Twentynine Palms, Calif. – Soldiers from B Troop, 1st Squadron, 33rd Cavalry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division, recently tested a new Army vehicle during a unique three-month training exercise conducted at Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center at Twentynine Palms, California.

The unit was chosen to test the new Joint Light Tactical Vehicle with Operational Test Command.

The Soldiers of B Troop tested the vehicle’s capabilities for continuous operations across a 100-square kilometer training area. The open desert terrain gave the troop the opportunity to test the limits of the new vehicle in an environment that is similar to Afghanistan. Additionally, the terrain offered Soldiers the opportunity to hone their reconnaissance skills over long distances, something they are not able to do at Fort Campbell.

The mission of a scout troop is to rapidly deploy in front of a brigade combat team and paint the picture of the area of operations to assist in the brigade commanders’ decision-making process. This often forces scouts to conduct rapid planning and troop leading procedures on the move while the main effort builds their plans off the information that the scouts provide.

“We’ve been doing long movements, we’ve been doing missions at great distance, and we’ve been identifying [the] enemy outside of our weapons range, which is ideal for what we want to do as scouts – we want to identify the enemy outside of weapons range and use indirect fire instead of direct fire to disrupt their ability to operate.” said Capt. Michael D. Rodriguez, B Troop commander.

The Soldiers’ movements were oftentimes over 50 miles and the timelines were short and strict. This forced B Troop’s NCOs to report information rapidly and clearly, and the officers to make hasty recommendations based off those reports. The opportunity for decisive action training in an open desert environment over the course of multiple weeks was something few of Soldiers in B Troop had experienced, but they excelled in its execution.

“The training we received was unparalleled,” said Staff Sgt. Matthew A. Smith, a platoon sergeant. “Being able to do wide area reconnaissance and security operations in a peer to peer fight allowed Soldiers to operate freely in an environment and terrain that is not available at Fort Campbell. This kind of training is what will really prepare our Soldiers for future operations.”

The last training mission B Troop Soldiers took on was to air assault a platoon into a new area of operations, sling loading the new Army vehicles and equipment. The air assault and pathfinder Soldiers were able to effectively sling load their vehicles and successfully complete the mission because of prior training they had participated in at Fort Campbell.

Every vehicle maneuvered more than 1,000 miles of desert terrain. There are few, if any, units in the Army that have had the opportunity to conduct reconnaissance missions on this scale. The training value the troopers received and this unique chance to master reconnaissance ensures that the Soldiers of B Troop will be ready for future missions.