How do Soldiers train for and earn
the coveted Army Air Assault badge? Enduring 10 days of fast-paced training may
not seem so harsh to some, but under grueling weather conditions and long
hours, trainees are pushed to their maximum potential -- physically and
mentally.
Fort Hood, known locally as "The Great Place," is home to one of the Army's Air Assault schools. The school's primary task is qualifying Soldiers on air assault missions using rotary wing aircraft.
Soldiers undergo three phases of training. During the first phase of training, known as the Combat Assault Phase, Soldiers learn orientation and aircraft operations like helicopter landing zones and markings, aero-medical evacuation procedures, and Pathfinder hand and arm signals. Before all that, Soldiers must complete a two-mile run and obstacle course, said Capt. Stephen S. Ruff, the commander of the Fort Hood Air Assault School and the Phantom Warrior Academy.
"When the students come to me, we [the instructors] are teaching the second phase of training ... sling load operations," said Sgt. 1st Class Jared K. Winegarden, the phase two team chief and a Dyersburg, Tenn., native. "A sling load is any cargo that we are physically attaching beneath a rotary wing aircraft." Winegarden said the final phase of training deals with proper rappelling techniques, where students learn how to tie a conventional hip rappel seat in less than 90 seconds, perform several rappels from a 50-foot tower and rappel from a height of 85 feet from a UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter. Being a part of the Air Assault School holds different meaning for the school's cadre. "Being the commander of such a great school is awesome and a very unique experience," Ruff said. "I feel very blessed because I have an opportunity to command the hand-selected, top-notch cadre and the ability to work with a new batch of students each month; it's great."
Fort Hood, known locally as "The Great Place," is home to one of the Army's Air Assault schools. The school's primary task is qualifying Soldiers on air assault missions using rotary wing aircraft.
Soldiers undergo three phases of training. During the first phase of training, known as the Combat Assault Phase, Soldiers learn orientation and aircraft operations like helicopter landing zones and markings, aero-medical evacuation procedures, and Pathfinder hand and arm signals. Before all that, Soldiers must complete a two-mile run and obstacle course, said Capt. Stephen S. Ruff, the commander of the Fort Hood Air Assault School and the Phantom Warrior Academy.
"When the students come to me, we [the instructors] are teaching the second phase of training ... sling load operations," said Sgt. 1st Class Jared K. Winegarden, the phase two team chief and a Dyersburg, Tenn., native. "A sling load is any cargo that we are physically attaching beneath a rotary wing aircraft." Winegarden said the final phase of training deals with proper rappelling techniques, where students learn how to tie a conventional hip rappel seat in less than 90 seconds, perform several rappels from a 50-foot tower and rappel from a height of 85 feet from a UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter. Being a part of the Air Assault School holds different meaning for the school's cadre. "Being the commander of such a great school is awesome and a very unique experience," Ruff said. "I feel very blessed because I have an opportunity to command the hand-selected, top-notch cadre and the ability to work with a new batch of students each month; it's great."
Read the rest of the story on the
link below.
Retrieved on 19 Feb 14
Written by Staff Sgt. Tomora Clark
http://www.army.mil/article/120327/Air_Assault_training_challenges_Soldiers_at__Great_Place_/
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