Training a US Army Chemical Corps Company in the Current Operating Environment
Abstract
The modern battlefield for United States Armed Forces lies in the Middle East and Southwest Asia. It has an adversary that is unconventional in nature. The complexities of developing, producing, and employing tactical chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear (CBRN) weapons make it unlikely that an unconventional enemy will pose a significant CBRN threat in the near future. However, CBRN specialists continue to be deployed in support of the Global War on Terrorism in jobs outside their areas of expertise. U.S. Army Chemical Corps company commanders will best prepare their Soldiers for today's battlefield by focusing their companies' training away from their conventional CBRN tasks and focusing instead on basic infantry tactics and tactical command post operations. In the U.S. Army today, all Soldiers of every MOS are utilized to accomplish the mission. Chemical Soldiers will be asked to perform tasks that don't sound like those the recruiter spoke about when talking about being a 74D, a Chemical Soldier. Chemical Corps leaders must ensure that their Soldiers are prepared to execute these missions. That may come at the expense of the unit's preparedness in their primary mission tasks. That adaptation of training and focus will allow the chemical Soldier to not only survive but thrive on today's battlefield.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Feb 20, 2009
- Accession Number
- ADA517831
Entities
People
- P. C. Zappola
Organizations
- Marine Corps University