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Camp Atterbury, Indiana

Life of a military man -

Although soft spoken, Elva Einsel continues to spread the word on the efforts her late husband, Maj. Gen. David Einsel, made to the country he loved in two wars and peacetime.

She's been promoting three books chronicling his life and service, and has made a number of speaking engagements to share her husband's story. The tales of valor at places such as Heartbreak Ridge are intermingled with anecdotes of their lives as a career army family.

"Dave graduated from Ohio State University, and had orders to go to Korea the same day," she recalled. "He had to leave and go to Camp Atterbury, check in and go to Korea."

She recalled his story of what became known as the battle of Heartbreak Ridge.

"They had orders to go up the mountain to a hill with a 155, hill 940, to protect the troops that would be coming up. The trouble was that the roads in Korea were only four feet wide, and the gun was six feet wide. They had to dig an extra two feet to get the thing up the mountain."

They went up at night, and set up the radio station, so they could call planes in if needed, Elva said.

"But the enemy must have been watching, because the next morning, all of them had been fired upon immediately, and they were all killed. He called for the planes, but they couldn't get there fast enough to help."

"Two of his buddies were hurt badly, one was hit by shrapnel in the foot and the leg, the other one didn't make it, he was hit so badly. Dave was hurt trying to get the wounded to a place for help, and he was hit with shrapnel."

"It was later known as Heartbreak Ridge, but he didn't know it," Elva said. "Until his mother got a letter and read it in the newspaper was it known as Heartbreak Ridge."

"I can remember he said it was terrible, that there were pieces of bodies and trees everyplace," Einsel said.

After serving in Korea, he had numerous statewide assignments where he put studies in chemistry and physics to good use.

"We were lucky to get back and assigned to Edgewood Arsenal, where he worked in the medical labs to decide which chemicals were best in making antibodies against nerve gas," she said. "Also in the making of a protective mask in case of a chemical attack."

The family was then sent to the University of Virginia, where David was to get his masters degree in physics.

"It was there that he built the ultracentrifuge for Dr. Jesse Beans, the head of the physics department at UVA," she said. "It was similar to the one he built at OSU before he left. It set the world record for speed of rotation, it had to be housed where it could be watched day and night."

From the university, he was sent back to Edgewood Arsenal, where he received orders to go to Las Vegas.

"That was where they were going to detonate the last atomic bomb above ground," Einsel said. "He asked me to come out to see the last one detonated."

She was also asked to photograph it, with directions.

"It was 4:20 a.m., and I was to watch for a green light," she said. "When it went off, it was so absolutely startling. And I felt the heat from it, even though I was 70 miles away from it."

Moving yet again, the Einsel's next stop was Alabama, where Dave was to take an advanced course for chemical corps. This was the time of the Selma civil rights march, and she heard marchers were coming through Anniston.

"I pulled the old Edsel underneath a hedgerow in the back," she said. "They were marching, yelling and singing, they turned over a trash can, and one guy spotted the Edsel. He saw the old license plate, and he started yelling, 'Yankee go home.'''

They moved to Washington, where Dave taught chemistry and physics at West Point.

When Dave was called to duty again in the Vietnam War, Elva and the children were escounced in an apartment in Virginia.

He asked to stay on to teach, yet received orders to report to Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.

"A general could never fully reveal, publicly, where they were moving troops, but their orders were to go to Vietnam," she said. Her husband was part of the advance team, in charge of the Chemical Corps, defoliating trees before they could build a base.

She said at one point, Dave was at DaNang, and enemy troops were crossing the border into Cambodia, and he would call President Lyndon Johnson to ask him what to do.

"There was a 24 hour time difference, but they didn't want to get into a war in Cambodia," Elva said. "One night, one of the tents was destroyed. He asked permission to get tear gas from Fort Benning, knowing that the enemy troops would not have any tear gas, and would not be able to see to shoot their guns."

The next night, Einsel said, a lot of the enemy troops dropped their guns and ran across the border.

"That saved our boys, and they didn't come back that way anymore," she said.

He worked for a while as an officer in the Strategic Defense Initiative, or Star Wars.

Dave retired from the Army in 1985, and was preparing to fulfill a lifelong dream to return to Tiffin. Elva recalled one incident that derailed his plans, temporarily.

"We had come up to the farm to do some work on the house," Elva said. "He and his brothers agreed that whoever was out of the Army first would build a house next to the farm.

No one knew where they were, or so they thought. Dave received a phone call that morning, from Marc Casey of the CIA, saying he needed to talk to him, and he was expected at a meeting in D.C. at 9 a.m.

When the agent was asked by Dave how he got a hold of him, the agent's reply was, "I keep track of you." The couple drove back to make the morning meeting the next day.

Dave was to be asked to go around the world about four times a year, and keep track of the nuclear, chemical and biological weapons stored.

He did that for four years, when a bout of double pneumonia, which landed him in the intensive care unit helped him decide to refocus, and retire.

Dave Einsel's uniform, medals and memorabilia are now housed at the Seneca County Museum. Copies of each of his three books, "Boyhood to Heartbreak Ridge," "West Point and Vietnam," and "Duty, Honor, Country," are available by calling Elva Einsel at (419) 447-9048 or at Paper & Ink, 98 S. Washington St.

Source: Advertiser-Tribune.com

October 22, 2008 - A little history on the Lebanon National Guard Armory and the Howitzer

Battery C, 2ND Battalion 150TH Field Artillery Regiment

The building was dedicated on July 4, 1941 to replace the old armory located on Indianapolis Avenue. At that time, the howitzers were pulled by horses.
The piece sitting in front of the Armory is an M110A2 Self-Propelled, 8-inch howitzer. This piece was fielded to the unit in 1972 when the battery changed from towed 8-inch to self-propelled.
In 1996, the Battery changed back to a towed unit and changed from Battery D to Battery C. At that time, this 8-inch howitzer was demilitarized and placed in front of the armory on display.
The M110A2 Self-Propelled 8 inch was manned by a crew of 7 and could fire its 200-plus pound shell up to 18.6 miles with devastating accuracy. The howitzer’s lethality was defined by a 75-meter kill radius and a 200-meter burst area. This howitzer was last fired at Camp Atterbury in June 1996 before being demilitarized for display.

June 16, 2008, Atterbury command 'on top of' tornado, flood cleanup

By JOSEPH S. PETE
Staff writer

Soldiers at Camp Atterbury have been cleaning debris and rebuilding from two natural disasters that struck the post in less than a week. A tornado June 3 did an estimated $20 million in damage. On June 7, floodwaters swept over bridges and washed away a number of road shoulders and about 3 miles of railroad bed along tracks that run through the post. Damage was estimated at $800,000. U.S. Rep. Mike Pence, R-Ind., said the devastation wouldn't affect the post's status as a federal mobilization station. Army officials have pledged to supply money needed to rebuild. Floodwater remains in a number of places throughout the 33,000-acre post, including over some roads, said Maj. Andrew Fitzgerald with the camp's department of public works. The department had been located in a double-wide modular office. The tornado tossed that structure onto a building. The office has relocated to an administrative building while it assesses the damage. Debris has been cleared from a number of roads, and contractors need to replace some of the shoulders, Fitzgerald said. The worst flood damage was to a railroad spur that runs through the camp. During World War II, the tracks were used to move troop trains; but now they are used mostly for shipping military supplies, he said. Overflow from Sugar Creek washed out nearly three miles of railroad bed, which left the tracks resembling a roller coaster, Fitzgerald said. Post officials hired Indianapolis-based Milestone to haul gravel to the site. Cleaning up and assessing the damage after two natural disasters has put a strain on the post's manpower, but the rebuilding has proceeded quickly. Much of the tornado debris has been cleared from the hardest-hit areas. An estimated 65 buildings and more than 90 vehicles were damaged in the tornado. A preliminary assessment found that 14 buildings and modular units sustained damage extensive enough that they likely will be demolished. "We have to rebuild after not just one but two disasters," Fitzgerald said. "But the command has been on top of it, and you'd be impressed with the speed with which we've moved to rebuild."

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Regal sounds from likes of 'Duke,' 'Count' recalled

March 2, 2008

For many, "Goin' to Chicago" is a line from a blues classic that Jimmy Rushing recorded years ago with the Count Basie Band.

For others, especially those of us who grew up in Gary between World Wars I and II, it meant boarding the South Shore and getting off at the last stop, Randolph Street.

Beyond that, it meant wonderful places, where the great musicians of the 1930s and early '40s could be seen, often danced to and, most important, just listened to. They could be found in clubs and bars and onstage at movie houses. They appeared in swinging big bands and in intimate combos.

Before going any further with this, I should point out I am not a musician. You needn't be a poet, though, to appreciate Shakespeare's sonnets, or a painter to recognize that Rembrandt knew what he was up to. So I don't have any compunction about talking music.

And what music it was! If your taste ran to pure Chicago jazz, you could find it in a club on the near North Side. I've forgotten its name, but not the performers, men whose names had already become legendary -- Muggsy Spanier, Dave Tough, Charlie McPartland, Miff Mole, and on and on.

They had done "Wish I Could Shimmy Like My Sister Kate," "Indiana," "The World Is Waiting for the Sunrise" and the rest of that book 1,000 times, but when they took up their instruments and counted off a number, it came out as fresh as ever.

Not far away was a cellar spot called the Blue Note. Exactly when it came on the scene, I don't remember, but I certainly remember a night spent there listening in awe to the Duke Ellington Band. They went through their standard repertoire, mostly the work of Ellington and his brilliant arranger, Billy Strayhorn -- "Take the 'A' Train," "Solitude," "I've Got It Bad." The list is endless. Ellington's sidemen, among them Johnny Hodges, Ben Webster, Ray Nance, Lawrence Brown, were perfectionists who set the standards for their instruments.

At a little bar called the Brass Rail, you could almost always find a small group featuring well-known names, maybe just one man with a trumpet or clarinet backed by a piano. I remember walking past and hearing "Dancing on the Ceiling" as few clarinetists could do it. Inside I found Buddy DeFranco, and I stayed for a while.

There almost always was a band in the Panther Room of the Sherman Hotel. Just before going off to the Navy, I saw the Glenn Miller Orchestra there.

Not long afterward, he would go into the Army Air Corps. The draft had already taken many of his sidemen -- "Trigger" Alpert, the base player, had come up from Camp Atterbury and was sitting in, in uniform -- but the famed Miller sound hadn't changed. The reeds sounded as round and full as ever.  

Vaudeville was still alive then, if barely, and, at the Chicago Theater and the State Lake, the film fare often was accompanied by live entertainment, sometimes the likes of Benny Goodman, Cab Calloway, Tommy Dorsey or his brother, Jimmy.

This is only the tip of the iceberg. Limited space makes it impossible to mention all the ballrooms, the places on Clark Street, on the South Side, bars you might just come upon with no idea that live, professional musicians were performing inside.

It was a wonderful time to be alive and young.

We won't see its like again.  Francis B. Kent Post-Tribune columnist

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Indiana Soldier Awarded, Promoted By Valor

By Rob Cooper

Indiana's adjutant general awarded the state's highest military award Tuesday at Camp Atterbury to local Guardsmen for his role in saving a truck driver's life last March. Following an award ceremony, the general promoted the soldier valorously, an act that had never before taken place under current Indiana National Guard command.

Spc. Jed Ness was awarded the Indiana Distinguished Service Cross by Maj. Gen. R. Martin Umbarger and was given a valorous promotion to the rank of sergeant for saving the life of James Jones on March 20.

Umbarger said that after researching Ness' military service, he felt that the Huntington native deserved a promotion that merited his outstanding record and valiant deeds.

Indiana Adjutant General Maj. Gen R. Martin Umbarger (left) shakes hands with Spc. Jed Ness during an awards ceremony Tuesday, Dec. 12, at Camp Atterbury, Ind. Ness received the Indiana Distinguished Service Cross,the state's highest military award, for saving the life of a truck driver last March. Ness also was valorously promoted to sergeant, which has never taken place under Umbarger's command.

"I knew that I was coming to recognize the Soldier and award him a heroic action medal," Umbarger said. "As I researched and spoke with other who worked with him, all I heard was he was extremely disciplined and very active in his work at Camp Atterbury. I decided to exercise my right as adjutant general and promote him."

"You just don't give those promotions out," Umbarger added. "This is based on outstanding circumstances, and I felt that sergeant Ness deserved to be recognized for his service and dedication to Indiana."

"I didn't expect all this," Ness said, who is known by his peers for his modest demeanor and solid work ethics. "For me to receive the cross and for general Umbarger to promote me, there are just no words to express the feeling."

 

Spc. Jed Ness talks to Indiana Adjutant General R. Martin Umbarger after receiving the Indiana Distinguished Service Cross Tuesday, Dec. 11, 2007, at Camp Atterbury, Ind. Ness was given the award as well as a valorous promotion to sergeant for saving the life of truck driver James Jones last March. After Jones backed his truck into a power line, Ness prevented him from leaving being electrocuted.

"For me, being able to see that man go home at the end of the day to see his kids and wife is my biggest reward," Ness said. "It's an unfortunate thing to be put in that situation, but it's part of the job and a risk we as Soldiers take every day."

Ness, who has served in both the Navy Reserves and the Indiana National Guard was excited to be promoted.

"I'm happy that I finally made Sergeant," Ness said. "I just didn't make high enough points on the board, that's why I figured I was never promoted. I figured that if someone had higher points on the board, they deserved it more than me."

