Page 57 - The Cormorant Issue 14

Members of the Course discussing the briefings
lenges. Aside from the obvious difference in the very significant size of the US Army in comparison to most other nations rep- resented on the course, General Troy focused on the impact that 10 years of fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan has had on his Service but also on the families of Service personnel. In this respect, it was impossible not to be struck by the substantive and substantial practical measures which the US has put in place for Service families, ranging from through-life medical care, education benefits for serving personnel and their children, and excellent housing benefits.
The Visits
Interspersed with the briefings, was a series of visits. All mem- bers of the course visited the National Mall in Washington DC, taking in the Lincoln Memorial, White House, Congress, and the various war memorials, including the Vietnam and Korean War monuments. The Course also visited Arlington Cemetery and many were silenced by the dignity of the ranks of marble head- stones, the very simple burial sites of John F Kennedy and his brother, Robert, and the moving ceremony of the changing of the guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.
After a four-hour coach trip south of Washington DC, we spent two days visiting the Naval shipyards in Norfolk, Virginia. Vari- ous briefings were received, but the highlight of this phase of the visit was a tour around the USS Kearsage, a Landing Helicopter Dock, capable of carrying significant numbers of aircraft and heli- copters, deploying landing craft by ‘sinking’ into the water and serving as a floating hospital.
The final leg of the visit involved briefings from the US Marine Corps at their huge base at Quantico. This visit also included a
The Commandant, sporting his USS Kearsage cap
tour of the US Marine Corps Museum, which is an exceptional facility that stands amongst the best military museums, and was an excellent visit.
Cultural Activities
The week involved a number of very long days but Course mem- bers still managed to squeeze in one or two cultural activities in the evenings. This included obligatory shopping in the US Navy Base Exchange and the opportunity to watch a baseball match in Norfolk, Virginia. The ACSC football team also took on the Pentagon soccer team in, what has now become, an annual match in memory of those lost in the 9/11 attacks on the Penta- gon. Despite the injury to one of the Course, the match was a sportingly-fought encounter in almost record-breaking heat and humidity, but the Pentagon team won, 1–0.
JSCSC vanquished, but with pride intact
An Unrivalled Ability to Navigate the US Military
Given that we’re at a post-graduate educational institution, it’s interesting to note that ‘triangulation’ is also an academic prin- ciple. In academia, the principle is applied in much the same way as hill-walking: triangulation is supposed to use multiple, independent data sources to support or, at least not contradict, a set of findings. The regional security exercise conclusively proved through briefings, visits and documentary evidence, how little we previously knew of the US military. Unparalleled access to the most senior US military and diplomatic speakers was the undoubted highlight of the Course.
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