The 1/211th Field Artillery Battalion
The Perils of Training
Page 4

The Wrong Turn
Training should be as realistic as being in combat, or at least somewhat, for how else can you really train for something that most know Nothing about. There are times during training, when it seems almost too realistic. Such was the case on one recon party that went out to look at new postitions for firing. The party consisted of 10 Jeeps and was made up of the Battalion Commander, John R. Kenney, four battery commanders, the Survey officer, the Communications Officer and the Comm Chief. The last two bringing up the rear of the party. Now most roads are controlled by men called Range Guards. Men who are supposed to keep you out of an area that is unsafe for one reason or another. Of course there is always the case where a Range Guard is not given his specific duties, and such was the case when the recon party asked if we could use a certain road. His answer was "go ahead". In less than a hundred yards down the road, machine gun fire was flying over our heads, and Captain Jean Heon and myself being in the last two vehicles, heard the rounds going off up ahead, but until we saw the column stop and men jumping out an taking cover behind their jeeps, we wondered what the delay was all about. The word was passed back to us to get back to the Guard Post and contact Range Control for a cease fire before someone got hurt. These were 50 Cal. rounds and they were bouncing off trees and rocks. It was at least 30 minutes before the cease fire was effective, but thankfully no one was hurt. Of course the Range Guard got a royal chewing out by John R.

The Last to Leave
Wire crews habitually are the last people to leave the range area when it is time for the battalion to return to a base camp. Normally it would take no more than an hour to pick up the installed wire lines and for the crews to start back but when two hours had past and still they were not in the anxiety started. At about the same time, one of the trucks, driving rather quickly, pulled up and said that one of the trucks had flipped over because of the oil slick wet road. Into the jeep, calling to the medics to follow, the rescue convoy headed back into the field. Just beyond Wheeler Sack Field we came upon the truck, the crew standing along side of the three quarter ton which was deninitely over on its back. The crew was lucky, they had been thrown clear and onto the grassy area, and aside from some bruises, no one was seriously hurt.
Training can be fun but also dangerous.

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