Posted on 09/07/2003 10:44:18 AM PDT by Prodigal Son
FORT MONROE, Va., Sept. 4 — The Army is looking to instill the fighting spirit in some unlikely combatants — its cooks, mechanics and other support troops who are normally far from the front lines.
Unlike the Marine Corps, whose credo is that every marine is first and foremost a rifleman, the Army has too many soldiers who have lost touch with their inner warrior, said Gen. Kevin P. Byrnes, the Army's top training general.
And, he said, it is time the Army borrowed a lesson from the Marines.
"We've become too specialized," said General Byrnes, the head of Training and Doctrine Command here. "Ask a junior enlisted who they are, and they'll tell you, `I'm a mechanic,' not I'm a soldier. We need to change that culturally in the Army."
So beginning next year for soldiers and in three years for officers, the Army plans to formally inculcate what it calls a "warrior ethos" throughout the ranks.
Army officials are not worried about the battle-readiness of their front-line fighting ranks, like infantry and armor troops. But for support troops, many of whom rarely handle a weapon or drill for combat after basic training, the strategy will probably mean more marksmanship practice, tougher physical training and, for officers, more small-unit leadership skills in the field.
The issue of instilling a combat mindset in troops working behind the lines has taken on added resonance since the ambush of an Army supply convoy in Iraq in March that resulted in the deaths of 11 Americans and the capture of Pfc. Jessica D. Lynch and six other soldiers.
Although the soldiers had completed basic training, they were mostly cooks, mechanics and other support personnel who had little or no combat experience.
But Army officials here said that emphasizing a warrior mentality throughout the ranks had been under way for 18 months as leaders in the Pentagon designed a force for the future that would be agile as well as lethal, and prepared to fight on a battlefield, like Iraq, without traditional front lines and rear areas.
Under plans General Byrnes discussed with reporters here, freshly commissioned second lieutenants would take a new six-week basic leadership course after receiving their commission. Eighty percent of that leadership training would take place in the field.
Officers would then go on to training in their specialized areas, like infantry, armor or intelligence, as they do now after they receive their commissions.
General Byrnes said four pilot programs had been conducted at Fort Benning, Ga., to test the concept for officers and proved successful enough that the training for new officers Army-wide would begin in early 2006. Similarly, the warrior mindset will be included in enlisted soldiers' nine-week basic training courses and their speciality training after that, beginning next year. Support troops could be tested on marksmanship twice a year, like infantry soldiers, instead of annually, as they are now.
In some ways that new emphasis has started. Training instructors in Aberdeen, Md., recite the individual citations from Medal of Honor recipients to inspire recruits. Officials here said the new credo for all soldiers is "put the mission first, refuse to accept defeat, never quit and never leave behind a fellow American."
Maj. Gen. Raymond D. Barrett Jr., a top aide to General Byrnes, said the change meant that support troops would still have physical training requirements, but they might include going through obstacle courses under stressful conditions simulating a combat setting.
Or a mechanic might pass a final advanced training course by repairing an armored vehicle damaged during a mock ambush at night and under simulated hostile conditions.
"The question is, do they think they feel like a soldier?" General Barrett said. "This would test them as mechanics, but it would also test their perseverance."
Feelings?? Fastest way to a body bag. Or did I miss something at NonCom school?
The only thing he had to fight off was the Frauliens.
Could you possibly have met DEC 1944?
I know I gave up my copy to a kid leaving for the corps tomorrow.
You're gonna enjoy it.
No.
No (not that I'm aware).
It is reserved for 11 Series MOS- Infantry only. There aint but one way to get it either- although many general officers have been known to fly into the 'combat zone' for a short time from the Pentagon to get theirs (and then they fly away again).
To the civilian, it's just a badge on the uniform. But to an infantryman, it's a career. It says loud and clear that "I have seen the elephant".
It's a rifle (silver) over a blue background with a wreath around it. It's worn on the left breast above all other awards. On BDUs it's subdued in black. There is an EIB as well (Expert Infantryman's Badge) and it is the same except without the wreath. It is awarded for proficiency decided through a series of about 30 tests/tasks that the infantryman performs at expert level. Not quite as esteemed as the CIB- but you don't have to get shot at to get it either.
If you're an infantry officer, you really ought to have one or the other. You get to Major without at least an EIB and every pair of boots in the line companies knows you screwed the pooch every time you went to test. And this is easy for an officer to do because it's always EMs and NCOs doing the grading on the tests ;-)
I dissagree totally....
do you have any idea how much civilian employees would cost?.....with unions?....with the present day civil service program, the potato peelers would make out better than the tank drivers...
even if the jobs were given to the best bidder, it would still be prohibitive and you know how slimy these generals and contractors can be....
besides...a combatant should be able to do all things necessary for his and the team's welfare....cooking, sewing, building, fixing, etc...
The problem is what to do with all those female soldiers.
I think you just about covered it!
Billybob / John
I've read nearly all of Heinlein's work, but this book stands out above all. He was an amazing writer, and patriot.
BTW - Humblegunner has "This I believe" on his profile.
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