According to the Indiana National Guard's Enlisted Promotion branch, only six months of holding specialist rank are required for promotion to sergeant. A Soldier is also placed on a board and given a score based upon leadership evaluations, physical fitness, weapons qualification and other considerations. The points are then compared against other Soldiers within their job description, and those with the highest scores are considered for open sergeant positions throughout the state.

Indiana Adjutant General Maj. Gen R. Martin Umbarger tears off Spc. Jed Ness' rank before promoting him to sergeant during an awards ceremony Tuesday, Dec. 11, 2007, at Camp Atterbury, Ind. In addition to receiving the promotion, Ness was also awarded the Indiana Distinguished Service Cross for saving the life of truck driver James Jones last March.

Staff Sgt. Jeff Dugan, Ness' supervisor at Camp Atterbury's engineer shop, said that he deserved the promotion.

"He's a special guy and a hard worker," he said. "He's probably my best operator; he gets here and gets the job done. He cares to help everybody, and is always willing to give you the shirt off his back."

Ness said that he plans on continuing his upward momentum with the Indiana National Guard and plans on attending advanced leadership and correspondence courses that will pave the way for future promotions.

"My plan is to try and help more Soldiers to become better and more proficient, because now there's more leadership and more responsibility required," he said. "For me, the most important thing is to make sure that safety is ensured, make sure that the equipment is taken care of, and to help everybody that needs it, no matter what."  NewsBlaze - Folsom,CA,USA

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November 13, 2007 - 5 Year Attack Simulation

Massive attack simulation to involve every state.  U.S. engaging in 5-year 'game-play' exercise for terror attacks, major disasters


Excerpt: "...Pino explained that the current RDD scenario of VS08/TOPOFF4 has been designated as National Planning Scenario No. 11.
"We will exercise all 15 of these national planning scenarios in the construct of the national exercise program over a period of years," he explained. "A perfect example is that last May, we conducted a national exercise as a precursor to this one, where we exercised against national planning scenario No. 1; that is, a nuclear detonation in a major metropolitan city."

From May 10-18 in Ardent Sentry 07, USNORTHCOM, in cooperation with the Department of Homeland Security, exercised the detonation of an improvised nuclear device in Indiana.

USNORTHCOM's Joint Task Force Civil Support deployed in the exercise more than 2,000 active-duty military personnel and some 1,000 National Guard personnel to Camp Atterbury and the Muscatatuchk Urban Training Area, simulating an attack on Indianapolis.

Pino explained that each year at least one exercise will be designated a national level event, in which multiple state and local jurisdictions will be involved.
"That one national level event will be coupled with four 'Top Official Seminars' per year," Pino explained. "In the Top Official Seminars, we will take those national planning scenarios and discuss them in a seminar format with the principals and department heads in a table-top discussion environment.

"The issues that surface from those seminars will then be fed into the planning process for the national level exercise we will conduct," he continued. "It's a learning process in which we say, 'Okay, we talked about this as a potential challenge. We worked on what we believe is a proper answer to that challenge. Now we exercised it to validate that it, in effect, did accomplish the effect that we were after.'"

Pino also explained that the national exercise program is constructed to coincide with the four-year cycle of a presidential administration.

"So, in the first year of a president's administration," Pino explained, "we will have a ramped-up training program for the new administration on all the duties they are going to have in their homeland security and homeland defense responsibilities."

Pino laid out how the exercise cycle would work in conjunction with a presidential term.
"So, in the first year of a president's administration, like in 2009, the scenario will be one of the terrorist-related national planning scenarios. Then in 2010, the second year of this upcoming presidential administration, the exercise will be a natural disaster, perhaps a major hurricane or a major earthquake, affecting multiple jurisdictions."

He continued: "The third year will be an overseas Department of Defense-centric or humanitarian assistance to another nation state during a large-scale natural disaster, or a counter-insurgency-type operation, because we need to work national security too; this is a national exercise program.

"Then in the fourth year of a new administration," he concluded, "we will have domestic terrorist events as the foundation of that exercise."

Pino further specified that in each specific national exercise, different training objectives are identified.

"As I mentioned," he continued, "the planning for this exercise started 14 months ago. We identified certain exercise objectives we wanted to focus upon. Because this is a strategic national Top Officials exercise, our focus is working linkages and relationships and information-sharing between a strategic theater commander, a combatant commander – in this case NORAD-USNORTHCOM – and the national political leadership in Washington."

Therefore, Pino, explained, VS08/TOPOFF4 "has placed very little focus downward to operational forces on the ground or tactical units on the ground."
"We never intended to move very many actual forces around in this exercise," he said. "But, we designed the exercise to involve three venues – one in a U.S. territory that allows us to work those challenges of working a territory, the other two venues in Oregon and Arizona."

Pino also explained how the exercises were designed to involve FEMA regions nationwide.
"We have 10 FEMA regions throughout the nation," he explained. "A particular FEMA region is assigned the responsibility for a certain number of states, to provide disaster response and support. But FEMA Region 9, in this particular case, also has the responsibility for our territories in the Pacific. Oregon is FEMA Region 10, out of Seattle, and Arizona is FEMA Region 9, out of Oakland."

"Our goal," he concluded, "is to exercise the full scope of national planning exercises – ranging from natural disasters, to terrorist events, to health emergencies such as epidemic flu, such that each FEMA region and all the states have the opportunity to work through emergency exercises within the planned exercise cycle."

Master-control cell
The master-control cell of the national planning exercise is in the Department of Homeland Security in Virginia," Pino pointed out.

"USNORTHCOM has representatives there in Virginia in that master-control cell," he said. "Then you have the venues in Guam, Oregon and Arizona, with on-site control groups that are linked by satellite to the master-control cell. The day-to-day game-playing takes place in the JIASC interagency environment where information is processed and decisions are made."

The objective of the exercise, Pino said, is to "drive the action forward by providing the injects on real world systems."

"Inside the white cell, we have representation from every element of NORTHCOM," he said. "You'll notice there's an intelligence seat, a public affairs seat; there an operations seat, there's an inter-agency seat.

The chief controller from the War Fighting Center, Steve Zakaluk, is Pino's chief manager.
Zakaluk, Pino said, built every aspect of the exercise for NORTHCOM, working in partnership with the War Fighting Center.

"We react to what the players are doing to create the next day's and next two-day's environment to make sure we are moving in the right direction," Pino said.

He explained how the exercises are designed to benefit from lessons learned as the exercise is gamed.

"The most important piece of exercising is to observe your performance," Peno stressed. "What tasks need to be accomplished to satisfy the requirements of the plan? Then, what are the standards you are measuring yourself against?

"We bring together a significant number of subject matter experts from throughout the Department of Defense to work with us to observe our performance during the exercise," he continued, "to identify accomplishments and challenges."

"These experts then report back to me with all their observations," he explained. "Then what I will do is take every single one of these observations, and I build a 'lesson-identified' on that observation. From there, we put in place a corrective action program to fix that issue, and then we will revalidate it on a future exercise."

Observer-trainers then, he said, are working with each of the staff elements to identify the value of standards and conditions of the tasks that are supposed to be performed.
"Then we have analysts and subject matter experts in specific domains like intelligence, operations, planning, interagency synchronization, etc.," he continued, describing an interactive feedback loop at the heart of systems and operations planning science.
"They observe our performance and report back to me on their observations," Pino explained, "and then the analysts give us a perspective on their analysis of particular trends that are going on. Then we take that information from these guys, and we feed it into that 'lessons-learned' corrective-actions program for the next planned exercise."
Built into the national exercise program, therefore, is a "corrective-action program," Pino stressed.

"We identify a challenge, an issue, something that didn't go right, and it is fed into the Homeland Security Council," said Pino. From there, the Homeland Security Council assigns a department among the interagency partners designated to fix the problem and reports back to the Homeland Security Council."  By NXNGRG(NXNGRG)

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October 27, 2007 - Bringing out the big guns

Soldiers destined for deployment learn how to fire hefty WWII-era weapon

By Robert KingEDINBURGH, Ind. -- The No. 22 gun range at Camp Atterbury is a rolling, grassy plain that stretches out a couple of miles before it laps up against distant, tree-covered hills.

Mastering the .50-cal: Pedro Cabello (left) and Gabriel Pedraza, both of Hammond, and instructor Andrew Rowlett work through the firing of a .50-caliber machine gun during 76th Infantry Brigade Combat Team training. Soldiers practiced Friday at Camp Atterbury. - Robert Scheer / The Star ABOUT THE INDIANA NATIONAL GUARD According to a Pentagon report released Wednesday, 1,259 Indiana National Guard troops are on active duty, including medical, military police and engineering units from around the state. At one time, the number of Guard and reservists called to active duty in Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere topped 5,600, a number reached with a series of small units. None had more than 1,000 troops. The Indiana brigade is among about 13,000 Guard troops -- including units from Arkansas, Ohio and Oklahoma -- who are expected to head to Iraq next year. UP NEXT FOR THE 76TH BRIGADE The 76th Infantry Brigade Combat Team finishes its premobilization training Nov. 9. The team will begin mobilizing in December, head to Fort Stewart, Ga., in January to complete its training and then go to Iraq. The brigade is expected to be home by December 2008. An old standby The Indiana National Guard troops heading to Iraq next year will take a range of weapons. One of the most powerful in the infantry's arsenal is the M2 .50-caliber machine gun, a weapon designed more than 75 years ago. Weight: 84 pounds. Size of bullet: A half-inch across at the base, the bullet is more than 2 inches long. With its brass cartridge included, a single round is about 5.5 inches tall. Range: Bullets travel at more than 2,000 mph and are considered effective over a distance equal to more than 18 football fields.

In the morning fog, hulls of dead tanks used for target practice take on an almost ghostly form, and the place holds a strange peace.

But it was clear Friday morning that such serenity would be short-lived when 30 members of the Indiana National Guard showed up with three .50-caliber machine guns and two truckloads of ammo -- 10,000 rounds of high-velocity destruction.

More than just a fun little shooting party, this was serious business for the guardsmen, some of whom had never used the monstrous gun. Mastery of the weapon, used atop trucks and Humvees and at checkpoints, could prove critical in a few months, when their 3,400-soldier brigade is to head for Iraq.

The deployment of their 76th Infantry Brigade Combat Team is expected to be the largest single unit shipped out by the Indiana National Guard since World War II.

Many of those troops are in the middle of a three-week pre-mobilization training stint at Camp Atterbury that, with Iraq staring them in the face, has taken on greater importance than the one weekend a month they regularly perform or the two-week annual summer stretch.

"Everybody is taking it a lot more seriously. Everybody is getting focused on what they are going to have to do instead of just smokin' and jokin'," said Pfc. Anthony Hines, a 25-year-old former Marine from Muncie. "Everybody always trains hard, but everyone is really trying to focus."

More training will follow for the brigade, building on the skills troops are honing now. Ultimately, the outfit will undergo a massive exercise at Fort Stewart, Ga., to prove the men and women are ready for combat.

Their tasks, upon arrival in Iraq, are expected to include defending bases, protecting supply convoys and guarding detainees. They will be parceled out in 21 security companies, backed by several hundred command and support staffers.

For Pfc. Jordan Hooten, 22, Indianapolis, the training is part of a string of sobering reminders about the dangers ahead. Hooten, who has a wife and 5-month-old daughter, has recently been squaring away matters such as house payments, student loans and life insurance.

"You are getting all your civilian affairs in order," he said.

The fact that much of the 76th's pre-mobilization training is going on at Camp Atterbury -- rather than a base somewhere far from Indiana -- reflects the Army's new policy of limiting Guard deployments to 12 months, rather than 18. "It's very tough on families and employers for a guardsman to be gone a year and a half," said Col. Corey Carr, the brigade's commander.

To get it done, the Guard has bundled two years' worth of annual training -- typically done during two weeks each summer -- over the past three months. The major upside is that the soldiers will get to spend the winter holidays at home.

The current training includes sessions with soldiers recently returned from Iraq, offering tips and cultural awareness sessions that introduce the troops to Islam, Iraqis and Arab culture. There are refreshers on navigating with a compass, first aid training and dealing with the potential, however remote, for biological and chemical weapons.

But the bread-and-butter task is weapons training.

For Hines, the private from Muncie, the .50-caliber machine gun is new territory. A veteran from World War II that has proved useful again in Iraq, the gun is a far cry from the much smaller rifles most soldiers carry.

"It's not a weapon for the weak," said Staff Sgt. Daniel Baker, a Kentuckian who serves in the Indiana Guard and oversaw Friday's training. The gun eats rounds the size of Sharpie pens, then fires 2-inch slugs at speeds of up to 2,000 mph. The bullets can travel up to four miles.

Soldiers had to prove they could hit designated targets at ranges of 400 yards and more. The sound of bullets smacking the distant hulks could be heard over the steady thump-thump-thump of the machine guns.

The secret to handling the .50-cal, Baker said, is that "you can't treat it gentle." Do so, especially when wrenching the first round into the chamber, and it can lock up.

Still, Baker loves the machine gun. It can stop most light vehicles in their tracks. Don't even ask what it can do to a person. As Baker said to an observer standing safely behind the firing guns, "You are on the right side of the weapon."

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September 17, 2007 - Warren man recalls duty in WWII

ARREN — William C. Flath said he first realized what war is all about when he saw donkeys being led down a road in Italy carrying the bodies of those killed in battle.

The World War II veteran, now 84, started his active military service in the Army infantry in March 1943, at age 20.

Flath, a 1942 Harding High School graduate, left Warren and went to Fort Jackson, S.C., for basic training, which included a lot of marching, rifle range practice and hiking in very hot, humid weather, before being sent overseas in October 1943, to Casablanca in northern Africa.

