Ex STEELE BEASTS 25
Lt Nathan Bogya
“Your bags didn’t make it, they’ll be on the next flight. It’s here in an hour. NEXT CUSTOMER!”
Welcome to Atlanta.
The first clue we were off to a shaky start was an Air Tag alert: “Your Air Tag ‘luggage’ is no longer with you. It is 2,400km away. Last seen 3 minutes ago.” Slowly it became more apparent that most of the flight’s luggage didn’t connect, as grumbling passengers made their way to Customer Service, only to be met with the same response, “it’s on the next flight.”
“Everyone has a set of combats and their boots in their carry-on, right???”
For Level 4 validation, B Squadron has embarked on an adventure to Fort Benning, Georgia, to make use of the U.S. Army’s Clarke Simulation Centre, allowing the entire squadron to participate in a single scenario. But first, we need our bags—and a trip to TGI Friday’s.
An hour later, a flurry of green duffle bags come bounding out of the luggage chute and into the arms of sleepy-eyed soldiers. The first Chalk piles onto the school bus, building make-shift pillows out of their bags, preparing for the next 1.5-hour trip to Fort Benning. While the two-lane divided highway that runs through Fort Benning may allude to its size, it’s easier to use the common CAF metric: CFB Wainwright. At 736km2, Fort Benning is 1.2x the size of CFB Wainwright (609km2).
As we continue through the winding chicanes, blind corners and undulating hills, we finally reach our home for the next week, Bldg 9142. The large, brightly lit parking lot, mild temperatures and low traffic density will give way to a myriad of lower body workouts that will haunt some of us for weeks.
The mornings hit us quick: 0530h PT, 0645h on the bus for breakfast, in the simulators by 0800h. The food choices at the Dining Facility initially left many of us believing we had entered the pantheon of DFAC’s, “have you ever seen chicken fingers, biscuits and gravy for breakfast???” Once the culture shock of Southern cooking passed over, our plates began looking more like a DP1 in Gagetown: scrambled eggs, sausage, hashbrowns and coffee.
Now divided into our troops, we’re given a five-minute primer on the operation of the M1 Abrams before being set loose to find, fix and destroy targets as we see fit. The operational and doctrinal differences between the platforms are stark, but the switched-on troops of B Sqn quickly adapt their drills, buttonology and ergonomics to tame the wild horse.
As confidence grows, so does the level of difficulty: Battle Procedure is taking place between loads of laundry, traces are more complex, Tp orders are being issued at 2300h, and 0530h PT remains a constant. Traces are getting longer, the enemy skill level is increasing and the novelty of U.S. MRE’s has long worn off.
Friday’s validation sees B Sqn engaging a formidable enemy using the Fort Irwin training area: we’re vastly outnumbered, the ammo resupply function in the simulator is glitching and call signs are randomly flipping upside down, catching on fire in the process. The support staff of the Clarke Simulation Centre have the utmost professionalism, quickly trying to resurrect errantly destroyed vehicles as we head west to our first objective. With beverages prohibited inside the simulators, everyone has become a camel: unable to stop for both the bathroom or to take a drink. The both-ears-only headset, rapid-fire contact reports and flurry of orders coming across the net create an atmosphere of orchestrated chaos.
“Did anyone see that vehicle behind me take fire?!”
“2x BMP-2’s destroyed”
“9x T-90 tanks have adopted a static position”
“Break break, 22A is under contact”
“That T-90 isn’t dead, it’s still traversing”
“My Bravo callsign is K-Killed”
“Charlie Charlie 1, Frag-O to follow in 30 seconds”
“Contact, 2x Mi-24 HIND Helicopters heading west to east”
Ammo is starting to run low. Everyone has adopted strategic positions, allowing them to engage at the last minute with the minimal number of rounds possible. Call signs aren’t responding to radio checks. Comms are getting stepped on. “How much sabot is left?” “Lase that hull, how far is it?” “Hold on, what did they say on higher?” “Three rounds?! We gotta go.” “Driver get us outta here. Driver prepare to reverse…”
Call Signs start peeling off in the hopes of reaching the ammo point in time as reports of enemy helicopters start coming in. “29C this is Z21, we’re at the ammo point, MACH to follow…” “…oh, okay—SIR! THE AMMO POINT DOESN’T WORK!”
“End Ex, end Ex, end Ex, all call signs dismount and conduct Tp AAR’s, Sqn AAR to follow…”
In the end, B Sqn successfully defended Fort Irwin from being overrun. The HIND’s were necessary to wipe us out, but that doesn’t damper the mood within the Sqn. The four days of training prior to the validation trace demonstrated the professionalism and adaptability of every Strathcona involved in the Ex STEEELE BEASTS 25.
After a short night on the town to celebrate, B Sqn mounted up at 0400h and waved goodbye to Fort Benning. While we couldn’t bring the warm weather, all of our baggage managed to follow us.