CRAIG T. KOJIMA / CKOJIMA@STARBULLETIN.COM
A soldier stood guard over some mock villagers in yesterday's training exercise. Battlefield training has taken on renewed importance now that more 25th Infantry Division soldiers will be deployed than previously announced, with many going to Iraq instead of Afghanistan. The deployment also will be for 12 months instead of six months.
Soldiers switch
to more gentle
combat tactics
Staff Sgt. Alex Anderson and his fellow soldiers are trained to blast into enemy territory and take command, but hours after learning they are headed to Iraq with 4,500 Schofield troops, they practiced a gentler approach.
Clad in combat gear and carrying rifles, they politely asked "local inhabitants" in Muslim dress for permission to search their homes for weapons caches and enlisted their help to avoid booby traps in a simulation of urban warfare, Iraqi style.
"We've been training to get in there and blow up stuff and deal with the enemy," said Anderson, 26, of Waianae. "Now we're training with 'friendlies' and noncombatants mixed in there. You've got to decipher who's who and what's what, and be able to react to any situation."
Officials of the Tropic Lighting Division announced yesterday that 4,500 soldiers will leave as early as February for Iraq, and another 3,500 soldiers are expected to leave in April for Afghanistan. Until now only about 200 of Schofield's 12,000 soldiers had been sent to Iraq.
CRAIG T. KOJIMA / CKOJIMA@STARBULLETIN.COM
Schofield Barracks conducted training yesterday, with some soldiers acting the parts of village "civilians."
The new marching orders are a switch from previous plans, which had 7,000 Hawaii soldiers headed to Afghanistan for six-month stints. Their tours of duty have been doubled to a full year. The deployment is the largest for the 25th Infantry Division since the Vietnam War.
"It's my turn to do my job," said Sgt. Raymond Zwicker, 23, of Concord, Calif., who, like many of his fellow soldiers, is headed to a war zone for the first time. "You've got to do what you got to do."
Yesterday's exercise took place at a training site on Schofield Barracks, where a village of two- and three-story concrete buildings with whimsical names like "Paradise Inn" sit amid foliage at the foot of the Waianae Mountains. The impending deployment made the exercise all the more real for the members of Alpha Company, 1st Battalion, 27th Infantry.
"It sunk in a little more than it would have before," Zwicker said. The "local people" -- played by other soldiers -- in the exercise carried their own weapons, as civilians will in Iraq.
CRAIG T. KOJIMA / CKOJIMA@STARBULLETIN.COM
As part of the exercises held in Waianae, E4 Spec. Jeremy Bixler, in foreground, waited to enter a room for a search.
"You have to be careful to be aware of your surroundings, watch people and their emotions and how they're reacting," the 6-foot-5-inch soldier said. "They actually do have weapons in their houses, and I'm kind of nervous about that. But if you treat them the right way, everything should go all right."
Zwicker added that he was glad he got to see his 11-month-old daughter, Savannah, take her first steps before he ships out.
Anderson also looked on the bright side: His daughter is 18 months old, so he'll miss potty training, he said with a grin.
"I'm kind of excited to go," Anderson said. "I've been waiting for it for a long time." He missed being deployed on a combat tour to Afghanistan after six years as a Ranger, an experience he likened to "training up for the big game but not getting to play."
Earlier in the day, the soldiers took part in a cultural training session led by their chaplain, who is Muslim, and filled them in on the do's and don'ts of Muslim culture, such as not making eye contact with women or shaking their hands.
"We wouldn't think about it -- if we were introduced, we'd immediately offer our hand, but that would be insulting in their religion and culture," said Lt. Col. Scott Leith, commander of the 1st Battalion, 27th Infantry. "We'd rather make more friends than enemies."
CRAIG T. KOJIMA / CKOJIMA@STARBULLETIN.COM
Soldiers of the 25th Infantry Division conducted a mock search of a dwelling yesterday at Schofield as part of their battle training. One soldier playing the part of a woman was put into a corner while other soldiers searched the home.
Leith understands the impact the long separation will have on families. He will miss the birth of his third child, who is due a month after his unit deploys.
"I think any time you ask anybody to go away from their family for a long period of time, it's tough," he said. "We'll get through it. We have very strong family readiness groups," which help soldiers keep in touch with their families back home.
Asked if he had any trepidation, given the mounting casualties from the Iraq war, he said his team was prepared.
"Whenever you go in harm's way, it's a great responsibility," Leith said. "But this is what they're trained to do. These are very talented and competent soldiers, and I'm confident they'll do well."
Soldiers are being deployed from the 25th Infantry Division (Light) and the U.S. Army Hawaii. Troops headed to Iraq come from the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, Aviation Brigade and 45th Corps Support Group (Forward). Soldiers going to Afghanistan are from the 3rd Brigade Combat Team, Division Support Command, Aviation Brigade and the Division Headquarters.
The brigade combat teams include field artillery, military police, military intelligence, engineers, air defense artillery, and support and logistics personnel.
CRAIG T. KOJIMA / CKOJIMA@STARBULLETIN.COM
As part of yesterday's training, Sgt. Jay Lawrence led a search group up a stairwell. Behind him was Spc. Ryan Goede.
