Platoon Lessons

When I went on mobilization to Fort Lewis, Washington and left my son in the care of my parents, I thought my parental duties would be set aside until I returned home. Unfortunately, the soldiers of 351st Ordnance Company would prove me wrong with their excessive alcohol consumption, commonly term “binge drinking,” and destructive behaviors. I would then spend the next year sharing the responsibility with four other junior noncommission officers in the task of taking care of soldiers. Despite the efforts of myself and the others we were not fully prepared to handle some of the outrageous events and lack of engagement from the leadership that would challenge us during the tour. My abilities as a junior noncommission officer and the understanding of leadership were redefined and I learned exactly what it meant to ensure soldiers have proper guidance, leadership, positive morale, and well-being.

In July of 2003, 1st Battalion, 62nd Air Defense Artillery was notified to prepare for a twelve month rotation to Afghanistan (Armstrong et al., 2003). The intent was to send two brigade combat teams to rotate after six months in Afghanistan. In typical “Need to Know” fashion, 1-62 ADA was notified that they will be sent to Iraq early August (Armstrong et al., 2003). This is the first time the entire division deployed since the Vietnam War. Battalion staff began planning for several operational deployments for two different theaters. 1-62 ADA Soldiers were engaged in the Global War on Terror, combating Taliban rebel fighters in Afghanistan, and battling insurgents in Iraq (Armstrong et al.,

We had a wounded soldier, but no one was killed. We continued to work with EOD from different services for the rest of the deployment. My gunner recovered from his wounds, but never returned to Iraq. I continued to take the lead of the section regardless of my vehicle being hit. SSG Thomas couldn’t deal with being on patrol so they moved him to S-3. The soldiers were relieved when SSG Thomas was moved to S-3. SFC Lackey seemed bothered be the fact that a Sergeant lead out and not the SSG that he had designated as point man. That is why he removed SSG Thomas from the platoon. In place of SSG Thomas, he got another SSG from S-3 that wanted to be out on

Every morning we have a formation at 0630 for pt. However this formation is also used for Non Commissioned Officers to get accountability of their soldiers. This allows the Non Commissioned Officers to know which of their will be in today, which have appointments, and which will be out for various reasons, as well as informing the First Sergeant of this information. This makes sure that no mistakes are made later in the day like a soldier getting yelled at for not going to a detail when the soldier was actually on quarters. A situation which would end with counseling statements and possibly an article 15 all due to a misunderstanding. Keeping accountability for all of the gear signed off to your squad or platoon is also a large task faced by Privates, Non Commissioned Officers and the Officers who lead the platoon.

When Halstead was given this mission in Iraq, she never anticipated the challenge she would soon face. She had one year to plan her operation, train and certify her units for deployments and after months of painstaking preparation and training, Halstead was confident her soldiers and unit were ready to be certified for deployment. However, certification had to be issued by her superior, a three-star general recently back from Iraq—and the most challenging boss Halstead had ever encountered in all of her years of services.

It is where you get your orders and outlines of the day. For leaders it is pivotal for sending up personnel whereabouts. If a soldier is not present and it is not due to being on leave or on detail then there could possibly be a big problem. Accountability and duty go hand in hand. The Definition of that Army value is to fulfill your obligations and to accept responsibility for your own actions and those entrusted to your care. To find ways to improve yourself for the good of the group. It also is very similar to integrity by basically understanding that from bottom to top and left to right and anyway in between everyone is going to and willing to do what is right even when no one else is looking. Even when taking personal accountability into mind you must always keep an eye out for your buddy and hold them accountable also. Doing the job correctly and ensuring others do it as well and do it safely, because we all know that even when not in combat we could potential be in a very dangerous situations given with our various equipment, weapons and training environments. Certain examples include live fire ranges- needing to be accountable of where you are and that you have the right equipment on. If you do not have your plates in your vest and heaven forbid a misfire happens and you are struck there is no one to blame but yourself and lack of personal accountability. Another example is out in

Through their PCCs that all equipment necessary for the mission is on hand. You, the platoon

As stewards of our profession, commanders ensure that military expertise continues to develop and be passed on to aspiring professionals through operational development. It is during this developmental phase that Professional Soldiers put their knowledge and skills to the test. Operational Army units certify and recertify their Professional Soldiers through repetitive and realistic training events including the Combat Life Saver Course, platoon live fires, and exercises at the National Training Center. In the course of these challenging and realistic experiences, the Army’s operational units develop Soldiers and leaders prepared to maintain high standards, discipline, and operational readiness. Operational development and adaptability will continue to drive changes in Army doctrine, organization, leadership, and education as we enter the post-war era. Without this kind of development, the Army could not maintain a well-disciplined professional fighting force.

