Aggressive Defensive Solutions » Fort Pickett VA

UCT-1 and AggDefSol Return to Fort Picket

Ric. — Tue, 24 Oct 2006 20:13:00 +0000

AggDefSol and Underwater Construction Team One (UCT-1) just completed a high op-tempo six days at Fort Picket, VA.
UCT-1 brought Bravo and Charlie Detachments to Fort Pickett to train with AggDefSol in October.
UCT-1 began their evolution on the small arms range with a one day tactical shooting course. They covered the M9, the M4 and the shotgun. UCT-1 fired several thousand rounds working on weapons confidence drills, negotiating adverse angles, reloading techniques, weapons transitions, and proper use of the workspace. The warriors from UCT-1 left the course with confidence they could aggressively employ their weapons in a tactical situation.
UCT-1 moved to the M240B range and again AggDefSol provided a full range day. All of the M240B gunners were able to qualify on the U.S. Navy’s new qualification course and the A-gunners had a chance to familiarization fire the M240B, many for the first time. Ken, from AggDefSol, was able to transfer some of his armorer knowledge to the gunners to ease their maintenance concerns.
Days three and four brought us to the MOUT facility where we commenced cordon and search, building clearing, urban patrol/movement, vehicle bail-outs and building blow-through. The crew worked hard and put their minds to work. As usual the warriors from UTC-1 kept their heads in the game and picked up everything that we covered.
Day five saw us critiquing the convoy operations, bridge clearings and water borne operations of UCT-1. The lessons learned in previous training were utilized and again we found ourselves impressed by the professionals of UCT-1. The final day of training culminated in three “real time” operations in the MOUT facility. We watched and listened as the crews planned, rehearsed and executed viable and successful assaults and rescue missions against numerically superior forces. Bravo Zulu

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U.S. Army Military Police Hosts AggDefSol for MOUT Training at Fort Pickett, VA

Ric. — Fri, 24 Mar 2006 12:53:00 +0000

I asked the question “Are we tracking?’ and got a resounding “Hooahh Ric.” That let me know both that what I had said was understood and made sense and that I was in the company of Soldiers. This last weekend I had the privilege of working with the 88th Military Police Company out of Fort Eustis, VA. I had been invited by the company staff to assist with the MOUT and CQB training that the company was conducting at Fort Picket VA. We spent all day Saturday in and around the MOUT facility and covered everything from perimeter operations to building clearing to full mission profile assaults. The Soldiers of the 88th made me welcome and were obviously eager to learn. The span of experience within the unit ran from ROTC cadets and privates just out of basic training up to the senior staff who have all been there and done it several times. As always, it was good to in the company of warriors again.
I was assigned to each platoon for about three hours apiece and worked my way through the company by the time we End-Exed Saturday evening. The platoons are made up of hard charging Soldiers with a desire to learn, improve and share their knowledge. As usual, I not only taught but I also learned. We started out as is often the case with a “crawl, walk, run” mindset which works. In no time at all the Soldiers were doing exactly what was needed at a real world speed. They were aggressive and decisive which is what is called for in this type of combat. They further impressed me with their professionalism during the After Action Reviews that we conducted. Everyone was open about any mistakes that they had made and clearly learned from the experience. Responsibility was accepted and learning occurred, which is of course why we were all there. By the time we conducted a full profile operation the Soldiers of the 88th were moving with skill, precision and coordination of effort. I did not see repeats of the few mistakes that had been made earlier in the day.
Saturday night was spent talking with the company in an informal setting about a great many subjects. We discussed the training that we had conducted as well as things that we had seen and done previously that did or did not work.
The camaraderie evident in the command spoke volumes about the quality of leadership in the unit. The senior staff apparently knows what they are doing.
Early Sunday morning had us back at the MOUT facility. The company moved into its objective and quickly cordoned, searched and cleared the “town.” They then conducted a proper exfiltration and impressed me with their performance. There is no doubt that the 88th MP Company is made up of dedicated professionals who are capable and ready to get the job done. We shut down the range and we our separate ways as they had administrative matters to handle.
I would like to thank the Soldiers of the 88th MP Company for their dedication, professionalism and attention to detail. I would like to thank the Command Staff of the 88th for allowing me to train along side them. It was a pleasure both personally and professionally.
“Hooahh!”

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AggDefSol team trains U.S. Navy Seabees at Fort Pickett, VA

Ric. — Mon, 30 Jan 2006 20:00:00 +0000

Aggressive Defensive Solutions had the pleasure to conduct training with the U.S. Navy’s Underwater Construction Team One (UCT-1) from NAB Little Creek, VA. As part of their pre-deployment workups UCT-1 spent several weeks at Fort Pickett, VA. In November 2005 AggDefSol submitted a bid to conduct training for the unit in conjunction with their normally mandated curriculum. Due to bureaucratic obstacles external to UCT-1 the contract was not finalized in time to take effect. The cadre at UCT-1 had met with AggDefSol and determined that they wanted some training from AggDefSol; so, we worked out a drastically scaled back training plan that allowed UCT-1 to get the most critical training within their very limited budget.

Ken, from Aggressive Defensive Solutions, and I provided two solid days of training with UCT-1 at Fort Pickett in late January 2006. Ken was chosen to assist with this particular class based on his background in urban operations, OPFOR operations and expertise with multiple weapon systems.

A long first day was spent covering MOUT concepts, building clearing, urban patrolling (vehicle and foot), cordon and search operations and CASEVAC/ QRF procedures. Several cold scenarios were run and several force on force scenarios rounded out the first day. That evening we got to spend some down time in an informal Q&A session with a few of the guys from the detachment. In addition to getting the information out there we felt fortunate to enjoy the company of our brothers in arms.

Day two kicked off with a live mission brief and a force on force operation out of the box in the MOUT facility. The gang from UTC-1 readily applied the skills that they had picked up the previous day and conducted a smooth efficient cordon and hit on an occupied building. We then moved onto the live fire convoy range. The guys paid attention and “drank from a fire-hose” to get as much information as we could give them. We covered anti-contact/ ambush scenarios and conducted vehicle bailout drills. The guys obviously took this aspect of the training seriously, which is proof positive of their professionalism and maturity. We then covered the concepts involved with shooting from vehicles while on the move. The rest of the day was spent at live fire with up to three shooters from each vehicle engaging targets at various angles and distances while on the move. At the end of the day Senior Chief Moxely and PO1 Eckroth thanked us for our assistance and said that AggDefSol was the right choice for the training.

The warriors from UCT-1 are truly professionals and were a pleasure to train with. As an instructor, satisfaction comes from the “light coming on” within the students and seeing them “get it.” That is what drives me as an instructor and AggDefSol as a company to be in this business. The attention to detail and willingness to learn and try new things is what sets us apart as a military force and the gang from UCT-1 is a fine example of that. AggDefSol is thankful for the opportunity to have trained with UCT-1 and certainly hopes to do so again in the future.

To UCT-1, be safe, be aggressive, and be victorious. Fair wind and following seas.

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