‘‘I thought I wouldn’t make it to the end because of the heat, but I did. Others fell by the wayside,’’ he said of the training at Fort Jackson.

Like many 18- to 20-year-olds at the time, Flath was drafted.

‘‘We left on board ships from Newport News for Africa. The boats we were in were packed with equipment and cargo,’’ Flath said explaining how uncomfortable it was with very little space where the bunks were for sleeping.

He did say the ‘‘Mae West life jackets’’ which they wore did make good pillows when some of the men decided to sleep on the deck where there was more room.

The Lodwick Drive resident served in both northern Africa and Italy from 1943 to 1945, and saw combat action in Naples and Rome.

Once the men arrived in Casablanca, the soldiers were transported in four-wheel box ‘‘cattle cars’’ on trains.

He said once when the train stopped, some of the men got off and ran to a nearby orange orchard. ‘‘Some of the guys tore limbs off the trees before a French major shooed them back,’’ he said.

‘‘We were replacement soldiers wherever we were needed and went to different places. We filled in for those who had died or who were wounded and were sent to different outfits and companies,’’ he said.

Flath and the others were transported by ship in December 1943, to Naples, Italy, where they saw many ships sink in the harbor. He said the Germans made it difficult for the ships to get to land.

Flath, who served as a private with 34th Division M Heavy Weapons Company, said the reality of war sunk in when he and the others saw a row of donkeys carrying bodies on their back.

‘‘We were all new recruits and ... I thought is this what combat is really all about?’’ Flath said.

He said this image of about 20 donkeys each carrying a dead body is one he will always remember of the war.

As a member of M Company, Flath was responsible for carrying the machine gun ammunition.

‘‘I had a strap around my back carrying a box with 250 rounds of ammunition in it,’’ he said.

He also carried the machine guns and tripods and would move up to help when the gunners were wounded.

When they had to cross a mind field, engineers with mine detectors were used and special pathways were created with tape for the soldiers to have safe passage.

Flath said once he and the others took shelter in an apartment house in Italy late at night and being so extremely tired, he fell asleep on a large bed in a dark back room.

He said when he awoke the next morning he realized there was a dead Italian man on the bed, who was dressed up for a funeral. Americans helped bury the man a few days later.

Flath said he and the others were then transferred to I Company Rifle Group in Anzio, Italy, as replacements.

‘‘While we were on our way to Anzio, the truck passed by Mount Vesuvius and the men felt the fine ash coming down. We all saw ancient Pompeii, the amphitheater and the ruins,’’ he said.

During one battle, Flath and another soldier got separated from the others and due to heavy fire, took cover under a bridge. Along came a German soldier who demanded they surrender.

Flath said the other soldier shot the German.

Flath said while heading to combat in Rome in July 1944, he and another soldier moved to a house where they saw a German on the second floor with a machine gun.

‘‘A lot of the Italian farm houses had animal stalls next to the house. The animals were going wild because of all the noise and shooting going on. We got inside another part of the farm house where the animals were and hid in a small back room,’’ Flath said.

A German tossed a grenade in and wounded Flath in the right leg, right hip and forehead. The other soldier also suffered injuries.

Even though they were both hurt, Flath and the other soldier helped one another to the nearest first aid station where they were treated and then transported by ambulance to an Army tent hospital. To get to the first aid station, the two had to walk in streams since the enemy had destroyed the bridges.

Jean Flath said her husband was lucky to be alive after being wounded in the farm house.

With the seriousness of his injuries, Flath was flown by C-47 plane, his first flight ever courtesy of Uncle Sam, to a Sixth General Army hospital in Rome.

For one month, Flath was a patient in a cast from waist to toes.

While there, he and the other patients, wearing blue- and maroon-colored bath robes and pajamas, got to go see an opera. He also was able to see the Coliseum and the Vatican.

When he became healthier, Flath worked at the 6th General Army Hospital, first in the skin department and then assisting the dentists.

‘‘I remember trying to shakedown a handful of thermometers and dropping and breaking all of them,’’ he said.

In April 1945, he was sent to another hospital, the 103rd Station Hospital, in Leghorn, Italy.

At first, Flath thought he was next to be shipped to the China, Burma, India Theater, but instead received word he would be going to Camp Atterbury and then home.

Because of his battle wounds, Flath later received the Purple Heart.

Flath said he considers himself lucky to have gotten out alive. He was discharged from the Army on Oct. 22, 1945.

He said he remembers when his ship was pulling into the dock at New York City, he saw the many people holding up signs, with other signs erected on the sides of buildings welcoming the soldiers home and thanking them for a job well done.

‘‘It felt so good to see the Statue of Liberty and all the people cheering and waving when we came home,’’ he said.

On the GI Bill, Flath attended Youngstown College, graduating in 1950. He received a bachelor’s degree and worked as a teacher in grades 4-6 in Warren City Schools.

‘‘I feel very proud to have served my country. I also feel for those who have died. My heart and soul is with them,’’ he said.  BOB COUPLAND, Tribune Chronicle - Warren,OH,USA

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August 18, 2007 - US/UK Reserve Officer and SSCO Reciprocal Exchange Programme

Staff Sgt. Robert Bevan, a quartermaster sergeant with the Royal Electrical Mechanical Engineers (left) and Sgt. James Jackson, a troop sergeant with Royal Corps of Signals, relax during a recent trip to Indiana as part of the collaborative Soldier exchange program with the U.K. and Germany. The two U.K. Soldiers spent two weeks in Indiana, learning about the way Indiana Guardsmen train and operate. Last year, five U.K. soldiers spent two weeks in Indiana during the Exportable Combat Training Capability Exercise held here. (Photo by Rob Cooper, Crier Staff Writer)

Today's battlefield has become a collage of multinational forces allied with the single purpose of defeating the enemy, and Indiana is no stranger to working with coalition forces. Last month, two United Kingdom soldiers paid a visit to Indiana as part of an exchange program intended to give American and international armed forces a better understanding of each other's fighting and training capabilities.

Sgt. James Jackson, a troop sergeant for the 21st Signal Regiment, Royal Corps of Signals and Staff Sgt. Robert Bevan, a quartermaster sergeant with the 103rd Battalion, Royal Electrical Mechanical Engineers (REME), spent two weeks here learning about how the Indiana National Guard trains and operates. During their trip, they visited with Indiana National Guard units and enjoyed some of the local attractions, including a visit to Camp Atterbury and Muscatatuck Urban Training Center.

"This visit is more of a cultural one to see how you approach training compared to ours," Jackson said. "It gives both sides a chance to learn something new."

The exchange also allows joint operations between the two forces to be conducted more smoothly, Bevan said.

"The training and results are similar, making it easier to join in together," he said. "It's good cohesion, as you call it."

The exchange, officially titled the US/UK Reserve Officer and SSCO Reciprocal Exchange Programme, was developed prior to the Cold War. After World War II, military officials learned that the most effective way to fight is with a combined force. The exchange program supported this notion through National Guardsmen and U.K. Soldiers, who would swap places during there annual training.

Indiana's exchange program has been going strong for more than a decade and has exchanged enlisted personnel and commissioned officers with the U.K. and Germany ever since. Master Sgt. Richard Dennis, Indiana's exchange program manager, credits the state with averaging 10 to 14 exchanges per year.

"Out of 54 states and territories that participate, Indiana has exchanged Soldiers every year since we began," he said. "This year, due to most deployments, we could only send four enlisted Soldiers and England could only send us two. However, we are one of only 12 states selected to participate in the program this year."

The program, which is managed through National Guard Bureau, picks interested service members through an application process in which those with similar military occupations are selected to swap places for two weeks. Dennis said that there's a reason Indiana sends their Guardsmen every year.

"Indiana has always stepped up to the plate to offer our training and support," he said. "Last year, there was a Soldier that one state couldn't sponsor, so we picked him up and sponsored him rather that letting him go home. On top of that, we have more than enough qualified Soldiers to participate in the exchange."

The exchange program also provides valuable coverage of Indiana's capabilities, which makes it easier to work with organizations like National Guard Bureau, Dennis said. "It's a good retention tool as well," he added. "After all, we all want to see the rest of the world."

"Soldiers don't like going to class, doing detail or putting up tents every time they drill," he said. "They signed up to do what they enjoy doing, and this program allows them to do that."

The exchange program isn't the only chance Indiana gives its service members for international relations. In addition, the Indiana National Guard also sponsors the Overseas Deployment Training Program, which supports training mission from around the world. As part of that program, Indiana plans to send 50 soldiers from 38th Infantry Division to South Korea for three weeks beginning this month in support of the UFL Korean Mission 2007.  Rob Cooper, NewsBlaze - Folsom,CA,USA

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May 30, 2007 - Shooting range dedicated to war hero

By Amy Bartner 

   

EDINBURGH -- A $4.7 million state-of-the-art shooting range was dedicated to Sgt. Joseph E. Proctor this afternoon as more than 250 friends, family and members of the military looked on.

 

Ron Mason (right) gives instruction to Johnson County Shooting Club member Shannon Smith, 14, of Trafalgar today at the Sgt. Joseph E. Proctor Memorial Shooting Facility, at Atterbury Fish & Wildlife Area, - Kelly Wilkinson / The Star

The Indiana National Guardsman was killed May 3, 2006, during an attack on a U.S. coalition compound in Tammin, near Ramadi, Iraq. The Whiteland man lost his life defending his fellow troops against a suicide bomber in Iraq. He was the first Indiana soldier to receive the Silver Star -- the nation's third-highest medal for valor -- since the Vietnam War.

 

"There are men alive today who would not be if it weren't for first the courage and then the skill and marksmanship of this man," Gov. Mitch Daniels said at the dedication. "It would be hard to come up with a more appropriate way to remember Joseph Proctor."

 

A welder in civilian life, Proctor was assigned to the National Guard's 638th Aviation Support Battalion as a fuel specialist but volunteered for dangerous duty training Iraqi soldiers.

 

Proctor is survived by three children. His oldest son joined the National Guard in August.

The Sgt. Joseph E. Proctor Memorial Shooting Range, located in the Atterbury Fish and Wildlife Area at Camp Atterbury in Edinburgh, has a 66-position rifle and pistol range and four combination trap and skeet fields.

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March 08, 2007 - Mankato Guard going to Kosovo - Second trip to Balkans for battalion

Mankato’s National Guard unit has been told to expect a one-year mission to Kosovo, where NATO troops still keep the peace nearly a decade after ethnic rivalry left thousands dead.

The 400 soldiers of 2nd Battalion, 135th Infantry received an alert last weekend, spokesman and Lt. Col. Kevin Olson said, and can expect to begin training in Camp Atterbury, Ind., in late June.

The Mankato battalion will lead smaller, company-sized units from across southern Minnesota.

For many in the battalion, this will be a second peacekeeping mission to the Balkans. The unit was deployed there in 2003 and 2004. Some individuals in the battalion have been sent to Iraq and Afghanistan.

Olson said there haven’t been any large-scale armed conflicts there since 1999. But he said the unit will be trained to recognize and avoid land mines.

The Mankato battalion will conduct patrols to maintain a sense of security and allow the United Nations to stabilize the province.

The Army chooses its schedule for deployment according to its Force Generation Model, Olson said, which aims to give the National Guard five years of training and one year of mobilization.

Kosovo is a province of southern Serbia that is now administered by the United Nations. Thousands of ethnic Albanians are missing and presumed dead after years of conflict there.  Dan Linehan, Mankato Free Press - Mankato,MN,USA

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March 2, 2007 - Central Illinois unit called to active duty

DELAVAN, Ill. The National Guard Unit in the Central Illinois town of Delavan is preparing for deployment to Iraq.

Sixty soldiers of the Headquarters and Headquarters Detachment of the 11-44th Transportation Company are being called up for 12 months of duty.

National Guard leaders in Springfield say that new army rules have shortened the average term of service for guard units from 18 months to 12 months, including ten in theater.

Soldiers in the Delavan unit are getting health screenings and immunizations in preparation for active duty.

The guardsmen will report to Camp Atterbury in Indiana in April.

The Illinois Army National Guard has about 600 deployed soldiers and another 400 with mobilization orders.  WQAD - Moline,IL,USA

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February 22, 2007 - 76th Infantry Brigade Prepares for Possible Deployment to Iraq

INDIANAPOLIS, IN - Joint Forces Headquarters, Indiana National Guard, received notification of the potential mobilization of the 76th Infantry Brigade, headquartered at Tyndall Armory in Indianapolis. The mobilization in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom could occur as early as 2008.

The Adjutant General received unofficial notification regarding the nomination of the 76th Brigade but no official alert or mobilization order has been published. The unit has not received a specific mission or potential duty location.

The 76th Brigade has been and will continue training for potential mobilization at Camp Atterbury and Muscatatuck Urban Training Center. The unit will focus on those critical tasks necessary to insure the Soldiers and their leaders are individually and collectively postured for mission success during any deployment.

The Indiana National Guard has 13,604 Soldiers and 1,995 Airmen currently assigned. The 76th Brigade is one of the Indiana National Guard's major commands. The deployment of the 76th Brigade will affect approximately 3,500 Soldiers assigned throughout the state. The Indiana National Guard will continue to support the citizens of Indiana during emergencies while providing military support to the Global War on Terrorism.

"The Indiana National Guard will continue to support both of our missions, at home and aboard", said Maj. Gen. R. Martin Umbarger. "I am proud of every Soldier and Airmen in the Indiana National Guard and grateful for the extraordinary and enduring support of their families and employers. The 76th Brigade has repeatedly demonstrated their professionalism and dedication and will do so again if called upon," Umbarger continued.