Although the training First Year Orientation Progam (FYOP) officer cadets receive is not exactly the same as that conducted at the now defunct Cornwallis training base, the principles remain the same. The biggest challenge observed in the early days of training was to get a group of people to act as one team. Each person arrived as an individual with their own set of values, behaviours and regional characteristics. These individuals were then subdivided into platoons, squads, or sections. During this integration process the instructors ensured stress levels remained consistently high through the use of yelling, inspections that found minute faults that were exacerbated through the dismantling of our bunk space, and decreased sleep. I now realize that these simulated or over exaggerated stresses are required to provide an indication of future tolerance for this in operations.

Teamwork, what is it? This is the question that has puzzled mankind for a millennium. Essentially it is where more than one person works together to achieve a common goal. We as people use teamwork every minute of the day, but it is especially important to the job of the Infantryman, it is the backbone of our jobs. We as soldiers have to recognize that in order to do our job we must rely on the man on our left and the man on our right. This is the basics of the infantryman 's job trust the guy to each side of you and you will make it through whatever evil hell may send your way. What happened last Thursday night was a total lack of teamwork, trust and most importantly brotherhood. Three soldiers from 1st Platoon decided to take things into

Training objectives must support the mission profile and meet the commanders desired end state. Prior to the 56TH train up at the National Training Center (NTC) the deployment location changed from Iraq to Afghanistan (case study). Changes to mission essential tasks were not identified prior to NTC, resulting in the BCT training on collective tasks and validated during MRE based on the Iraq mission profile. However, the shift to the Afghanistan mission profile created gaps in training not identified until units arrived at Bagram Air Field (BAF). i.e. the BCT had to establish an MRAP drivers training program at BAF extending the RSOI process. Training gaps were not limited to company level shortfalls as battalion and brigade staffs were not able to anticipate potential threats and capitalize on opportunities. (case study 2)

James R. McDonough sets a spectacular example of what it is to be a second lieutenant in the United States Army and what it is truly like to lead a group of enlisted soldiers for the first time. Lieutenant McDonough, a graduate of West Point, was deployed as a platoon leader in a small fort with the mission of holding a Vietnamese village out of the hands of the Viet Cong. When he arrived, Lieutenant McDonough discovered that the former Lieutenant and platoon leader of the 2d Platoon, Bravo Company, 4th Battalion, 503d Infantry (Airborne) hardly ever left his

What this means to me reading up on this is that i need to stop worrying so much about performing physically and expecting it to carry me through my military career and start becoming proficient in all areas and applying myself in areas that might not mean so much to me, or that i don't understand. Also i think i've learned that i need to stop relying on my own knowledge and start becoming a sponge to those who have been in longer than i, and when i am told to do something take it or not to do something to take it to heart and not do it again because it not only comes with punishment but also loss of credibility of those who are in charge of me. Credibility and trust are essential when working with a team of men like we do everyday, so i am going to try my best to be the best and most professional soldier i can be even when no one is looking.

Anything can and will happen especially in combat, that's why the team member should make sure that the team or squad leader know where the soldier and his or her equipment is at all times. The Army spends a lot of money on equipment and belongings for the soldiers, so the Army expects to know where its equipment is. No matter what someone is always responsible for equipment in the Army. Accountability is important because it assures someone that needs will be met. If someone is accountable, you can trust that they will do what they claimed. Without accountability you would not be able to put your trust in someone to complete a job for you and other members of the team, or even show up on time to an important event ,or formation. It is important because it holds each and everyone accountability for his or her actions.Accountability is an obligation or willingness to accept responsibility or to account for ones actions. Now for the Army, it becomes an obligation more than“willingness” while you have to be willing to do it as well. Those that are unable to be accountable are the ones that jeopardize the combat readiness of any unit. Basically it is the understanding that from the bottom up. Top down and laterally everyone is going to do and is willing to do the right thing even when no one else is looking. This is practiced at your home base where everyone is assigned

Taking initiative as a medic can be the difference between someone 's life and death. History has shown us innumerable examples of how a medics initiative saved multiple lives. The Medal of Honor has been awarded to medics who have displayed the greatest amount of courage and initiative they could. If individual soldiers that make up a medical platoon refused to take initiative, there would be significant and many more mistakes displayed by the platoon. A medic 's actual duties of treating a combat casualty or managing patients in an aid station, initiative is required to save lives or save time. Medics more than most are required to display initiative to accomplish the mission, or to move forward in the Army, especially at 2/503.