Guard brigade prepares in Vermont for Afghan mission
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Sgt. Allen Audette of Cambridge (right) keeps guard during training for urban warfare in Afghanistan at the Ethan Allen Firing Range in Underhill on Friday. Soldiers are getting a taste of Afghanistan in the hills of Vermont, preparing for an expected yearlong deployment beginning next year. In Jericho, the guard has set up a mock Afghan village, where guardsmen this week are learning to interact with local Afghan leaders and prepare for potential clashes with Taliban insurgents. Toby Talbot / The Associated Press |
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By WILSON RING The Associated Press - Published: June 20, 2009
JERICHO — Hundreds of National Guard soldiers preparing for an expected yearlong deployment are getting a taste of Afghanistan — in the hills of Vermont.
In a heavily wooded area along the Jericho-Underhill line, about 10 miles northeast of Burlington, the guard has set up a mock Afghan village, where small groups of guardsmen are learning to interact with Afghan leaders and prepare for potential clashes with Taliban insurgents.
During a mock mission Friday, about two dozen soldiers from Vermont fought with a sniper after entering the village, made of modified metal shipping containers, while other soldiers played the roles of Afghan insurgents and civilians.
"This is really showing the soldiers how to go through a village," said Guard Col. Will Roy, a 29-year Vermont National Guard veteran who has served three tours in Afghanistan, where he's slated to command Task Force Phoenix if, as expected, the final mobilization order comes through.
He called the training a key role in the Guard's mission of "bringing security and stability to Afghanistan, working with the villagers, showing them that the government of Afghanistan is there in support of the people."
Last year the 3,500 members of the 86th Infantry Brigade Combat Team in seven states were notified they should prepare for a possible deployment to Afghanistan in early 2010. The final order could come within the next few weeks.
The Vermont-based 86th brigade would lead Guard units from New Hampshire, Maine, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Michigan and North Carolina.
Most of the soldiers training on Friday were from Guard units in northern Vermont. They are in Jericho, a town of about 5,000 residents and home to the Vermont National Guard's training facility, as part of their two-week annual training.
By the time the brigade deploys all the Vermont members will have gone through the same training. Roy said soldiers from some of the other states would train in Vermont while others would do it in their home states.
As part of Friday's exercise, the soldiers entered the mock village and were greeted by villagers who kicked soccer balls and poked at their equipment. Unit leaders then went and spoke with the village elder.
On a second trip into the village they were shot at, and the mock battle followed.
The Guard built the area in April. The soldiers who play the Afghan people try their best to make it look like Afghanistan and build Afghan culture into their mannerisms.
Staff Sgt David Bushee, a 21-year Guard veteran from Bennington, played the village elder. He wore over his uniform a ground-length, flowing gray cassock, which he called a "man dress," and held hands with other men during the exercise, typical Afghan behavior.
While he was teased by his comrades about his costume, he said the training was critical. "Whatever it takes," he said, "I'll do all that if it makes things better and safer for the guys (who) are going over there."
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