Source: Indiana National Guard Press Release

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February 13, 2007 - Guard members returning this week

Feb 08, 2007 - Multinational Group Visits Camp Atterbury

EDINBURGH, Ind. (Army News Service, Feb. 8, 2007) - A group of dignitaries from an array of countries escorted by Emily Kalogeropoulos, an English language officer working with the U.S. Department of State visited Camp Atterbury Feb. 5 to gain knowledge about the role of local National Guard troops.

"The foreign dignitaries are sponsored by the State Department and selected by the U.S embassy in their country," said Kristin Garey, director of operations and government relations for the International Center of Indianapolis. "They are identified as up and coming individuals in their country."

The group of 12, composed of government officials, foreign policy analysts, politicians, scholars, journalists and decision-makers viewed a presentation about Camp Atterbury and the Indiana National Guard. They had the opportunity to ask questions of Brig. Gen. Michael Kiefer, Joint Forces Land Component commander and Col. Barry Richmond, Camp Atterbury installation commander.

Questions about the Indiana National Guard ranged from recruiting to the morale of deployed National Guard troops from the "Hoosier" state. The dignitaries were particularly interested about how the deployment of local National Guard troops to Afghanistan and Iraq affect local communities.

"The briefing was very informative," said Henrik Von Sydow, a Swedish Parliament member. "It showed the link between the civil community and the National Guard."

Kiefer and Richmond explained to the delegation how supportive the communities surrounding Camp Atterbury have been. They highlighted how supportive the National Football League's Indianapolis Colts had been by giving mobilizing Soldiers tickets to view highly publicized playoff games. The group related well to the Colt's topic because they had the opportunity to participate in the celebration of the Colt's Super Bowl victory in downtown Indianapolis.

"It was very exciting," said Sydow. "It was like the World Cup in Sweden."
2nd Lt. Anthony D. Buchanan, Army.Mil/News

January 18, 2007 - Soldiers' opinions differ on Meal Ready-to-Eat

CAMP ATTERBURY, Ind. -- Soldiers are handed a noon hour survival kit as they pass through the chow hall each morning for breakfast.

Some call it a Happy Meal without a toy, but it's better known in military circles as a Meal Ready-to-Eat. Each MRE has about 2,000 calories.

Soldiers training at Camp Atterbury, Ind., including the Oshkosh-based Wisconsin Army National Guard 1157th Transportation Company, are getting used to eating this meal that comes in an enclosed plastic pouch-like bag for easy carrying and disposal.

Individual MREs come in 24 varieties that include sloppy joes, chicken with cavatelli, chicken breasts, veggie and cheese omelets and a vegetarian delight called spicy penne pasta. Just add water from a canteen to the main entree and it will quickly become a hot meal.

The MRE also can include a fig bar, a wheat snack bar, cheese spread with bacon, a pouch with cold drink powder or even a powdered milk shake, chewing gum and packets of coffee, sugar and iodized salt, along with a tiny bottle of hot sauce and a book of matches.

There are differing opinions of the MRE among the soldiers of the 1157th at Camp Atterbury.

"I actually like them as long as I get a good one like beef steak with mushrooms," said Sgt. First Class Derek Dettlaff. "I'm also fond of the jalapeno cheese with crackers as a side item."

At least one member of the 1157th doesn't care for the MRE.

"I don't care for them. I'm a vegetarian and they only have a few vegetarian meals," said Spc. Kristen Hodges. "I'll give the main meal away to somebody else and eat the rest of it."

Staff Sgt. Matt Haag said he doesn't mind the MRE.

"They don't bother me. My favorite is beef frankfurter and the steak burger isn't bad," he said. "I mix and match and trade them all of the time."

Spc. Eric Ramsey said his favorite MRE comes with M&M candies.

"It makes a meal that much better," he said. "The M&Ms gives you an extra sugar boost to get you going."   Doug Zellmer, Oshkosh Northwestern - Oshkosh,WI,USA

December 31, 2006
Training at Camp Atterbury

December 20, 2006 - Silver Star goes to vet
Associated Press

INDIANAPOLIS - An Indiana National Guardsman who died in a suicide bomb attack just weeks before he was to return home from Iraq will be awarded the Silver Star.

Gov. Mitch Daniels and Maj. Gen. R. Martin Umbarger, adjutant general of Indiana National Guard, will present the medal to the family of Sgt. Joseph E. Proctor today at the Statehouse.

Proctor, 38, who lived in Indianapolis and grew up in the Johnson County town of Whiteland, was assigned to National Guard's 638th Aviation Battalion.

He is the first Indiana National Guardsman to be awarded the Silver Star - the Army's third-highest honor for bravery - since October 1969, Guard officials said.

Proctor was killed May 3 during an attack on a U.S. coalition compound in Tammin, near Ramadi, when he left cover to provide first aid to wounded soldiers and then faced down a dump truck loaded with explosives, Indiana National Guard said.

"Proctor immediately and aggressively stood his ground, engaging the vehicle with unwavering courage, fatally wounding the driver of the vehicle," Guard officials said.

The Republic, Columbus, Indiana

November 16, 2006 - Army selects Camp Atterbury as permanent training site
 

November 14, 2006 - Army eyes Atterbury as long-term mobile base

In the coming years, as the U.S. military pulls out of Iraq and Afghanistan, a local military installation likely will still be needed for training and mobilization, the head of the Indiana National Guard said.

The U.S. Army is considering making Camp Atterbury, a military installation near Edinburgh, a permanent mobilization base.

That could mean additional employees, funding and infrastructure improvements, said Maj. Gen. R. Martin Umbarger, who has been the adjutant general of the state National Guard since 2004.

But the number of employees or exact amount of money the change could bring would depend on what was going on at the installation, said Col. Barry Richmond, Camp Atterbury commander.

What the designation would mean is that Atterbury would go from mobilizing soldiers in times of need, such as during a war when a large number of soldiers must be trained and deployed, to being ready at any time for a massive mobilization. The military installation also would continue its efforts to train soldiers, Richmond said.

A final decision and announcement are expected this year.

"We are in that select group of National Guard installations to be considered for this enduring mission," Richmond said.

The 33,000-acre camp near Edinburgh has been operated since 1969 by the Indiana National Guard as a year-round training facility for the Guard, Reserve and active-duty military. Atterbury is the most heavily utilized training facility east of the Mississippi River for every branch of the military.

The installation was activated as a mobilization center in January 2003 and was expected to keep that designation for at least three years.

Atterbury ran on a state budget of about $70 million last year, not including uniforms and other equipment and funding provided by the Army. That amount is up from about $7 million before the war in Iraq began, Richmond said.

Atterbury was one of the top choices because of its location in the Midwest, support from the community and positive feedback from soldiers who have trained at the installation, Umbarger and Richmond said.

"The highest compliment we get is that this is a user-friendly post. When you get that, people want to come back and do more," Richmond said.

If Atterbury were chosen, it would be one of six similar installations in the country, said Sgt. Les Newport, public information officer at Camp Atterbury.

The constant training and action at Atterbury, such as when 9,000 people used the base during the summer, likely would continue, he said.

"We're going to be as busy and maybe even busier in the future," Newport said.

The designation also could mean that soldiers from across the country could come to Atterbury for training and before being deployed, Umbarger said.

What is needed for training varies depending on the needs of the soldiers and the mission they are preparing for.

For example, if a large number of soldiers needed to be deployed for a national emergency, more employees would be needed to train them and the base might need additional barracks for housing, Richmond said.

Different workers and equipment will be needed for different training, he said. About 400 soldiers, 200 contracted employees and 150 state-paid employees work at the base, running training and mobilization operations now.

"I couldn't go as far as to say everybody who's working here now, even if they're on a short-term contract, would be on a long-term contract," he said.

But the designation would mean more resources and more missions Atterbury would have involvement in, he said.  ANNIE GOELLER, Columbus Republic, Columbus, IN

November 13, 2006 -

November 10, 2006 - ROTC gets award - Raiders of Eastern receive 2nd in challenge

November 9, 2006 - USJFCOM signs cooperative research and development agreement with Raytheon

U.S. Joint Forces Command signed a cooperative research and development agreement with Raytheon to collaborate and conduct basic, applied and advanced research to address some of the challenges joint warfighters face in the urban environment.By

(NORFOLK, Va. - Nov. 8, 2006) - U.S. Joint Forces Command (USJFCOM) signed a cooperative research and development agreement (CRADA) with Raytheon earlier this week to address some of the difficult and emerging challenges joint warfighters face in the urban environment.

A CRADA represents a non-Federal Acquisition Regulation legal agreement between USJFCOM and one or more non-government parties, such as private industry and academia. CRADAs offer both parties an opportunity to share knowledge, personnel and facilities when conducting mutually beneficial research and development (R&D).

The CRADA between USJFCOM and Raytheon is a two-year cooperative agreement, with three one-year options, focused on developing a nationally accessible operations-oriented test bed for exploration and rapid deployment of net-centric capabilities and components for use in urban environments.

Various sites throughout Indiana, including Indiana National Guard's Muscatatuck Urban Training Center and Camp Atterbury facilities, the Naval Surface Warfare Center located at Crane, Ind., and facilities owned by Purdue University will serve as this test bed. Raytheon will provide USJFCOM network access to the Indiana test bed at their Suffolk offices.

As part of the agreement, USJFCOM and Raytheon will provide scientific, engineering, and operational expertise as needed. Both will also provide material, equipment, concepts, scenarios, modeling and simulation tools, and network access to facilitate experimentation and evaluation of capabilities and concepts.

Dr. Russ Richards, who heads the USJFCOM Office of Research and Technology Applications (ORTA), explained the importance of this CRADA.

"Joint Forces Command is the executive agent for joint urban operations and to really explore new concepts and new capabilities that support urban operations we need to do experimentation. But, we don't have a place that we can do live experimentation very well," he said.

"This CRADA will be partnering with Raytheon, but there are other players will be working with us to develop this true live urban operations test bed up in Indiana."

The Muscatatuck Urban Training Center is an ideal urban environment for joint concept development and experimentation on urban operations. It's a complete town consisting of approximately 70 buildings, a hospital, power station, and subterranean tunnels located on a thousand acres of rural, isolated property in the heart of Indiana.

The Camp Atterbury installation is the home base for many Army National Guard and United States Army Reserve units that train and mobilize in Indiana. Camp Atterbury offers the unit commander the support required to function as a complete unit for mission training.

Dr. Richard Carter, science and technology advisor for USJFCOM's Joint Urban Operations Office, said the command will benefit by using the sites to experiment with new urban-related technologies.

"We're going to have access to both Camp Atterbury and Muscatatuck. Basically the National Guard troops who will be training there will be testing our technologies," he said.

"It's the Indiana National Guard that's giving us access to Muscatatuck and Camp Atterbury. Raytheon is providing us a lot of their urban-related technologies that they want us to test and access to their network operations data center. We're bringing subject matter experts and technology to the table also," said Carter.

USJFCOM will also have access to the Crane Division, Naval Surface Warfare Center, focused on harnessing the power of technology for the warfighter, and Purdue University, which will offer its facilities as needed.

The agreement with Raytheon is the fifth USJFCOM has entered since the Office of the Secretary of Defense delegated technology transfer authority (TTA) to the command last year.  Robert Pursell, USJFCOM Public Affairs, United States Joint Forces Command - USA

November 1, 2006 - Ada Soldiers on Course to Iraq

October 20, 2006 - Cheney visits Camp Atterbury  - Vice president praises Guard troops' work

EDINBURGH, Ind. -- Leaving Iraq too soon would be a mistake, but the United States will change tactics as necessary to win the war on terror, Vice President Dick Cheney told Indiana Air and Army National Guard troops yesterday.

"The excellence and the commitment shown at Camp Atterbury is one of the reasons we're going to win the war on terror," Vice President Dick Cheney told Guard troops. (Michael Conroy/Associated Press)   Gov. Mitch Daniels, center, and Maj. Gen. R. Martin Umbarger, adjutant general of the Indiana Nation Guard, right, and others, applauded the vice president's speech at Camp Atterbury yesterday. (Michael Conroy/Associated Press)

"We know that terrorist attacks are not caused by the use of strength. They are invited by the perception of weakness. We know that if we leave Iraq before the mission is completed, the enemy is simply going to come after us," Cheney said during a rally to honor troops at Camp Atterbury.

The visit to the National Guard training site was one of several stops Cheney is making to honor troops for their war efforts and for recovery work after Hurricane Katrina last year.

On Monday, Cheney was at Fort Campbell, Ky., to thank soldiers from the 101st Airborne Division who had just returned from Iraq.

Cheney said Camp Atterbury, through which more than 30,000 Guard personnel have passed since 2001, has helped the U.S. make progress in the war on terror.

"Thanks to you, they've gone into the fight well-prepared and they've achieved great results for the United States," he said. "The excellence and the commitment shown at Camp Atterbury is one of the reasons we're going to win the war on terror."

Cheney said Iraq and Afghanistan are critical battlegrounds, and that decisions on troop levels would be based on "conditions on the ground and the judgments of our military commanders -- not by artificial timelines set by politicians in Washington, D.C."

Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels told the crowd before Cheney arrived that one of his daughters is dating an Army Ranger who recently found out he will be going overseas.

"Our family will soon be where your family has been by the thousands -- waiting, missing people, staying in touch the best we can," Daniels said. "I am so grateful not just to those of you in uniform that serve, but to all of the families behind you."

