POHAKULOA TRAINING AREA, Hawaii -- An ashen, tomblike mass of steel and wood looms over the group of U.S. Marines and Canadian soldiers, casting an imposing shadow over the mix of tan and green camouflaged uniforms.
Under a cloud of untimely Hawaiian rain, the geared-up Canadians trade jabs and screech Godsmack lyrics with their Marine counterparts. For one of the soldiers, it’s his first time entering the tomb, but the look in his eyes and the grip on his rifle acknowledge he means business.
Utilizing the live fire shoot house, Marines with Company F, 2nd Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment, conducted interoperability training with Canadian soldiers from Company G, 2nd Battalion, Royal Canadian Regiment, Canadian Army, at Range 8C on Pohakuloa Training Area, Hawaii, July 18.
“The shoot house will be a good wakeup call for the Marines,” said Staff Sgt. Daniel Soto, a platoon sergeant with Company E, 2/3, prior to executing the range.
“We don’t get to shoot live rounds in a situation like that often,” said Soto, of New York City. “For one, it provides a reality check and secondly, it forces them to exercise good weapons and fire discipline.”
Before entering the shoot house, the Marines and coalition forces underwent classes and practical applications. This culminated in the performance of a dry run in a tape house, a mock shoot house constructed using engineers’ tape.
Upon the command to make ready their weapons, two-man stacks of Canadian soldiers placed them on safe, inserted magazines and racked back their charging handles. After stacking up, they yelled, “Open door right!” and made their way into the shoot house, neutralizing green foam targets with a controlled pair of shots. With the snap of each round, the musky yet welcome odor of gunpowder wafted into the observers’ nostrils.
Under the watchful eyes of their Marine evaluators, the soldiers made their way through each small, red-walled room to the next, communicating the entire time. Finally, they came to the last room. After quickly clearing it out, a soldier shouted to pull back.
Their Marine evaluators cleared them of ammunition and conducted a post-mission brief, offering suggestions on how to improve their room clearing procedures. Examining a battered target, an instructor told one of the soldiers, “You got the plate and it’s a kill shot.”
While the Marines and coalition forces share many similarities in tactics, techniques and training, slight differences enable both sides to reinforce their standards and add a new dimension to how they operate.
“Working with the Marines during RIMPAC has been a great experience so far, from the top of the rank structure to the bottom,” said Capt. Aaron Guzzwell, a platoon commander with Company G, 2 RCR. “Being here allows us to work with our coalition partners in a realistic way, one we’d foresee in an actual situation or environment. We’ve been able to do a lot of cross training, especially at the lower levels, and this will pay dividends for us all in the long run.”
Recently tasked as a noncombatant evacuation operations company, Company G, 2 RCR, has been tailoring their training at the company level in a permissive environment, said Guzzwell, of Gander, Newfoundland, Canada.
Despite having the assets aboard their home at Canadian Forces Base Gagetown, New Brunswick, Canada, they don’t often have the chance to utilize them, he said, and his soldiers have undergone a significant portion of their training using blank or simunition rounds.
“To be able to come to PTA, go live in the shoot house and see how the Marines work inside is an invaluable opportunity,” Guzzwell said.
The range was conducted as part of the biannual, multi-national Exercise Rim of the Pacific 2010, providing the Corps an opportunity for integration and interoperability with coalition forces. In the larger picture the training will be used to enhance regional security and build a task force ready to respond to a broad spectrum of crises. Nevertheless, the benefit also reaches those putting boots on the ground.
“It’s been a good experience working with our sister uniforms, even just to see the difference between their rank structure and ours,” said Miami native Sgt. Juan Vasquez, a squad leader with Company F, 2/3. “Seeing how they work and taking their good parts can help better our [standard operating procedures].”
During the remainder of the RIMPAC training at PTA, rifle companies comprised of 2/3 Marines and coalition partners will focus on squad-level training, utilizing a squad assault range to increase infantry skills and an unknown distance rifle range to further marksmanship proficiency. Furthermore, a machine gun familiarization range will allow the coalition partners to attain interoperability between weapons systems.