![]() ![]() Many students find communications to be the most difficult part of the training, Stimmell said. They are graded on communications through live-fire exercises. Subsequent training involves call-for and adjust-for fire through voice communications via radios and also with other no-voice secure digital communications, Stimmell said. "We broke it down, so the first 10 seconds we drag and the next 20 seconds we rest, so we pretty much had one minute to drag the dummy." "We had to drag a 271-pound dummy for 15 meters within three minutes," said Abbott, who is from Jefferson, Maine. "At the company level, each infantry platoon will have its own forward observer," he said.Ībbott, who will graduate today, said she found this part of the training to be challenging. Like all Army jobs, exertion is part of the job as "13-Foxes" are expected to keep up with the maneuver elements that they are supporting, Stimmell said. "At first it's just maps and compass, then later we get to use a GPS handheld device to bring us to points," she said. Kaylee Abbott, 13F student, said land navigation began with the basics. 1st Class Joshua Stimmell, one of the 13F senior instructors. The first week and a half of training is spent learning land navigation because it's such a core skill for fire support specialists, said Sgt. The fire support specialist AIT is an 8.5-week course taught at Fort Sill. In joint operations these assets can include Naval gun bombardment and Air Force air support. They also advise the commander on how they can synchronize these assets into their maneuver operations, DeGracia said. Steve DeGracia, B Battery, 1st Battalion, 78th Field Artillery commander, whose Soldiers teach the 13F course.įire support specialists integrate any asset that isn't already a part of a maneuver (ground) commander's unit, such as aviation and artillery. When assigned to a company fires support team (FIST), fire support specialists run-and-gun with infantry, armor, and cavalry.īut the fire support specialist has many other responsibilities than just controlling surface-to-surface indirect fire, said Capt. Working with range finders, compasses, GPS devices, maps, protractors and radios, the fire support specialist is an expert land navigator, and communicator. In turn, they let the FDC know where rounds are landing so that the guncrews could make howitzer adjustments to put steel on target. The FDC artillery Soldiers processed and relayed this information to cannoneers on the gunline.Īs rounds hit in the impact area, fire support specialists at an observation post sometimes as close as one-quarter mile to the target, assessed the impact. In addition to observing impacts, fire support specialists called for fire by identifying targets and sending their locations to the fire direction center. This is the responsibility of the fire support specialist, commonly called the forward observer, which is military occupational specialty 13F. 9, 2017) - When cannon crewmembers engage in an indirect fires mission, they can't see their target so they have to rely on another set of eyes on the objective to verify if they are hitting it. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL 6 / 6 Show Caption + Hide Caption – (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL 5 / 6 Show Caption + Hide Caption – (Photo Credit: U.S. The map was a quick referenceĪnd depicted the target area with landmarks, as well as direction an. Kenny Dixon, B/1-78th FA, holds up the terrain map heĭrew of Signal Mountain during live fire training for fire support Army) VIEW ORIGINAL 4 / 6 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Army) VIEW ORIGINAL 3 / 6 Show Caption + Hide Caption – (Photo Credit: U.S. They graduated from Military Occupational Specialty 13F Advanced Individ. 1, 2017, here, as part of their fire support specialist training. ![]() Kaylee Abbott, Yesenia Gutierrez and Kenny Dixon check out the terrain from Observation Post Andrews Feb. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL 2 / 6 Show Caption + Hide Caption – 1 / 6 Show Caption + Hide Caption – (Photo Credit: U.S. ![]()
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