Lt. Col. John Newman of Indianapolis, who serves with the 181st Fighter Wing of the Indiana Air National Guard, said he was glad to see Cheney.

"I think it's fantastic that he took time out of his schedule to come here to Indiana," Newman said. "It's nice to put a little bit of light on the fact that Hoosiers have stepped up to the plate."

The rally for troops included food, a band and appearances by cheerleaders from the Indianapolis Colts and the Indiana Pacers.

Indiana has about 23,000 reservists and Guard members, with an estimated 4,300 on active duty at any one time. Not all on active duty are serving overseas.   Deanna Martin, Associated Press, Louisville Courier-Journal - Louisville,KY,USA

October 17, 2006 - "Chutes & Cargo" Golden anniversary of Reserve rodeo

October 17, 2006 - Practice makes perfect  


Computer-based training helps first responders strengthen decision-making
Whether it’s a natural disaster or a terrorist attack, first responders need to react and make decisions quickly. For the Indiana National Guard, getting the kind of training needed for those situations was not easy.

Then Col. Barry Richmond learned about the computer-based training that the Army is using for officers at Fort Knox, Ky. Adaptive Leader Training CBT takes officers through decision-making exercises to prepare them for real-life experiences.

“Each scenario might be different, but the core concepts and ideas that you want to reinforce are resident in all the scenarios,” said Richmond, installation commander at Camp Atterbury, a training and mobilization center. “And I thought, boy, it would be nice if we could come up with some similar scenarios based on homeland security and defense, so we could improve our interoperability with our civilian first-responder counterparts.”

The National Guard worked with Aptima Inc. of Woburn, Mass., to develop a similar application for guardsmen and other first responders. The result is the Red Cape: Crisis Action Planning and Execution multimedia training program.

Red Cape lets officers practice their crisis management skills on 15 realistic homeland security and national disaster scenarios, including earthquakes, dirty-bomb attacks, prison and sports riots and snowstorms.

The technology builds on the Army’s work in deliberate practice to hone cognitive skills, relying on that long-used practice of repeating the exercise of a skill until it becomes second nature.

“We understand, in physical skills, the idea of over-learning something so it becomes automatic behavior,” said Michael Paley, vice president of government programs for Aptima. “You do that through deliberate practice. You go to the rifle range over and over again to master that skill, and then you can apply it in times of stress.”

Nine keys of success

For the National Guard training using Red Cape, scenarios are portrayed primarily through still photographs with voiceovers, although video clips also could be used.

The multimedia training is developed in Adobe Flash, with photos, video and other media integrated via the Flash Player interface. The Flash files are dropped into a shell that contains the supporting materials for the training scenario, such as an introduction and background information. The module guides students through the process, acting as the instructor.

MPRI, an L-3 Communications company, made some of the technology to build the modules. “One of the key things we developed is this idea of what to train for,” Paley said. “We defined nine key skills within crisis management, such as using all available assets and thinking in shades of gray, not black and white.”

The actual training scenarios that teach those nine skills were then developed. Producing events that reproduced the interagency complexity of the National Guard’s work was a challenge.

“When you look at an event, you need to view it through multiple lenses,” Paley said. “You need to see it through the eyes of the Guard, through the eyes of the local police, the state police the [Federal Emergency Management Agency] guys and so on.”

In one scenario, for example, there is an industrial plant explosion in Gary, Ind. The exercise starts with a map to locate the event site. Then a voiceover gives the time elapsed and the extent of the damage, followed by photos of an actual plant explosion. Details follow on what’s happening at local hospitals, how nearby schools are being handled and where the media is.

In the scenario, it turns out that guardsmen are preparing for a weekend drill, so they’re already on alert when the incident happens. That fact ends up being crucial when trainees are evaluated on using all available assets.

“The idea behind these adaptive leader training modules is to take some of those core concepts that you always need to consider and have them repeated enough,” Richmond said. “Because you have exercised those concepts a number of times, they become intuitive.”

Something for everyone

The suite of computer-based exercises was developed with stakeholder-specific feedback, so that non-military first responders, coordinating agencies and supporting agencies as well as the National Guard can use them, Richmond said.

In another scenario, a tanker spill occurs, but it is unclear at first if an explosion caused it, and if so, what caused the explosion. Clues then can arise that point toward a terrorist attack.

“If that’s the case, then the responses, the decision-making responses, and the decision-making processes all have to shift,” Richmond said.

Each vignette has a story line and was developed with assistance from the Army Research Institute, which provided National Guard and homeland security subject matter experts.

A small, instructor-led group or individuals alone can use the vignettes. With small groups, a facilitator helps direct the discussion and response plan development.

“The idea is to create a very short, three-to-five minute, immersion experience in a situation that’s developing,” Richmond said. Those taking the training “don’t know what really is going to happen at the end,” he said.

“You come into a situation that’s developing, you get all of this information, and then, depending on what role you might play, you start developing your response,” he said.  

Doug Beizer, Washington Technology - Washington,DC,USA

October 13, 2006 - Indiana academy to help dropouts graduate

INDIANAPOLIS — The Indiana National Guard is creating a military-style academy to give Hoosier high school dropouts a second chance at an education, Gov. Mitch Daniels announced Thursday.

The new Hoosier Youth Challenge Academy will be modeled on a similar program in Kentucky and part of a national initiative established in 1993 by the National Guard.

Indiana will become the 26th state with an academy. It is scheduled to open in July 2007 with a class of 100 cadets.

The 17-month program will be open to volunteers who are 16 to 18 years old who have not been convicted of felonies, are unemployed and high school dropouts. It will be located at Camp Atterbury, where the Indiana National Guard will take over an unused Department of Correction facility.

The Kentucky program — called the Bluegrass Challenge Academy — is located at Fort Knox and graduates about 220 students each year. Retired Col. John Wayne Smith, director of the Kentucky academy, said referrals come from guidance counselors, the courts and parents.

Students can earn a high school equivalency degree and move on to a military career, college or other job training. Some students move directly into jobs.

Daniels said the program is “aimed at helping them build the discipline and the life skills that will enable them to lead successful leaves despite the fact they fell off the education track somewhere before completely high school.”  Lesley Stedman Weidenbener, Louisville Courier-Journal - Louisville,KY,USA

October 1, 2006 - Search And Rescue Dogs Trained At Local Center

September 28, 2006 - Indiana Soldiers Prepare for Kosovo Mission

Staff Sgt. Les Newport, USA, Special to American Forces Press Service
2006-09-27

CAMP ATTERBURY, Ind., Sept. 27, 2006 – While a multinational assembly met at the United Nations in mid-September to evaluate progress on the Kosovo situation, a multi-state task force of National Guard soldiers prepared to assume responsibilities of U.S. peacekeeping efforts in the region.

Kosovo Force 8 will depart Camp Atterbury in October after several months of training, much of which included a series of command-post exercises designed to test command-and-control elements of the force.

The exercise consists of three cycles that become progressively more involved, Army Maj. David Webber, plans and operations officer for 3rd Brigade, 85th Division, said.

Webber’s primary responsibility is managing the scenarios and exercises that take place in the 33,000 acres of training area at Camp Atterbury, as well as at the Muscatatuck Urban Training Area, where KFOR 8 has been training.

“The first phase involved just the command decision makers, and those decisions affect what commanders will face in phases two and three,” Webber said. “As the exercises unfold, more of the task force is brought in to participate.”

In order to maintain a realistic training environment that reflects what KFOR 8 will see in Kosovo, many of the training areas have undergone remodeling. Simulated Iraqi villages have been converted to resemble villages that KFOR will see in the Balkans. Changes include new road signs, maps, even political posters and graffiti scrawled on buildings.

In keeping with U.S. 1st Army’s “theater-immersion training philosophy, 3rd Brigade also has adjusted training to reflect the differences between the two areas of operation. Interpreters from the Balkans have been brought in to assist in cultural awareness training and negotiation training, and U.S. soldiers of the 87th Division are role-playing liaison officers of coalition forces.

“In Kosovo, (KFOR 8) will be working with the armed forces of several other countries: Greek, Italian Carabinieri (national military policing force) and the Polish/Ukrainian contingency just to name a few,” Webber said.

Webber stressed that managing communication flow and meeting reporting requirements are the keys to maintaining a successful training mission, as well as a successful yearlong peacekeeping mission in Kosovo.

“Decisions that commanders make are actually affecting soldiers in the field (at Camp Atterbury),” Webber said. “The more they exercise those skills here, the more effective they will be on deployment.”

Camp Atterbury’s multi-million-dollar Joint Simulation Training Exercise Center complex serves as the command post during the exercise. The facility is fitted with the latest in an array of communication systems for commanders.

The command and staff elements of KFOR 8 filled the Virtual Simulations Facility, a sprawling 20,000-square-foot structure, establishing a tactical operations center, as well as supporting elements to manage the exercise.

Among the supporting elements is Task Force Patriot, a battalion of New England National Guard soldiers charged with force security missions. TF Patriot Commander Lt. Col. Erick Furey emphasized that the exercise was key for his staff and battalion.

“The training during this CPX has been very realistic,” Furey said. “I have trained without contractors role playing the media and local government officials, and that realism has made the training excellent."

Furey also said the CPX has been valuable for his battalion staff because they have worked on procedures for coordinating staff functions and procedures and for synthesizing and analyzing information.

Task Force Patriot will leave with the balance of KFOR 8 in October for further training exercises at the Combat Maneuver Training Center, in Hohenfels, Germany, before deploying to Kosovo.  eMilitary.org - USA

August 21, 2006 - Camp prepares soldiers for Iraq - Troops immersed in realistic conditions

CAMP ATTERBURY, Ind. -- In a perfect line, nine Humvees creep along a road flanked by trees. The soldiers inside don't flinch as bits of gravel crack against their armored rides. They've got their minds on their mission.

"We have a vehicle down, and we need to recover it," said Sgt. 1st Class Kevin Brown, scribbling notes on the inside of a grimy windshield with a grease pencil.

Just weeks away from deployment overseas, he and his unit, a transportation company from the Michigan National Guard, try to imagine they're in Iraq.

At Camp Atterbury, a military mobilization site about 30 miles south of Indianapolis, they almost can.

Since the invasion of Iraq in 2003, Army officials have adopted a new philosophy on how best to prepare troops for combat.

Camp Atterbury is one of 14 U.S. mobilization stations with ever-evolving programs to immerse soldiers in the conditions they'll face abroad.

Areas of the camp have been made to look and feel like Iraq, and with the help of about 50 hired Iraqi nationals, troops engage in realistic exercises and are taught basic language and cultural skills. More than 20,000 soldiers have been through the program at Atterbury.

"We aim to train soldiers as they're going to fight," said Lt. Gen. Russel Honore, commanding general of the First Army, based at Fort Gillem in Forest Park, Ga., which enhances the combat readiness of reserve soldiers.

Brown and his troops roll into a mock Iraqi village where people posing as natives emerge from huts. Draped in flowing robes, they wave cheerfully. But as the vehicles slow to a halt, their tone quickly changes. They swarm the convoy and whack their knuckles on the windows.

"America, get out of here!" they scream in Arabic. "President Bush is a thief!"

Sweat streams down Brown's brow as he watches the mission get muddled. The longer soldiers take to tow a vehicle out of the village, the more upset the crowd becomes. It's a scenario they're likely to encounter in Iraq.

"Villagers often don't want Americans to stop, because when they do they bring insurgent attacks," said Capt. Scott Downing, a trainer at Atterbury who was stationed in Iraq last year. "It's like playing video games -- the more you practice, the less you hesitate.

"If you hesitate, you get killed."

The Iraqis working at Atterbury are hired by All Native Systems, a company that won a nearly $3 million contract to provide training services for the Department of Defense in 2005.

They help troops learn to negotiate with village leaders; they brace them for managing hostile crowds; they teach them vital Arabic phrases; and they warn them about gestures to avoid. Motions like the "OK" sign are highly offensive.

"We're trying to save lives on both sides," says Salim, 37, an Iraqi national employed at Atterbury for two years. He asked that his last name not be used to protect relatives still in Iraq. "We're trying to help the U.S. Army understand Iraqi people and culture so they can do their job in the right way."

The Basra native said he fled Iraq in 1991 after the Persian Gulf War. For about $14 an hour, he now commutes to Atterbury from his Kentucky home. He hopes troops will bring peace to Iraq.

"I absolutely hate Saddam Hussein, his rules and his regime," Salim said. "Because of what U.S. troops are doing, I now can call my family and make free phone calls -- not like free money, but free talk. I was so used to my conversations being tapped."

At the end of their hour long mission, Brown and the 52-member platoon he helps lead gather in a shed where Atterbury officials critique them. Many take seats on bleachers and remove their 6-pound Kevlar helmets. Red-faced, with their rifles pointed toward the ceiling, they reflect on what went right and wrong.

"I was kind of frustrated with how things went, but the frustration just goes along with the whole scenario -- without it, there wouldn't be a challenge," Brown said. "Now we can account for problems and correct them."

August 21, 2006 - Soldiers' opinions differ on Meal Ready-to-Eat

CAMP ATTERBURY, Ind. — Soldiers are handed a noon hour survival kit as they pass through the chow hall each morning for breakfast.

Some call it a Happy Meal without a toy, but it's better known in military circles as a Meal Ready-to-Eat. Each MRE has about 2,000 calories.

Soldiers training at Camp Atterbury, Ind., including the Oshkosh-based Wisconsin Army National Guard 1157th Transportation Company, are getting used to eating this meal that comes in an enclosed plastic pouch-like bag for easy carrying and disposal.

