Aggressive Defensive Solutions

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!”