Operation Atlas
by Spc. Shawn Miller, 109th MPAD
FORT INDIANTOWN GAP, Pa. – They may not have known each other before this week, but now hundreds of Pennsylvania Army National Guardsmen from various units across the state will be joining forces to fight together in Iraq with the deploying 56th Stryker Brigade Combat Team of the 28th Infantry Division.
The Soldiers training here as part of Operation Atlas have come from a medley of units across the state, and are acting as reinforcements and filling in vacancies in the 56th SBCT’s force. The two-week long Operation Atlas is now getting those Soldiers up to speed on the skills and training such as urban operations and weapons familiarization before they are sent to Camp Shelby, Mississippi to join the rest of the 56th SBCT later this month.
“[Operation Atlas] is a way to train the division backfills on all the tasks and training that the 56th went through at annual training,” said Staff Sgt. Christopher Lohr, the non-commissioned officer-in-charge of the urban operations course. “It will make the transition into the 56th easier for them.”
Storming into mock buildings, reacting to ambushes and firing their weapons, the Soldiers here are picking up the pace in order to catch up with the rest of the main force, which has already been conducting this sort of training for months in preparation for deployment.
“We’ve got out plates full,” said Spc. Justin Schulmeister. “It’s a much faster training tempo than normal drills.”
Coming here for Atlas, however, may well give these Guardsmen the extra advantage that they need.
The training here as part of Operation Atlas demonstrates the proactive approach that the 56th SBCT has taken toward preparing Soldiers, said Lohr. Getting them familiar with the training, as well as each other, before heading to Mississippi is very important, he added.
Coming from many different units, it’s good to get familiar with the people you will be deploying with, remarked Schulmeister, who is leaving for his first deployment.
Once their job here is done, these Pennsylvania warriors will train alongside the rest of the 56th SBCT in Mississippi as they prepare for the deployment to Iraq.
Over 4,000 strong, this deployment of the 56th SBCT is the largest deployment for the Pennsylvania National Guard since World War II. And having the only National Guard Stryker unit in the nation is a point of pride for the Keystone state.
“It’s one of the bigger moments in history for the 56th,” said Schulmeister.
