1st Battalion 22nd Infantry Co B Air Assault Training 2013

1st Battalion 22nd Infantry

Company B Trains on Air Assault

September 2013

CAMP BUEHRING, Kuwait – Soldiers of 1st Battalion, 22nd Infantry Regiment, 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team,
4th Infantry Division, prepare for an Air Assault Exercise at Camp Buehring, Kuwait, Sept. 6, 2013.

Soldiers train on air assault in Kuwait

Published Sept. 17, 2013 by Spc. Andrew Ingram

1st Armored Brigade Combat Team Public Affairs Office
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CAMP BUEHRING, Kuwait – The sound of helicopters pierced the warm desert night in Kuwait
as 10 UH-60 Blackhawk Helicopters swooped in for a landing.

Infantrymen with night vision optics attached to their helmets and weapons gripped tightly in their hands
filed out of the helicopters and quietly faded into the night.

The Soldiers, all from Company B, 1st Battalion, 22nd Infantry Regiment, 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team,
4th Infantry Division, conducted an air assault exercise and urban assault training mission at Camp Buehring, Kuwait, Sept. 6.

"We want to develop our training around the conflicts going on today, which is essentially urban operations,"
said Sgt. Maj. Thomas Price, operations sergeant major, 1st Bn., 22nd Inf. Reg. "We aren't facing enemy combatants
here in Kuwait, but this type of training prepares us for the most likely contingencies, should we deploy
to another country with a more combat-centric mission."

Under blackout conditions, using only ambient light and night vision optics, the "Regulars" moved tactically
from the Udairi Army Air Field to the Camp Buehring Training Village, with the mission to capture or kill
a high value target, entrenched in the simulated urban environment.

CAMP BUEHRING, Kuwait – UH-60 Blackhawk Helicopters carrying Soldiers from 1st Battalion, 22nd Infantry Regiment,
1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, prepare for takeoff, during an Air Assault Exercise at Camp Buehring, Kuwait, Sept. 6, 2013.

Price said every aspect of the mission, from the initial planning, to the cordon and search of the simulated town,
provided valuable insights for Soldiers throughout the battalion formation.

"Any training we conduct obviously helps our Soldiers become more proficient in their basic tactics, techniques and procedures,
but our young leaders also learn how to plan for missions and direct Soldiers under fire," he said. "Those leaders
learn how to train better, to develop their Soldiers better and instill a strong work ethic."

Upon reaching the training village, the Regulars began to secure the area around their target before taking simulated indirect
and small arms fire from within the town. The infantrymen returned fire and infiltrated the village.

"From the beginning, each of us had a very clear understanding of our piece in this mission," said Sgt. Joseph Luna,
infantryman, Company B. "Rehearsals prepared us for each of the moving pieces."

Luna said watching his Soldiers and comrades throughout the simulated operation underscored his conviction
that his unit would succeed at any real world mission they might face.

"I feel confident that I can take my team into a firefight and they would do the right thing," Luna said.
"Training in this environment has really opened up the eyes of the Soldiers who have never deployed before,
and I feel 100 percent safe with these guys on the left and right of me watching my back."

As the Regulars advanced on their objective, battalion leaders designated a few Soldiers as casualties for their comrades
to drag to safety and perform life saving aid under fire, while others continued to clear the town of enemy combatants.

CAMP BUEHRING, Kuwait – Soldiers of 1st Battalion, 22nd Infantry Regiment, 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team,
4th Infantry Division, move notional casualties to safety during a training exercise at Camp Buehring, Kuwait, Sept. 6, 2013.

The exercise concluded with the high value target neutralized and the village secured.

Complex and realistic training exercises help junior Soldiers reach the level of motivation and focus needed to excel,
said Spc. David Martin, infantryman, Company B.

"This exercise is the 'train how we fight' mentality at its best," Martin said. "Tonight's mission mirrored everything
we've been doing for the past 10 or 12 years, and helped us develop a focus I hope we can maintain
as we all continue our military careers."

CAMP BUEHRING, Kuwait – Staff Sgt. Vincent Cimino, fire support specialist, Company B, 1st Battalion, 22nd Infantry Regiment,
1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, performs a radio check in preparation for an air assault exercise
at Camp Buehring, Kuwait, Sept. 6, 2013.

CAMP BUEHRING, Kuwait – Soldiers of 1st Battalion, 22nd Infantry Regiment, 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team,
4th Infantry Division, fire on a simulated enemy position, during an exercise at Camp Buehring, Kuwait, Sept. 6, 2013

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