

Thanks for the ping!

[E.G.C.]

BTTT