Candidate Weber displayed a sense of nervousness while initially briefing his fire team. He stumbled over his words at the onset of his brief. SNC used phases such as, “I would like…” when giving orders which showed a lack of confidence. Prior to planning he did not take to time to recon the surroundings. Upon execution, SNC’s ability to lead and confidence strengthened he appeared much more clam. He positioned himself well around the fire team to ensure orders were received accurately. This also enabled him to monitor the security and progress of the task. SNC’s was penalized 60 seconds as a result of a team member touching a red area. SNC remained focused and he quickly revised his plan to remedy the situation and keep pushing. Candidate…
Example two is his handling of the staff that was being sent from the supporting units. He found that the units where not sending their best staff and instead was sending the least motivated troops. “Either because they were not convinced that the evacuation was a crucial mission or simply because they did not want to detract from their ongoing operations by spending energy on it.” (Laufer) He was disappointed in what he found so he devised a plan to get the personnel he needed. First he instructed his team leaders to identify those least suitable for the mission, second he asked all of the feeder units for highly qualified troops which was met with resistance and lastly he went to his superior and advised him that “Without the personal involvement and commitment to the mission on the part of the commanders of the dispatching units, we…
death was a result of failed accountability by his Squad leader, platoon sergeant, and his OIC.…
SNC conducted a five paragraph order that was incomplete. SNC addressed all paragraphs of the five paragraph order with the exception of the Command and Signal paragraph. A subordinate prompted SNC to brief the Command and Signal portion of the order. SNC also did not task any of his fire team to get the magnetic azimuth. Despite having an incomplete five paragraph order, SNC did brief the order with confidence, using an aggressive voice which demonstrated a clear understanding of the mission. SNC developed an initial plan prior to starting the execution. SNC struggled with inter-team communications during the execution of the mission, which caused the fire team to step off in the wrong direction. The fire team got lost and had to be instructed…
The second error that occurred was understanding airpower deployment time. The CJTF failed to integrate air planners in the planning and mission. Do to the fact that air planners were not involved key effects occurred during the battle. One was air tankers were being replaced during…
Sergeant Wentworth’s problem started two months ago he received a phone call from Lieutenant Edward Rodgers the commanding officer of the training division. The Chief is planning to change the way the department handles promotions. The Chief stated “a new way of promoting personnel based on their accomplishments, not who they know.” “Personnel will be treated fairly and everyone will be given the opportunity to speak.” New position would be assigned to a patrol officer from the squads. Wentworth immediately thought of two members, Mary Mcbride and Alphanso Torres. Mcbride, was top of the police academy with computers but she was new to the squad. Torres, completed college and had taken a computer course. What worried Sergeant Wentworth the most was they both had no rank and were new to the squad. He was not convinced that the department needed anyone without rank to be in charge of all critical department information. The Chief is trying to give anyone an equal opportunity to have input on decision. Wentworth spoke with Torres about the position and that he was one of the top candidates. Torres said he would only consider the job if he got steady days and weekends off. Sergeant Wentworth could not promise him this and because of that Torres denied the position. After, he spoke with Mcbride who was very enthusiastic about the position. She accepted the position without any reservations. Wentworth called to registered his…
This document was compiled by the IOSS project office and summarizes how many of the Joint Base Powell Infrastructure, Operations, and Support Services (IOSS) requirements listed in the draft PWS were acquired in the past. Each service area is briefly covered by providing information about any current initiatives/contracts, current performance problems, and stakeholder comments about any changes in projected requirements.…
Olson and Randy Roberts confront the difficult question of who was ultimately to blame for the complete destruction of the villages of Son My. The military named the village of Son My containing My Lai, My Khe, and Co Luy ‘Pinkville’ in reference to the color designated to the region by combat maps. Pinkville resided in the Quang Ngai province; an area known to the military to be largely occupied with Viet Cong and Viet Cong sympathizers. U.S. military and civilian leaders were beginning “to view the war in terms of territorial conquests, not the attainment of the villagers’ support”. Charlie Company 1st Battalion, 20th Infantry under Captain Ernest “Mad Dog” Medina and Lieutenant William Calley arrived in Quang Ngai in 1967. Olson and Roberts immediately point out the emphasis the company’s training had made regarding obeying orders at all costs. Right away they raise the question of whether or not there is a conflict between following the orders of superiors and following one’s conscience. Paul Meadlo, a rifleman in C Company, recalls what he took from his training: “…you’re trained to take orders from the first day you go to that damned service, and you come back and, all right, you want to try some people that had to take orders”. To make matters worse, C Company’s leader of the 1st Platoon, William Calley was incompetent. All four sources agree on the fact that Calley was painfully ordinary and demonstrated the bare minimum of what was necessary of an officer. He could hardly even read the military maps. His promotion to Lieutenant came at a time when there was a shortage of second lieutenants, but most certainly not because he was well qualified. As the platoon moved throughout Quang Ngai, his poor leadership was evident. He constantly got his men lost and Captain Medina often referred to him as “Lieutenant Shithead”. Aside from being an evident poor leader, the company was becoming discouraged and frustrated by the guerilla-style warfare the VC…