Individual MRE's come in 24 varieties that include sloppy joes, chicken with cavatelli, chicken breasts, veggie and cheese omelets and a vegetarian delight called spicy penne pasta. Just add water from a canteen to the main entree and it will quickly become a hot meal.

The MRE can also include a fig bar, a wheat snack bar, cheese spread with bacon, a pouch with cold drink powder or even a powdered milk shake, chewing gum and packets of coffee, sugar and iodized salt, along with a tiny bottle of hot sauce and a book of matches.

There are differing opinions of the MRE among the soldiers of the 1157th at Camp Atterbury.

"I actually like them as long as I get a good one like beef steak with mushrooms," said Sgt. First Class Derek Dettlaff. "I'm also fond of the jalapeno cheese with crackers as a side item."

At least one member of the 1157th doesn't care for the MRE.

"I don't care for them. I'm a vegetarian and they only have a few vegetarian meals," said Spc. Kristen Hodges. "I'll give the main meal away to somebody else and eat the rest of it."

Staff Sgt. Matt Haag said he doesn't mind the MRE.

"They don't bother me. My favorite is beef frankfurter and the steak burger isn't bad," he said. "I mix and match and trade them all of the time."

Spc. Eric Ramsey said his favorite MRE comes with M&M candies.

"It makes a meal that much better," he said. "The M&Ms gives you an extra sugar boost to get you going."

Doug Zellmer , Oshkosh Northwestern - Oshkosh,Wisconsin,USA

August 21, 2006 - Questions raised about quality of training for National Guard

Soldiers from the Wisconsin Army National Guard's 1157th Transportation Company training in Indiana said they are getting the best preparation the military can offer before serving in a deadly battle zone.

Members of Wisconsin's congressional delegation seem largely confident National Guard training is truly preparing its citizen soldiers for a complex, dangerous war.

But there is lingering, bipartisan concern about the adequacy of armor and equipment supporting the troops. And even if training questions persist or grow in number, probing the adequacy of National Guard training isn't "unpatriotic," as one legislator put it.

"There's nothing unpatriotic about asking questions that make sure our men and women are getting the best possible training," said U.S. Rep. Mark Green, R-Green Bay, who has been to Iraq twice and Afghanistan once during U.S. military involvement in both countries.

Green and other congressmen from Wisconsin are backing U.S. Rep. James Sensenbrenner's call for answers about National Guard training after the death of Cedarburg guardsman Stephen W. Castner, 27. Castner was killed mere days after arriving in Iraq, prompting questions from his family about the readiness of guard troops coming out of Camp Shelby in Mississippi.

There is no overwhelming outcry from loved ones about systematic shortcomings in military training at camps around the nation. But legislators are supportive of the call for more answers about the quality of Castner's training. Some report a few more concerns reaching their offices from loved ones questioning training.

The Oshkosh-based 157th is wrapping up two months of training at Camp Atterbury in south-central Indiana for its mission in Iraq. Its departure date remains classified, but it's expected to happen soon.

The reactions from Wisconsin's Washington delegation range from Democratic U.S. Sen. Russ Feingold's "deep concern" about the levels of training and equipment to Republican U.S. Rep. Tom Petri's mention of minor complaints – namely about water quality at Camp Shelby and the reliability of military mail.

Feingold said recent listening sessions in northern Wisconsin garnered a few face-to-face concerns from military families about equipment. One man in Florence County specifically broached helmets.

"I asked that we follow up on it," Feingold said. "He cited the inadequacy of the helmets and foam pads in the top of helmets."

Feingold said his office has fielded a few complaints specific to National Guard troops' training on the heels of the well-publicized concerns from Castner's family.

"I would say more of the concerns we've heard have been about equipment gaps rather than training," Feingold said. "But now I'm told by my staff that since this story has come out, we've had two or three comments from people about training."

Feingold, who also has made visits to Iraq in the last two years, said he is preparing a letter for the Secretary of Defense and National Guard officials seeking updates on the adequacy of equipment and armor for troops. There's been some improvement in recent years, he said. But family and troop concerns have persistently dogged flak jackets to Humvee armor, he said.

"What we've done is whenever we hear a complaint like that, we try to pursue it," Feingold said.

Castner was killed in late July while serving with the Army National Guard's 1st Battalion, 121st Field Artillery out of Milwaukee. A roadside improvised explosive device, or IED, detonated near his Humvee during operations near Tallil, Iraq, according to the Department of Defense.

He was fresh out of Camp Shelby and in Iraq only three days when the attack occurred.

Sensenbrenner, R-Menominee Falls, fielded a letter from Castner's father critical of his son's training, at Camp Shelby. He also asked for a government inquiry into the adequacy of training, appealing directly to U.S. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld.

Castner's training and death aren't entirely unrelated to the ongoing preparedness of the 1157th. His unit was tasked with escorting and protecting military supply chains in Iraq. It's those same, rumbling convoys of fuel and supply shipments that the 1157th will be manning and maintaining in Iraq. Convoys have been frequent targets of Iraqi insurgents.

Sensenbrenner is in a wait-and-see mode.

A National Guard Inspector General's investigation continues probing the efficacy of training at Camp Shelby. A camp colonel assured reporters last week that Castner's training was up to snuff.

"We're waiting to see the results of the IG report," Sensenbrenner spokesman Raj Bharwani said. "This is something that's important, and rather than rush into it and make hasty decisions, we'd rather see what the report says."

Democratic U.S. Sen. Herb Kohl said he considers the equipment and training of National Guard troops a "vast improvement" to what was provided in the early days of the Iraq war in 2003. The military has been able to better understand and adjust to the nature of the insurgency in Iraq as conflict wears on.

"Everything has evolved," Kohl said. "It has become clear that we were going to become engaged in real conflict. I don't think there was sufficient recognition by the Pentagon when we went in."

Kohl said he believes there has been a "huge ratcheting up of training" for citizen soldiers, but added "that isn't to say it's perfect." Kohl noted "plenty of evidence that their extended deployment is wearing our military thin."

He said he has previously met with and discussed training with Major General Albert Wilkening, adjutant general of Wisconsin who directs Army and Air National Guard missions. He also plans a meeting with Army officials later this month.

While his office has only fielded complaints from families about logistical support issues – things like the quality of drinking water in Mississippi -- Petri said he is "vigorously" supportive of Sensenbrenner's questions following Castner's death.

"I certainly believe that troops who are sent to do a difficult job deserve the best training and equipment available," said Petri, R-Fond du Lac, whose district includes Oshkosh.

Green said even though the questions surrounding Castner's training are the main basis of questions right now, they are fair questions to ask of the government.

He backs Sensenbrenner's inquiries and further cites the unprecedented volume of National Guard troops overseas on active duty right now. It further justifies the questions, he said.

August 3, 2006 - Abandoned hospital reborn as Guard training center

By Sgt. Jim Greenhill
National Guard Bureau

MUSCATATUCK, Ind. (Army News Service, Aug. 3, 2006) – An abandoned mental hospital that might make a good setting for a B-grade horror movie is actually a unique Indiana National Guard asset that leaders say has world-class potential.

“You’ll not find a training venue that provides these capabilities and these opportunities to train a brigade combat team in an urban environment,” said Lt. Col. Ken McAllister, site manager for the Muscatatuck Urban Training Center (MUTC). “This is a top-rank facility, not just for the Indiana Guard but the National Guard as a whole.”

The 70-building training center opened in 1919 as the Indiana Farm Colony for Feeble Minded Youth, later renamed the Muscatatuck State Developmental Center.

The center was one of the venues for XCTC 2006, the Exportable Combat Training Capability, which will eventually eliminate the need for National Guard Soldiers training for combat to go to one of the Army’s three permanent combat maneuver training centers in California, Louisiana or Germany.

Units from the Indiana Army Guard’s 76th Infantry Brigade Combat Team spent three-day stints at the MUTC during XCTC 2006. The facility gave them the chance to tackle such scenarios as snipers firing from rooftops, bomb makers holed up in buildings and encounters with civilians on the battlefield.

The MUTC has all the characteristics of a small town. Features include the 180-acre Brush Creek Reservoir, 487 acres of forest, 115 acres of abandoned fields and 1.2 miles of the Vernon Fork of the Muscatatuck River. It also includes an on-site power plant, 2,900 feet of tunnels and nine miles of roads.

Some buildings contain original furniture and working elevators.

“It’s a great asset,” said Marshall Townsend, deputy director for XCTC 2006. “It’s unique. We’re able to turn this into a city, isolate it and create our own training environment.”

The location of Camp Atterbury about 45 minutes north also gives Soldiers the chance to practice convoy operations.

The complex has been used by such other agencies as special operations groups, law enforcement agencies, emergency responders, civil support teams, special tactics squadrons, weapons research groups and others.

At its peak in the 1950s, the MUTC was home to more than 2,100 residents. Gov. Frank O’Bannon closed it in 2001, and the last resident left in 2005.

In 2004, the cost of leveling the facility was estimated at up to $60 million. But the Indiana National Guard saw the potential for it to become the nation’s premier urban warfare training facility.

More than 16,000 people have used the facility since the Indiana National Guard took it over in July 2005.

07/-2/2006 - Hot Indiana weather saps British soldiers

CAMP ATTERBURY – The hired hands chosen to play the role of civilians weren’t the only visitors to join National Guard soldiers in their recent combat training.

Seven British soldiers from various reserve units in England, similar to the U.S. National Guard, participated as part of an exchange program between the two forces.

Strange food, different military customs and steamy weather tested the British soldiers’ stamina throughout their time in Indiana.

Used to training in about 50-degree, rainy weather, Color Sgt. Andy Hunter, 30, of Leicester, England, said the humid and sunny days at Camp Atterbury were a hard adjustment.

“I’ve never sweated so much in my life,” he said, laughing. “It’s like someone has left the radiator on.”

Though he’s been deployed to Bosnia in 1996 and Iraq in 2003, learning to work in the heat again has been training enough in itself, he said.

Lt. Duke Chris Gilbert, 22, of Manchester, England, agreed.

“We wouldn’t train in excess of 75 degrees, and it hasn’t even gotten that cold at night here,” he said, laughing.

Though the U.S. tactics of training soldiers are slightly different from those of England, they’re done to accomplish the same goal, both soldiers said.

Calling the training “quite interesting,” Hunter, a computer engineer, said he feels confident he’ll be able to take some of the ideas he’s learned back to his unit, the 3rd Battalion Royal England. His unit has about 400 soldiers, he said.

Coming to the U.S. for the second time in his life – the first was to Disney World when he was about 9 years old – Gilbert said he was impressed by how freely soldiers were allowed to go out in public in their military uniforms. That’s something that he wouldn’t feel comfortable doing at home, he said.

“The civilian opinion of the military isn’t quite as good over there as it is here,” he said, wiping beads of sweat from his forehead.

Kara Lopp, Fort Wayne Journal Gazette - Fort Wayne,IN,USA

July 21, 2006 - Pilot program at Atterbury could impact soldier training nationwide.

July 21, 2006 - Lt. Gen. assesses Atterbury training

EDINBURGH - A green Humvee drove along a field path while a soldier in its turret scanned the area for improvised explosive devices during a training exercise Thursday at Camp Atterbury.

Behind dark sunglasses, the watchful eyes of Lt. Gen. Russel Honoré caught the lookout's actions and detected a mistake.

"Where's your binoculars?" Honoré barked.

"Right here," the lookout said, reaching down to retrieve them.

"Use them, damn it!" snapped Honoré, who gained national notoriety last year as the Ragin' Cajun, after he took charge of Hurricane Katrina rescue and recovery operations.

Honoré's eyes and ears recorded and analyzed everything as he toured Camp Atterbury.


Assessing training

As commanding general of the 1st U.S. Army, Honoré is responsible for making sure the training soldiers receive will benefit them when they are shipped abroad.

He analyzes training through reports submitted by brigadier and post commanders and through personal inspections across the country.

More than 32,000 National Guard and Army Reserve soldiers have been deployed from Camp Atterbury since February 2003.

Soldiers at Camp Atterbury will be sent to hot spots such as Iraq, Afghanistan and the Horn of Africa.

Honore's goal for soldiers is theater immersion. That's Army lingo for learning skills specific to a deployment area.

In Iraq and Afghanistan, insurgents often kill soldiers through improvised explosive devices, which are placed along roads, for example.

"This is one of the most high-order tasks we teach these soldiers," said Honoré, who returned recently from Iraq, where he saw firsthand how theater immersion training was aiding soldiers.

He spent Thursday morning and early afternoon observing instruction, training exercises and reviews of soldiers' performances in identifying and reacting to IEDs.

Honoré - still fit in his late 50s and a commanding presence who stood at least a head above the 14 soldiers surrounding him - talked with members of 734th Transportation Battalion from Nebraska. They listened intently, some taking notes.

Honoré also quizzed the battalion's senior commander to see if the unit had received the necessary training.

During his inspections, Honoré said he checks whether the training is repetitive, tough, realistic and a replication of what soldiers will see.

Recreating experience

"We bring in National Guard Reserve troops that are fresh back from Iraq and give them the opportunity to train troops going to Iraq," Honoré said.

Doing so can add a sense of reality to training and provide information that can be adapted to update training methods.

Sgt. Adam Pope of Dayton, Ohio, was one of the warrior trainers during Honoré's visit. As an engineer in Iraq, Pope encountered IEDs that used voice activation, motion sensors and pressure plates.

"They're coming up with things that are new and improved every day," Pope said.

