Katonah Area Army National Guard Members Complete Training in LA

KATONAH, NY — Three local members of a task force with the New York Army National Guard’s 27th Infantry Brigade Combat Team completed a force-on-force training exercise in Fort Polk, Louisiana, July 29 and are heading home.

New York Army National Guard 1st Lieutenant Mark Lucaj, of Katonah, Sergeant Thomas Newman, of Katonah, and Specialist Vincent Zafonte, of Pound Ridge, completed training and will be redeployed back home this week.

Lucaj was part of the Alpha Company, 1st Battalion, 69th Infantry Regiment.

Newman was part of the Alpha Company, 2nd Battalion, 108th Infantry Regiment.

Zafonte was part of the Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 69th Infantry Regiment.

The troops, with more than 5,000 participants from more than 30 states across the country, spent nearly the month of July at Fort Polk as part of the training rotation at the Joint Readiness Training Center.

The maneuver training was designed to challenge all the components of the maneuver brigade, including infantry, artillery and aiation operations, engineering and reconnaissance tasks, logistics and resupply and medical support and personnel replacements.

The Joint Readiness Training Center allows Army units to conduct combat training in a realistic environment which features a well-trained opposing force, civilian role-players on the battlefield, high-tech systems which monitor the action, and observer-controllers to evaluate unit actions.

All of the exercise participants and opposing force troops wore the Army's Multiple Integrated Laser Engagement System (MILES) gear for the exercise.

The gear consists of a sensor-leaden harness worn by the Soldier and a halo of sensors attached to the Soldier's helmet. In addition to sensors, every weapon system also includes a laser emitter.

When the Soldier fires a blank with their weapon, the laser fires a beam. If a target sensor receives a hit, then the Soldier is considered wounded or a vehicle disabled, requiring all of the combat response actions to provide first aid and evacuation.

The MILES gear enables infantrymen to conduct realistic combat training against a real enemy opponent and forces combat medics and logistics personnel to hone their skills by treating simulated battlefield injuries or evacuating damaged vehicles.

JRTC is one of the Army's three combat training centers at which brigade-sized units can conduct realistic training against an opposing force. JRTC specializes in light infantry warfare and operations. For Soldiers, it is considered by Soldiers as the Super Bowl of Army training.

The redeployment for the thousands of Soldiers back to their home states is expected to be complete by August 5.

Photo credit: Courtesy.