Sergeant Wentworth is concerned with the effectiveness of Squad Z. Wentworth is determined to improve their performance because of the poor performance of some of the officers. He had a problem with officer Frede Lockwood. She was difficult to communicate with after being assignment to Squad Z. Wentworth tried several times to discuss the problems about her productivity. She just made accusations that the supervisor did not know how to supervise. Wentworth arranged for a meeting with the Squad. He did not state what the meeting was about. As the meeting started he asked what was the reason for the poor performances and lack of productivity among the officers. The first to speak was Frede Lockwood and she stated that the equipment they have available is not of good quality and always need repairs. Officer William was next and he stated that some of the members of the Z Squad do not clean up after themselves. There were many problems within the group and officer Mary Mcbride appointed out that the leader does not do his job and the reason for these problems. The meeting did not go as planned and it ended in a complete disaster.…
Capt Hambrick is a smart, energetic officer whose technical proficiency has contributed to the successful execution during the course of two MEB level exercises. While filling a major's billet, his ability to plan and execute in fluid environments led to the safe and timely deployment and redeployment of over 7000 personnel and 400 principle end items. His considerable knowledge of ground, surface, and air mobility has led to both peers and seniors requesting his guidance and assistance at the tactical and operational levels. Driven towards mission accomplishment, he routinely takes the initiative and ensures that the task is completed on time and to standard. He is recommended for increased responsibilities, promotion with peers to the…
It started out like any other day on our little fire base. Our small detachment consisting of 1st PLT C CO 1-506th, C CO Mortars (minus SPC Goings), and a few more attachments (I don’t remember their roles) continued our retrograde operations for FB Nawa. It was a very small base of operation and I was told it was once the pharmacy for the village. It was also located next to the Nawa police station. Part of our mission was to train the Police and assess the village using SWEAT (Sewage, Water, Electricity, Academics and Telecommunications). Adding to this mission, we were scheduled to leave this fire base within the next few days and there was a strenuous amount of labor that needed to be completed, patrols to be conducted, as well…
In the Army, it is common knowledge that every Service Member has to be at a certain location, in the proper attire at least ten minutes prior to the stated time put out by their Team leader, Squad leader, Platoon sergeant, or First Sergeant. When a Soldier fails to make it to that appointed place in the allotted time, their short coming contributes to a mission failure and could show early signs of potential lack of career advancement as well as a general regard of contempt toward not just the squad or platoon, but the unit itself. Soldiers who fail to make it to the location that they must be at in the time given can have catastrophic results to the mission, for example: Preparing to roll out on a mission, all the trucks have had their Preventive Maintenance Checks and Services done, they are loaded up with all the gear, and just when they are about to line up all the vehicles, one of the drivers cannot find his team mate. This soldier asks all of his battle buddies if they have seen him, but everywhere they point him to leads to a dead end. He searches the tents, the chow hall, even the latrine but still cannot find him, until it is too late and they have missed their SP time. Both the driver and the gunner (once he is found) of that vehicle get a severe ass chewing, a smoke session that last about an hour and a half, a negative counseling, plus a three thousand word RBI. The remedial training that was implemented in this scenario could have been prevented simply if the soldier who was missing could have shown up on time.…
The dictionary defines punctual as: Acting or arriving exactly at the time appointed; prompt. Under the rigid and disciplined structure of military life there is no margin for error. The slightest modicum of hesitation or procrastination can result in the tragic loss of innumerable lives. There are many circumstances where a failure to be prompt could have dire consequences. Under certain circumstances not arriving for guard duty at the designated time could allow a breach of security that could ultimately end in the brutal murder of your peacefully slumbering, unsuspecting battle buddies at the zealous hands of our insurgent foes. Choosing an example from a different segment of the spectrum of responsibility, we see how a noncommissioned officer’s failure to release his soldiers in a timely manner can affect the combat effectiveness of the entire unit. If this leader’s long windedness results in a soldier consistently being released to go on shift without enough time to eat, the soldier may resort to eating junk food to prevent his stomach from reaching a painful, distended state. Over time these seemingly minor indiscretions on the part of this senior noncommissioned officer could culminate in the sum total of a malnourished, ineffectual soldier. Keeping in mind that a chain is only as strong as its weakest link, the callused behavior of one leader can exponentially reduce the combat readiness of an entire unit.…
When it comes to deciding who is going into battle with you, a lieutenant does not have much choice, his team is already trained and chosen for him, as they take us through the roster of those that will be fighting with him, one story stands out. And that is of Captain Ramon Nadal. Even though he was not called for duty, he greatly desired to go to war and he wanted a troop command post.…
Twenty five awkwardly long and silent minutes went by until the bus arrived at the front gates of the Air Base. I immediately noticed the Air Force motto that was placed prominently on a large sign that stood over the entry road. “Integrity first, Service before self, and Excellence in all we do!” At the time I did not know those words were going to impact the rest of my life. The bus finally came to a complete stop outside of a three story tall solid brick building. The bus doors opened up with a loud hiss from the hydraulic pressure being released. A man in full camouflaged uniform stormed up into the bus. He wore a black campaign hat like one that might be seen worn by state policemen. It was tilted down just enough on top of his face to cause a shadow that concealed his eyes. Without hesitation he began to shout “GET OFF MY BUS! MOVE, MOVE, MOVE!” Everyone instantly got up and forcefully pushed their way off the bus. The military training instructor (MTI) cursed and screamed at people who were not moving fast enough for his liking. We scrambled quickly to form four single file lines and faced the MTI. Then he ordered us to set our bags down at our sides. Some people shuffled…