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1st Lt. Dustin Gillenwater directs his soldiers during a training operation at Fort A. P. Hill on March 10.
ABOVE: Soldiers from the
A mortar crew from the 10th Mountain Division, based at Fort Drum, N.Y., fires an 81 mm mortar during training operations that will last several weeks at Fort A. P. Hill.
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By RUSTY DENNEN
After midnight under a moonlit sky, 15 men moved slowly along a ravine in a hardwood forest at Fort A.P. Hill.
Through the otherworldly green shimmer of night-vision goggles, the squad of Army soldiers resembled ghosts as they approached an "enemy" trench. Twinkling infrared beacons attached to helmets identified the men to each other as they fanned out for the attack.
Capt. David Ike of Watertown, N.Y., the 31-year-old commander, watched every move from a vantage point about 25 yards away.
He whispered, "They are really taking their time with the approach, which is the way it should be at night."
As plastic targets popped up at the bunker, the squad opened fire. The staccato tat-tat-tat-tat of M240 machine guns and softer pop-pop-pop of M4 rifles pierced the silence. Muzzle flashes and the red glare of tracer rounds illuminated the controlled chaos.
Within 20 minutes, the firefight was over, the trench taken, and officers critiqued the engagement.
The soldiers are among a contingent of 800 troops from the 10th Mountain Division out of Fort Drum, N.Y., training for several weeks at the Caroline County Army post.
With two wars under way and other threats looming on the horizon, all branches of the U.S. military, some government agencies and troops from foreign nations train here.
It's so busy at Fort A.P. Hill that in a typical day, as many as 50 training events are scheduled around the clock, dispelling the notion that "the Hill," as it's known locally, is simply a venue for National Guard weekend warriors, the National Scout Jamboree and sportsmen.
By year's end, 80,000 to 90,000 troops will have trained at the base named after a Civil War general and whose motto is "Where America's Military Sharpens Its Combat Edge."
TRAINING 24/7
A Free Lance-Star reporter and photographer spent part of two days on the base recently, dropping in periodically on the soldiers from Fort Drum.
As one of the most-deployed Army units, the 10th Mountain Division has been through more than its share of training--and fighting--since the Iraq war began in March 2003.
Over more than 21 hours, elements of the division practiced attack scenarios, fired mortars, rifles, machine guns and artillery, threw grenades, called in air strikes, processed prisoners and cared for "wounded" under carefully controlled conditions.
During their stay they slept in the field and ate MREs--Meals Ready to Eat. Their training schedule was coordinated with the base months ago. They arrived at A.P. Hill in late February and will return to Fort Drum later this month.
Just after dawn, we joined an infantry company--about 120 soldiers--eight miles into a 15-mile march.
"While we're here, we're making use of all the range complexes and nice trails," said Capt. Rich Thompson, 32, of Londonderry, N.H.
The men (there are no women in this unit) are in battle gear, wearing Kevlar helmets and 30 pounds of body armor, and lugging another 15 to 20 pounds of gear in their packs, along with weapons.
Only a third of those trudging along a fire road on the base have been deployed to the war zones before. They'll be heading overseas this fall for a yearlong counterinsurgency mission in northern Afghanistan.
Thompson said the trek is a key part of training.
"There's a lot of walking in Afghanistan. We need to do extended-distance road marches" to stay in shape. They'll have longer marches--20 and 25 miles--in days to come.
By 10 a.m., sporadic firing could be heard all around. A guttural thump came from the top of a dirt berm at one of the installation's immense firing ranges. Then another, and another.
Four mortar squads werehoning their skills.
FIRE!
Spc. Mark Conlin's crew of four fired an 81 mm mortar at targets on a hill several thousand yards away. They fired a few rounds to zero in the target, and then several more in close proximity.
"In Afghanistan, we would use this for counter-mortar fire, or we could be on patrol and be firing" on enemy positions within a few minutes, Conlin said.
A gunner and an assistant positioned the weapon and adjusted the sights. Then an ammo bearer fetched the rounds, resembling miniature rockets, and dropped them into the tube.
"Fire!"
They practiced from the hilltop, where they could see the targets, and by running up from the bottom, to quickly position and fire.
It's exhausting: The
The mortar barrage was part of a three-pronged attack on the distant targets. Behind a patch of forest, artillery hammered the same spot.
Next to the mortar squads, another group of soldiers huddled around a vehicle, calling in an air strike. Two F/A-18 Hornets from Naval Air Station Oceana in Virginia Beach thundered overhead, awaiting target coordinates.
But there was a problem--low, thick clouds. Though the pilots were using guided bombs, they were hesitant to drop them without seeing the target.
On the ground, everything must be synchronized: Mortar and artillery can't fire when planes are on bombing runs.
"You've got rounds in the air, birds [jets] in the air Safety first," said one officer looking on.
After another pass, the ground crew waved off the fighters, which headed back to Oceana.
Col. David Miller, the brigade commander, who watched from the berm, said A.P. Hill was a good choice for the pre-deployment drills.
"It gets them away" from Fort Drum "in isolated conditions, and away from distractions at home," he said. "So far it couldn't be better. The unit is jelling and they keep refining their proficiency."
PLANNING AHEAD
The planning begins long before any weapons are fired.
"We'll start coordinating with units long before they set foot here at A.P. Hill," said Hank Hanrahan, the base's director of plans, training, mobilization and security. That can be as much as a year in advance.
"They'll usually call or visit and see a scheduler and we'll get a feel for the training event they are looking for," he said. One day last week alone, more than 60 training and testing activities were scheduled.
During any week, Army Special Forces and Navy SEALs drop in for a few days. Paratroopers jump into massive drop zones. There are ranges for most Army weapons from pistols to tanks, maneuver corridors and a new urban operations training center with simulated warehouses, businesses, homes and an embassy.
The 23rd Quartermaster Brigade out of Fort Lee, south of Richmond, frequently trains here.
Large units, such as the 10th Mountain Division, typically make multiple scouting trips in advance, drawing up detailed plans for the use of dozens of ranges and training venues.
"So there's a lot of coordination involved," Hanrahan said.
Later in the day, an infantry platoon crept through woods to capture a trench and two bunkers in a field.
It's set up so that trainees have to suppress simulated machine gun fire from one target while flanking and attacking the others.
Within about 45 minutes they had pulled back, moved ahead and managed to take the trench and the first bunker.
Firing intensified as they moved toward the last bunker.
"Sgt. Lee, do you have any [ammo]?" 1st Lt. Dustin Gillenwater, the platoon leader, yelled to one of his men. Soon the bunker was taken after a brief firefight.
Planning for the exercise, Operation Red Eye, began 36 hours earlier.
"You're laying out what each squad is going to do," said Gillenwater, 24, of Barberton, Ohio, a West Point graduate who has been in the Army for two years.
The soldiers first run through the scenario with blanks, then with live ammunition.
"Leading soldiers is the best job you can have," Gillenwater said. "I can't sit behind a desk."
As night fell and the moon rose, the men under Ike's command broke camp and gathered for their exercise in the woods.
In the distance, the muted sound of gunfire pierced the night as the squad got ready to roll.
Rusty Dennen: 540/374-5431
Email: rdennen@freelancestar.com
