Fort Bliss Monitor

2-43 prepares for ROK deployment

Spc. Jason Stadel

Soldiers check the zero targets after the M-16 firing. All Soldiers
in the battalion were required to qualify on their assigned weapon.

Spc. Jason Stadel
108th ADA Bde. Public Affairs

For the third straight year, Patriot Soldiers from Fort Bliss are preparing for a yearlong deployment to the Korean Theater of Operations. This time, four batteries from the 2nd Battalion, 43rd Air Defense Artillery, 108th Air Defense Artillery Brigade are in the process of making themselves combat ready for the defense of the 39th parallel.

Since mid-January the entire battalion has been in the field training for any possible situation they may face in South Korea. Convoy operations, ranges, and NBC training, are just a few of the areas covered in the nearly month-long field exercise. When the battalion returns to garrison later this week they plan to be prepared for the Mission Rehearsal Exercise, which will take place in March. Once the MRE is complete the batteries deploying will be ready to take the place of their fellow Patriot Soldiers in South Korea.

“We need to be trained and ready for a real world mission,” Maj. Freddie Mack, 2-43 Operations officer (S-3) said. “Right now we’re executing all the tasks that we need to be ready for Korea.”

When the current field training is done the batteries will train to become Table VIII certified.
Other leaders in the battalion are looking at the training as a way to keep themselves and their Soldiers proficient in all combat skills.

“This is great for all the Soldiers, because we get to train on something other than Patriot,” 2nd Lt. Brent Courtney, A Btry. 2-43 ADA, said.

Courtney was the convoy commander during his batteries’ run through the convoy live fire exercise.
“This is great experience for anyone in a leadership role,” said Courtney.

“With the convoy live fire exercise Soldiers get to learn a lot on new weapons,” Sgt. Michael Lane, A Btry. 2-43, said. “This is outstanding training. We should do it more often.”

Along with the field training, Soldiers are also preparing their families for the deployment. Recently the battalion held a family readiness meeting to discuss the timeline before departure of the troops.

“The Army has done a reassessment of where the threat is,” Col. David Mann, 108th ADA Bde. commander, said as he explained to the families why the 2-43 Batteries would be going to South Korea. “What we’re doing is trying to posture ourselves to best take care of that threat. These Soldiers will keep a credible defense of Korea.”

The battalion commander, Lt. Col. Ron Williams, spoke of the importance of having an up to date power of attorney and will; he added that it will be important for the spouse to bear the responsibility of keeping paperwork up to date because of all the field exercises taking place.
When the battalion departs Fort Bliss this spring, they will become part of 35th ADA Bde.; the Soldiers who they are replacing will then become 2-43.

After the deployment the only connection the batteries will have with 2-43 are the Family Readiness Groups.
The battalion will begin its final training and field exercises in late February.



www.bliss.army.mil	Published for the Fort Bliss/El Paso, Texas Community	February 9, 2006

<map name="boxmap-b4"> <area shape="rect" coords="0, 589, 120, 600" href="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm/privacy-policy.html?o=1" > <area coords="0,0,10000,10000" href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/redirect?tag=&creative=92501&camp=8117&link_code=dl1&path=subst/misc/amazon-cobrand-cc/v3/marketing-from-associates-step1.html/ref%3Db1_assoc_29" > </map>	2-43 prepares for ROK deployment Spc. Jason Stadel Soldiers check the zero targets after the M-16 firing. All Soldiers in the battalion were required to qualify on their assigned weapon. Spc. Jason Stadel 108th ADA Bde. Public Affairs For the third straight year, Patriot Soldiers from Fort Bliss are preparing for a yearlong deployment to the Korean Theater of Operations. This time, four batteries from the 2nd Battalion, 43rd Air Defense Artillery, 108th Air Defense Artillery Brigade are in the process of making themselves combat ready for the defense of the 39th parallel. Since mid-January the entire battalion has been in the field training for any possible situation they may face in South Korea. Convoy operations, ranges, and NBC training, are just a few of the areas covered in the nearly month-long field exercise. When the battalion returns to garrison later this week they plan to be prepared for the Mission Rehearsal Exercise, which will take place in March. Once the MRE is complete the batteries deploying will be ready to take the place of their fellow Patriot Soldiers in South Korea. “We need to be trained and ready for a real world mission,” Maj. Freddie Mack, 2-43 Operations officer (S-3) said. “Right now we’re executing all the tasks that we need to be ready for Korea.” When the current field training is done the batteries will train to become Table VIII certified. Other leaders in the battalion are looking at the training as a way to keep themselves and their Soldiers proficient in all combat skills. “This is great for all the Soldiers, because we get to train on something other than Patriot,” 2nd Lt. Brent Courtney, A Btry. 2-43 ADA, said. Courtney was the convoy commander during his batteries’ run through the convoy live fire exercise. “This is great experience for anyone in a leadership role,” said Courtney. “With the convoy live fire exercise Soldiers get to learn a lot on new weapons,” Sgt. Michael Lane, A Btry. 2-43, said. “This is outstanding training. We should do it more often.” Along with the field training, Soldiers are also preparing their families for the deployment. Recently the battalion held a family readiness meeting to discuss the timeline before departure of the troops. “The Army has done a reassessment of where the threat is,” Col. David Mann, 108th ADA Bde. commander, said as he explained to the families why the 2-43 Batteries would be going to South Korea. “What we’re doing is trying to posture ourselves to best take care of that threat. These Soldiers will keep a credible defense of Korea.” The battalion commander, Lt. Col. Ron Williams, spoke of the importance of having an up to date power of attorney and will; he added that it will be important for the spouse to bear the responsibility of keeping paperwork up to date because of all the field exercises taking place. When the battalion departs Fort Bliss this spring, they will become part of 35th ADA Bde.; the Soldiers who they are replacing will then become 2-43. After the deployment the only connection the batteries will have with 2-43 are the Family Readiness Groups. The battalion will begin its final training and field exercises in late February.