Page 29 - Bugle Issue 16 Autumn 2020

4RIFLES
4 RIFLES’ First Unconventional Warfare Exercise –
A Team Operations Colour Serjeant’s Perspective
This training cycle saw R Company given the opportunity to pilot an Advise, Assist, Accompany and Enable (A3E) Collective Training Exercise alongside US Special Forces. The ‘Unconventional Warfare Exercise’ (UWEX), as it is known is US military parlance, was the culmination of an 8-month PDT cycle in which R Company were charged with driving the development of A3E training.
In late February, Company and Team HQs headed across to the United States for an academic phase, Exercise UWEX EAGLE SAGE. The remainder of R Company arrived in late March, with all elements marrying up in Fort Hood, Texas, ahead of the main field exercise.
After a long flight and what felt like an
even longer drive, courtesy of convoy leader CSjt Gary ‘Slalom’ Hunt, we arrived at Fort Campbell, home to the famous 101st US Airborne Division. During this week-long phase, the Team Commanders and Team Ops Officers were given a huge insight into how our American cousins conduct business; although only a small snapshot, this was a huge benefit to us. The vignettes, procedures and lessons learnt gave us a lot to consider ahead of the field exercise.
On completion of the academic week, we left the bright lights of Nashville behind and headed to Fort Hood, Texas, to prepare for the arrival of the R Company main body. In the next phase, each team would rotate through a series of 4 RIFLES-led exercise lanes. This was designed to allow the Teams to shakeout and rehearse not just drills and actions on, but also
conceptual training and planning for various scenarios. For the old and bold among us, it was difficult at first to leave the pamphlets to one side and construct a composite course of action. However, once we realised that this was the time for us to trial and push bounda- ries, the Teams fully embraced the newfound freedom.
During the final phase, R Company deployed with a partner force attached to each Team. Our partner force from the US Cavalry played the role very well, which added to the realism and highlighted the requirement for concise and robust planning. The exercise also enabled the Company Teams to practice and rehearse with broader 6th Division attach- ments, including members of 77th Brigade, air controllers from the Royal Artillery’s specialist Sphinx Battery, unmanned reconnaissance drones and intelligence specialists. The
we left
the bright lights of Nashville behind and headed to Fort Hood, Texas
scenario was complex, and this was added
to by working under a US command. As the exercise progressed, it was interesting to hear the various approaches taken by the different teams to achieve their aim.
In summary, the unconventional warfare exercise was a great opportunity for R Company to not only train in a different environment, but to also to be at the forefront of capability development within the Army’s new 6th Division and genuinely experiment with tactics, techniques and procedures. We now just require the right operational tour to test it all!
CSjt Nick Fowler R Company
R Company deploy on a
partnered HAF in the USA
Team 9 prepare to deploy on an OP using a
civilian smuggling route for insertion
RIFLES The Bugle 29