Col. Tim Warrick, executive officer of 3rd Brigade, 85th Division, said the Army tries to replicate new types of IEDs as soon as possible.

"Things change as the world evolves. We try to stay current or ahead of the game," Warrick said.

Surrounded by senior officers, Honoré stood in a field, puffing on a big cigar as he observed a convoy of four Humvees approach.

The vehicles separated - one continuing on a gravel road, the others following paths in fields - and searched for insurgents and IEDs.

Suddenly an explosion caused a thunderous bang that could be felt in the chest. The simulation of an enemy rocket caught the Humvee on the gravel road by surprise, meaning it was considered disabled and containing wounded soldiers.

Soldiers in the other Humvees stopped to secure the area before recovering the disabled vehicle and towing it to a safe location and to treat the wounded.

Observers watched closely, ready to detonate another IED if the soldiers failed to follow correct procedures.

After the exercises, a review was conducted to talk about the mission's goals, what happened during the exercise and how to correct mistakes.

Honoré stood nearby, listening to soldiers answer their instructor.

Quietly, he motioned for several senior officers. One by one they walked to him, then listened as Honoré shared his thoughts on what he had observed, and to what degree Camp Atterbury is training solders for what they will encounter.

"If we train a soldier against a scenario he most likely will not see in Iraq, we have wasted their time," Honoré said.
 

And in Honoré's presence, that's something nobody wanted to do.
Kirk Johannesen, TheRepublic, Columbus, IN

July 9, 2006 = National guard soldiers recognized for service.

July 6, 2006 - Airmen train to prepare for 'in-lieu-of' taskings

by Master Sgt. Roger Drinnon

More than 800 Airmen are attending Army ground combat skills training, preparing them for operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom deployments. The Airmen require the training because they will be assigned duties outside their normal Air Force specialties. In the near-term, these numbers are expected to increase substantially.

Commonly referred to as "in-lieu-of," or ILO, taskings, Airmen, Sailors, Soldiers and Marines from a cross-section of all military specialties are performing nontraditional missions to provide temporary augmentation.

The 2nd Air Force staff was tasked by Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. T. Michael Moseley to add to its technical training responsibilities oversight of Airmen throughout their ILO training cycle.

"Our goal is to take care of our people as our Air Force mission requirements continue to evolve," said Maj. Gen. Michael C. Gould, 2nd AF commander. "We want to ensure Airmen can perform safely and effectively in combat alongside our sister services while maintaining their Air Force identity."

The aim of ILO training is to prepare Airmen for nontraditional combat environments in support of the combatant commanders' requirements where Airmen are deployed to assist Army personnel. Second Air Force wants to support all Airmen engaged in this enhanced, realistic training and address their current and future service needs.

General Gould emphasized Airmen deploying in support of Army mission requirements must maintain an Air Force chain-of-command.

"Airmen will continue to have readily available Air Force leadership eager to address any concerns," the general said. "I'm grateful that we have such high-caliber Airmen in our Air Force who can step up to these challenges, and their continuous feedback is essential for leadership to be able to respond to any training or personnel issues that might arise. Second Air Force will ensure all Airmen have an Air Force chain-of-command throughout their time in ILO training."

ILO training is designed to develop a population of Airmen who are combat-ready and able to fulfill duties outside their normal Air Force specialty. Before deploying, Airmen tasked to augment certain Army missions receive combat skills training at one of 14 Army training locations now designated as Power Projection Platforms. Those include: Camp Shelby, Miss.; Fort Hood and Fort Bliss, Texas; Fort Sill, Okla.; White Sands, N.M.; Fort Riley, Kan.; Fort Lewis, Wash.; Fort McCoy, Wis.; Camp Atterbury, Ind.; Fort Dix, N.J.; Aberdeen, Md.; Fort Monroe, Va.; Fort Bragg, N.C.; and Fort Benning, Ga.

Typical skill sets taught during ILO training include enhanced combat weapons proficiency training, land navigation and Global Positioning Satellite training, expanded self-aid and buddy-care called "combat lifesaver" training, detecting and responding to improvised explosive devices and a host of other relevant tactics. Theater-specific training might vary.

"What we are trying to do here is train Airmen to do missions and roles they weren't traditionally used to, because they're helping their buddies in another service," said Army Col. John Hadjis, commander of 3rd Brigade, 87th Division Training Support, at Camp Shelby, Miss.

"We developed this training out of what is commonly called 'theater immersion,' which is a philosophy of take the Soldier, take the Sailor, take the Airman, and train him or her to fight in the same conditions and same missions as they would expect to see in-theater," Colonel Hadjis said.

Second Air Force officials said the training initiatives will be fully implemented by Sept. 30. A team from 2nd AF and an element from the U.S. Central Command Air Forces received and prepared 183 Airmen beginning training at Camp Shelby.

"When you get down here, things are a little hectic, but as time moves on, you're getting into the training," said Staff Sgt. Matt Leas, a marketing information manager for the 364th Recruiting Squadron in Sacramento, Calif.

"Some of it is intense - a lot of time (in small arms training) - which is good," he said. "It's good to work with the Army to find out what we'll be doing down-range. The instructors are good. They really know their stuff, and that's really what we're looking for down here."

Colonel Hadjis said the training was designed to improve competencies in essential combat skills.

"The training is built on 41 individual tasks and nine collective tasks - tasks an Airman would do as part of a team," the colonel said. "They're centered around competencies and warrior skills like shooting, communicating, taking care of your buddy and surviving, dealing and negotiating in the culture you're going to be in."

Colonel Hadjis said the training exemplifies the concept of taking care of people, as service members face non-traditional combat environments with "no front lines."

"I think it's the best possible example of taking care of folks," he said. "Because we're making them as ready as they possibly can be to succeed at their mission, safeguard their people and come home in good shape."

General Gould said he applauds the adaptability of today's Airmen in overcoming the challenges of ever-changing combat environments.

"Today, more than ever, our Airmen are warriors," the general said. "I am proud to be associated with Air Force people who are so devoted to defending our great nation while being true team players, even when it means stepping outside their normal duties and specialties."

Source: U.S. Air Force

June 14, 2006 - Atterbury fly zone receives final OK

The Indiana Air National Guard has received final approval for its fighter jets to conduct training missions over Brown County, the Federal Aviation Administration has recently decided.

A new military flight zone will extend over much of eastern Brown County, allowing aircraft to fly as low as 500 feet as they approach a bombing range in Camp Atterbury. The flight zone will open August 3.

Despite pleas from Brown County officials during the public review process, real estate industry experts and small-aircraft pilots who sought compromises in the plan, the FAA decided the flight zone “will not result in any significant military impacts,” according to public notice it gave.

“We did all we thought we could,” Brown County councilman and Hills O’ Brown broker Steve Gore said last week.

The council and county commissioners passed a joint resolution opposing the flight area last May. However, Council-man Gore said his fear that the flight area would ruin the county’s tranquil nature was partially relieved last June, when a National Guard pilot came to Brown County to explain the proposal.

“It sounded to me like they were going to take a one-way corridor and make it a two-way corridor,” the councilman said. “It doesn’t sound like they’re going to fly more missions.”

Major Chris Snider, officer of an air-to-ground gunnery range at Camp Atterbury, said this was correct, although pilots may stay in the area longer. He expects the area to be used for one or two hours a day, and rarely on weekends. One of the few such areas in the Midwest, it will be available for any military pilots who want to use it.

Major Snider said the low minimum altitude of 500 feet allows pilots to practice flying and maneuvering below the level of RADAR.

“The maneuvering we do below 5,000 feet is a whole lot more scripted and restricted than what we do above 5,000 feet,” he said. “Above 5,000 feet aircraft will continue to do a dogfight until somebody is simulated killed. Below 5,000 feet it’s more like just initial moves.”

But this leaves little room for other aircraft, according to Mark Poliak, president of Indy Flyers, an association of small aircraft pilots.

“They say we can fly below 500 feet,” Mr. Poliak said. “It’s not safe to fly below 500 feet. If your engine goes out, you have a matter of seconds before you hit the ground. If you’re at 2,000 feet, you have a little bit of time before you have to find a landing space. That’s been our whole contention. Raise it up a little bit, and we’re fine with it.”

The Metropolitan Indianapolis Board of REALTORS (MIBOR) also asked that the minimum elevation in the airspace be raised to 4,000 feet, but the FAA did not grant this request. MIBOR spokesman Tom Rector said the organization will encourage real estate agents to disclose when a property is within the flight zone, even though law does not require it.

Mr. Poliak said he was not surprised the FAA and Indiana Air National Guard did not make any compromises with local officials or residents. But he was disappointed the local military branch did not give more public notice about the proposal, he said. Brown County government officials learned about the plan only after pilots found it on the FAA Web site and told them about it.

The flight area includes the area over Sprunica and Van Buren elementary schools, and Mr. Poliak said he hoped this fact would help mobilize more local residents against the plan.

“I am supportive of the guard and their ability to be able to practice maneuvers,” the pilot said. “I just don’t think they’re being reasonable, in consideration of elementary schools, people’s personal property and other pilots.”

Jonathan Hiskes, Brown County Democrat - Nashville,IN,USA

June 7, 2006 - Terre Haute National Guard Station Gets New Missions; 420 Jobs

The National Guard says Hulman Regional Airport Air Guard Station in Terre Haute will be getting two Air Force missions, which could include 420 new jobs.

The new assignments will replace the F-16 missions that were eliminated as a part of the Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) process last year.

The National Guard says the 181st Fighter Wing will be converted to an Air Support Operations Squadron, which is a liaison between ground forces and aircraft, and a Distributed Common Ground Station that provides real time data to battlefield commanders.

Source: Inside Indiana Business

Press Release

Indianapolis - Governor Mitch Daniels and the Indiana National Guard were informed today that two new Air Force missions, that could include staffing of up to 420 people, will be established at the Hulman Regional Airport Air Guard Station in Terre Haute. Members of the 181st Fighter Wing will be converted to an Air Support Operations Squadron and a Distributed Common Ground Station. The new assignments will replace the F-16 missions that were eliminated as a part of the Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) in 2005.

Lt. Gen. H Steven Blum, chief of the National Guard Bureau, made the mission announcement today. The missions are part of the Air Force Total Force Integration initiatives. Transition and training schedules will be determined among the Indiana National Guard, Air Force and National Guard Bureau.

"This is great news for the Terre Haute economy, but first and foremost for our national defense. This confirms that our message got through that we have a great facility and an outstanding Air Guard," said Governor Mitch Daniels.

The Air Support Operation Squadron (ASOS) is a liaison between ground forces and aircraft to direct close air support for combat troops. It is expected that 70 personnel will be assigned to ASOS. The Distributed Common Ground Station (DGS) provides real time data to battlefield commanders via imagery, electronic and human and intelligence analysis. There will be approximately 350 staff assigned to this mission work.

"These new missions are an integral part of our Joint Strategic Plan by supporting the joint urban training environment at Camp Atterbury Joint Maneuver Training Center and Muscatatuk Urban Training Center," said Maj. Gen. R. Martin Umbarger, The Adjutant General for the State of Indiana.

The Indiana Congressional delegation, Terre Haute Mayor Kevin Burke, and the Civic Leadership Coalition of Terre Haute and Vigo County have actively worked with state leaders to attract new mission work to the base.

Source: National Guard

February 18, 2005 - State homeland head touts disaster plan here. 

Mutual training between state officials and local emergency responders on reacting to natural disasters and terrorism is the linchpin of the state's new homeland security plan.
 

Practicing for an earthquake, flood or other calamity might help distinguish Indiana's response from the muddled chaos seen on the Gulf Coast after Hurricane Katrina, officials said. Indiana's homeland security director, Eric Dietz, was in Evansville on Friday promoting the state's new homeland security plan. Dietz praised the teamwork demonstrated by local firefighters, police, National Guard members and volunteers after the Nov. 6 tornado that killed 25 people in Vanderburgh and Warrick counties.

Dietz spoke Friday at the Knight Township Fire Department about the new state security plan released Thursday. Asked if he believed the new 41-page Indiana Strategy for Homeland Security will be followed during an emergency, Dietz stressed the importance of regular training and practice sessions for state and local responders.

"It's very important that each of those plans gets exercised. Again, we practice as we're going to show up at the emergency, and make sure that our practice is good enough, that it defines where our weaknesses are, that it informs our decision-makers n our mayors and our commissioners n on hard decisions that need to be made," Dietz said.
 

Vanderburgh County's emergency management director, Sherman Greer, said that by training with state officials, local emergency responders will be ready. "All disasters happen local, they're all local. So we're the ones who will have to make that initial response," Greer said.
 

The plan calls for using two National Guard facilities, the Muscatatuck Urban Training Center in Butlerville, Ind., and the Joint Training Simulation and Exercise Center at Camp Atterbury near Edinburgh, Ind., for homeland security training.
 

Besides training, some other goals of the homeland plan are to:

January 20, 2006 - Decades after war injury, veteran gets Purple Heart

NEW HARMONY, Ind. - James R. Roberts doesn't remember a whole lot about getting shot while leading a squad of soldiers up a mountainside in Korea on June 6, 1951.

And the Army forgot about it, too - for more than 54 years. That's how much time passed before Roberts received the Purple Heart he earned that day when a bullet passed through his hip and midsection.

It took a letter from Roberts' daughter, Georgia Forzley of Poseyville, Ind., to President Bush last year to jog the Army's memory and obtain her father's medal and combat infantryman badge. They arrived in the mail earlier this month.

