by Army Staff Sgt. Jeffrey Smith
4-25th IBCT Public Affairs
2/20/2014 - JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska -- Spartan
paratroopers with the 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 25th
Infantry Division, demonstrated their unique ability to rapidly deploy
and conduct a forced-entry airborne assault during Exercise Cobra Gold
2014 at the Khok Kathiam Royal Thai Air Force Base in Lopburi, Thailand,
Saturday.
Hosted by the Kingdom of Thailand, Exercise Cobra Gold, now in its 33rd
iteration, brings together militaries from eight different nations to
improve interoperability among nations that share common interests in
peace, security and economic stability in the Asia-Pacific region.
Participating countries in CG14 include the United States, Kingdom of
Thailand, Singapore, Japan, Republic of Korea, Indonesia and Malaysia.
China, participating in Cobra Gold for the first time, was also included
in the exercise as an observer nation.
Exercise Cobra Gold 2014 incorporated all military branches from the U.S. and the Kingdom of Thailand.
For its part in CG14's fictional scenario, the 4/25th IBCT's mission was
to conduct an airfield seizure to allow for follow-on air transport of
much needed vaccines and supplies to an urban area riddled by an
outbreak of a deadly influenza virus and civil unrest.
In addition to civil problems, the relatively small indigenous defense
force at the airfield was overmatched by a violent, heavily armed group
of combative militia that had its own malicious intent for the airfield.
During the very early morning hours and in the darkness of the arctic
Alaska air, approximately 400 Spartan paratroopers, joined by several
service members with the Marines and Air Force, along with 20 of their
airborne brethren with the Royal Thai Armed Forces, boarded five Air
Force C-17 Globemaster III aircraft.
They embarked from Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson on a 17-hour,
non-stop flight, complete with two aerial refueling missions, and an
in-flight parachute rig.
Atmospheric conditions at the assault site were strikingly different
than in Alaska. When the Spartans jumped out over Khok Kathiam in the
late morning hours, ground temperatures were at 90 degrees Fahrenheit
with 80 percent humidity.
Many Spartans reported feeling a sudden rush of moist heat inside the
aircraft the moment the exit doors opened. The drop zone, a collection
of coarsely turned crop fields adjacent to Khok Kathiam's runway, lay
ahead.
Despite the high temperatures and humidity, the mission commenced. It
was a safe airborne operation resulting in no serious injuries. The
C-17s made several passes to unload the paratroopers and
heavy-equipment. Open canopies filled the sky as they drifted downward.
Paratroopers' movements on the assault site were faced with challenging
terrain, weather and heavy combat loads; but with a little additional
time, the unit was able to clear their objectives and complete the key
components of the mission.
Army Col. Matthew McFarlane, the 4/25th IBCT's commanding officer, said
he was proud of his unit's accomplishments at CG14, as they built
relationships and improved interoperability with armed forces from
partnering nations.
"We are ready any place, any time, to do anything, and those three
things are uncertain, but what is certain is we are going to do it with
somebody else, and that's our close allies," McFarlane said. "So that's
what our Soldiers are learning about during this exercise."
Royal Thai Armed Forces Maj. Surachart Ruanwong, a leader with the Royal
Thai Army, and one of the 20 Thai service members who jumped into CG14,
said he enjoyed his time training alongside American paratroopers. He
was also thankful for his group's recent trip to JBER where they visited
the Spartan Brigade and jumped with its paratroopers onto the Malemute
Drop Zone.
"I learned many things, new techniques and new doctrine," Ruanwong said.
Army 1st Lt. Richard Payne with the 3rd Battalion (Airborne), 509th
Infantry Regiment, and member of the 4/25th IBCT's advanced echelon said
working together with the RTAF has been a great experience. He said he
has learned a lot about working with U.S. allies to accomplish missions.
"It's the first time I've ever done something like this, and getting to
see the backside role of how something like this actually happens," he
said. "There's a lot that goes into it."
Army Capt. William Longwell, a future-operations officer with the 4/25th
IBCT, said the Spartan Brigade benefits from the multinational exercise
by providing paratroopers with operational experience in a full-scale
airborne assault and airfield seizure.
"For 4-25, all the way down to the lowest level, it helps us with the
partnership with fellow countries, getting used to working with
different nations, getting used to working with their military, and how
they do things, and introducing them to how we do things," Longwell
explained. "It helps all Soldiers on all different levels, all the way
from our brigade commander, all the way down to the lowest-level
private."
Spartan paratroopers wrapped up their training at Khok Kathiam the
morning of Feb. 16. The whole event culminated with a traditional
airborne wing exchange ceremony at the RTAF Special Warfare School in
Lopburi. Paratroopers from each nation pinned their home country's
airborne wings on their allies' chest as a symbol of their airborne
brotherhood.
The Spartans' final stop in the Kingdom of Thailand was at the U-Tapao
Royal Thai Navy Airfield, where they boarded U.S. Air Force C-17s and
departed for their home station.
Upon arrival, paratroopers jumped out and landed on JBER's Malemute Drop Zone.
Cobra Gold 2014 further validates the Spartan Brigade's constant state
of readiness and its capability to quickly amass combat power in
response to crisis contingencies in the Asia-Pacific region.
Spartan training will continue as the brigade maintains readiness by
prepping for an arctic airborne operation north of the Arctic Circle as
well as an upcoming Joint Readiness Training Center rotation at Fort
Polk, La.
Thursday, February 20, 2014
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