Forzley said her father, 75, cried when he opened the package and saw the heart-shaped medal and ribbon. "We just thought he deserved the Purple Heart," she said to explain why she and other siblings put a couple of years' effort into righting the oversight. After filing a request for military records and failing to get what she thought was appropriate help from the Military Order of the Purple Heart in Louisville, Ky., Forzley decided last September to write a letter to the president.

It apparently spurred the Army to research her father's records because within a few weeks, she received assurance from the Department of the Army that the medal would be issued.

The day the medal arrived in the mail, Forzley, who works at the Flying J Travel Plaza on U.S. 41 North, said her dad "went around showing it to all those truck drivers."

"I just think all the families out there that have a veteran need to go look into it. Those people deserve that," she said.

Roberts, a sergeant who spent 6½ years, from 1948 to 1955, in the Army, was a member of the 31st Infantry Regiment, 7th Division. He and the division participated in Gen. Douglas MacArthur's plan to strike the North Korean army by putting troops ashore at Inchon, some 200 miles behind their lines.

That amphibious landing on Sept. 15, 1950, was successful enough that by October, Roberts and other soldiers were back on boats for a landing further north at Hungnam. That strike and a push toward the Yalu River led to intervention in the war by Chinese Communist soldiers and forced the eventual evacuation of Hungnam and other positions in North Korea.

Soldiers endured the long, hard winter and began an offensive to retake the lost territory.

"Oh, man, it was cold," Roberts said. "You were laying out there on the ground with it 35 degrees below zero and the wind was a-blowing. There was not even a hole to get into. The ground was frozen so hard you couldn't dig one. You had to find one somebody had already dug or one made by artillery."

It was the next summer, during the push back to the north, that Roberts was wounded and began a trip to a Tokyo hospital and finally Camp Atterbury in Indiana.

Hit as his nine-man squad was going up a hill to attack the enemy, Roberts said a medic gave him morphine and he was evacuated to a field hospital and then a hospital ship. Finally he was transferred to Tokyo where additional surgery was performed for an infection. Eventually, he was flown back to the United States for convalescence.

Along the way, Roberts suspects he became separated from some of the paperwork that would have gotten him his medal at that time. He said it's possible his platoon leader or company commander who would have filed the paperwork may have been killed or wounded after he was shot. And being shipped back stateside for recovery, Roberts said he lost contact with other members of his outfit.

"When you're sent back, half your stuff doesn't come with you," he said.

"Besides," the Mount Vernon, Ind., native said, "I never would try to get too friendly with anyone. You never knew if they were going to be around tomorrow or if you would. I tell you, a lot of people didn't come home."

Roberts enlisted in the Army Sept. 13, 1948, and completed is basic training at Fort Knox in Kentucky. After basic, he became a member of the 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg, N.C.

When the 7th Division was reactivated in Japan before the invasion of Korea, Roberts said the Army pulled soldiers from all over the United States, and he became an infantryman.

After recovering from his wounds, Roberts remained in the Army until 1955 and was stationed in Germany.

After getting out, he and his wife, Joyce, an Evansville resident, moved to Chicago where they worked until retirement in 1986 for Western Electric, AT&T and Lucent Technologies, one of the companies created when the communications giant was broken up.

When they retired, they returned to Posey County, purchasing land on Romain Road and building a new home.  JOHN LUCAS, Evansville Courier & Press (subscription) - Evansville,IN,USA

January 8, 2005 - A soldier's song is delayed.

December 22, 2005 - 2005 Was Active Year for Hoosiers in the Military

December 9, 2005 - Biology, Chemistry majors present projects

With senior year comes senior projects, and with senior projects come presentations. On Friday and Saturday, the third and fourth of December, ten students presented the results of their research. Friday saw the students presenting the posters they had prepared about their projects, while Saturday had them giving formal presentation. Topics ranged from Chinook salmon populations in the St. Mary’s River and the composition of bat populations in disturbed areas to the mutagenic properties of artificial sweetener metabolites and proposed updates to Michigan Department of Environmental Quality safety regulations. Formal presentations, which were approximately twenty minutes each, ran in two sessions: Natural Resources, and Chemistry and Biology. Along with their name and topic, each student’s introduction also included their hometown and a memorable experience from their time here at Lake State, which ranged from first bald eagle sightings to switching from political science to chemistry with a year to go. According to Dr. Nancy Kirkpatrick, Senior Thesis Coordinator for the School of Biological Sciences, “Students choose a topic, design a study, collect and analyze the data, write a scientific paper and present the information to the university community and interested members of the public. Projects typically take an entire year for the students to design and complete, and generally address practical issues of local biological and environmental concerns.” Students are given the opportunity to work alongside other researchers in their field, and do their research at locations as diverse as the Centre of Forensic Sciences and Camp Atterbury Military Base in Indiana, as well as here on campus. Senior projects serve as a capstone for experience for Laker biology and chemistry majors, and prepare students to “continue as independent investigators in their employment or as graduate and professional school students,” says Dr. Michael Donovan, LSSU’s Associate Provost.  Paul Bonamy, Compass Newspaper - Sault Sainte Marie,MI,USA

December 5, 2005 - Army investigating Newport facility

November 18, 2005 - Atterbury is site for new country video

Combat boots tapping against the concrete floor kept time with country-singer Josh Gracin’s guitar during the taping of a music video at Camp Atterbury.

Scheduled to be aired in January the music-video was being taped for a new television series on Country Music Television.

Gracin and country song-writer, Marcel wrote and performed the music for the video recently as a tribute to Hoosier Sgt. Billie Grimes and all soldiers doing their jobs in far away places. Grimes appears in the video.

Gracin was a Marine when he appeared on American Idol as a country singer and was discovered by Rascal Flatts. Now a recording artist for Lyric Street, Gracin has had two hit single records, “Nothin’ to Lose” and “I Want To Live.” His first album, titled simply “Josh Gracin,” passed the gold album mark last month.

A young female soldier from Lebanon, Ind., Grimes was featured on the cover of Time magazine in 2003. During her service as an Army medic in Iraq, Grimes also received public notice when she saved the lives of two Times reporters who were injured during a roadside attack.

With their rifles slung across their backs, more than a 1,000 soldiers from Ohio, West Virginia, Illinois, Indiana, the Carolinas and New England filled the large military warehouse turned soundstage during the taping of the video. The soldiers were all at Camp Atterbury to prepare for deployment to Iraq and Afghanistan, but they took a break from their combat training to participate in the video.

National Guard soldier Sgt. Pamela Purlock of West Virginia had simply thought she was headed for an afternoon of fun and relaxation when she and her unit entered the warehouse to watch the production of a video. However, the person slated to sing the National Anthem did not show up and Purlock’s commander volunteered her for the job.

“I haven’t sung in front of an audience for five years and I wasn’t even sure I could remember all the words,” said Purlock. More concerned she would “mess-up” in front of her fellow soldiers than the CMT stars, the tall young blonde gave it her best shot and didn’t miss a word or a note. In January, she will be in Iraq, but she will also be making her debut on Country Music Television.

Between retakes of the video, Gracin bantered casually with the soldiers who surrounded the makeshift stage where he and his band performed.

Suzanne Nagel, civilian public affairs specialist for the Army at Fort Knox, explained the music video will be a segment of a new CMT series called “Unsung Stories.” During the series, selected country singers and songwriters will perform new songs they have composed about everyday people who do everyday jobs.

“The CMT people asked the Army to allow them to use the story of an everyday soldier whose story would represent the story of many soldiers,” said Nagel. “Grimes was selected because she did her everyday job well and, I think, because she already had experience with dealing with the bright lights of the media.”

During a rest break, Camp Atterbury Commander, Col. Barry Richmond presented Gracin, Marcel and Grimes with awards.

“Watch each other’s back. Don’t try to be a hero, just do your job well and come home,” Gracin said, after being asked, as a Marine, what advice he would give as a Marine to the soldiers headed for combat. Columbus Republic, Columbus, IN

November 16, 2005 - Military fly zone OK'd by regional FAA

Brown County is one step closer to having fighter pilots practicing high-speed training missions — in some places as low as 500 feet above ground — under a proposal by the Air Force and Indiana Air National Guard.

Last month, the Federal Aviation Administration’s regional office near Chicago sent its recommendation to expand Camp Atterbury’s fly zone in northeastern Brown County to FAA headquarters in Washington, D.C., according to Major Ken Stone, a pilot with the Indiana Air National Guard.

Major Stone said this does not mean the proposal has been approved for use. Instead, he said, “It is more of a recommendation to the FAA headquarters.” He said he did not know when the FAA would make its final ruling.

Airspace over Camp Atterbury is already used for practice, but the military’s proposal would cover far more territory and include F-16s and other jets flying as low as 500 feet above ground in certain areas.

Local officials and business leaders expressed concerns earlier this year about the additional airspace, and MIBOR (Metropolitan Indianapolis Board of REALTORS) requested the proposal be amended to include a minimum elevation of 4,000 feet above ground. But that request does not appear in the final plan submitted to the federal government.

At the time, the group said they were concerned with possible interference with medical helicopters that fly in from Columbus and Indianapolis, Brown County’s tourism industry which brings in close to 3 million visitors a year, the safe flight of Indiana aircraft using this same space and the possible adverse effects on the environment and state parks.

In June, Major Stone was in Nashville and met with community leaders and explained the proposed MOAs — military operating areas.

He said the Air Force and the Indiana Air National Guard need an MOA over Camp Atterbury because the current air space is insufficient to conduct maneuvers required for present-day and future threats. He also said that the MOA would not prevent access by other aircraft, and that air ambulances would be able to operate in the MOA when needed.

At the time, Realtor Steve Gore, who also is vice president of the Brown County Council and chief of the Brown County (Nashville) Volunteer Fire Department, said there could be a significant negative impact to both the county’s tourist industry and property values if the expanded airspace is approved.

“As a veteran of both naval aviation and the Air Force Reserve as a crash crew member, I have always been thrilled to see the A-10s and F-16s overhead, but as a representative of the community, I feel I must register my misgivings as to the possible negative impact on both the safety and economy of our community,” Mr. Gore wrote in a letter to the FAA.

After hearing of the recommendation, Mr. Gore said he wasn’t surprised about the decision.

Tom Rector with the state MIBOR governmental affairs office said if the proposal goes through, the impact to Brown County would be devastating and would compromise the “peace and quiet” of the area.

“Noise pollution affects so many different parts of the environment,” he said. “Even horseback riders in the state park can get easily spooked by fighter jets, black hawks and helicopters.”   Judy Hess, Brown County Democrat - Nashville,IN,USA

November 4, 2005 - Airmen Learning Army Skills

CAMP ATTERBURY, Ind. -- A new battle cry has been heard around the ranges and barracks here.

Instead of the all too familiar ‘HOOAH,’ a strange and new guttural chant is catching on -- ‘AIRRP!’ The men and women who use the new phrase, which means ‘air power,’ are taking part in a joint effort which teaches Army skills to Airmen.

Sleeping in the dirt, sending thousands of rounds downrange, throwing live grenades and running convoy operations are nothing special here to a Soldier preparing to deploy. However, for a group of around 80 Air Force logisticians, the opportunity to get a taste of Army training for close to five weeks continues to be a unique and potentially lifesaving experience.

Airmen from all over the country arrived here in October on short notice, to gear up for their upcoming mission in Afghanistan.

These Airmen will be mentoring their counterparts in the Afghan National Army in teaching them how to support their own logistics system.

The logistics mission, similar to the Army’s combat service support mission, is designed to provide guidance to the Afghan army to assist them in a broad range of logistics from providing airplane fuel and maintaining vehicles to supplying troops with beans and bullets.

Stepping up to the challenge was Master Sgt. Antonio Thomas, who embraced the training.

“Over there you could get into a situation where you need to survive, and it’s better to have more training than not enough. We may need it to survive,” he said.

Sergeant Thomas, who has been in the Air Force for 20 years, describes the training as being more hands on and more intense than regular Air Force training.

“It’s a new twist because some things that we’re used to having, we can’t have all the time … like heat and nice barracks,” Sergeant Thomas said.

“It’s a little more basic,” Sergeant Wilson said. “I’m glad to be in the Air Force.”

Throughout their training, the Air Force personnel have done exceptionally well.

“They’re meeting all of the Army standards and are very receptive to the training,” said Army Sgt. 1st Class William Jones, part of the 2335th Infantry Regiment which oversees the training here. The Airmen are expected to complete close to 80 events ranging from improvised explosive device training to weapons training.

“It’s amazing how easily they are adjusting to the Army way of life,” he said.

During a recent M-16 rifle qualification, a group of Air Force logisticians were 16 out of 16 for a 100 percent success rate.

“We’ve never seen that before, and it was the Air Force doing it,” he said. “Overall they will be more prepared in land navigation and weapons now because a lot of them have never been through it before.”

Though the Airmen didn’t sign up to do combat operations, the training they receive here could save lives.  Army Spc. Rick Rzepka, Air Force News Service, About - News & Issues - New York,NY,USA

November 3, 2005  - WIDEST DISSEMINATION POSSIBLE - CAMP ATTERBURY, IN

We asked some survivors of the USS Indianapolis and their spouses about their memories from the night the ship sank and how their lives have turned out.

Maurice Bell

• Age: 80

• Residence: Mobile, Ala.

• Military rank: Seaman 1st Class

• Memories: Bell was 20 when the ship was torpedoed. While treading water, he kept telling himself that help was on its way. "I knew I would be rescued," he said. Even to this day, the memories of the ship's sinking haunt him. "It bothered me, and it still does," Bell said. "Somebody could make a loud noise or something like that, and I'll shake for a while."

• How life turned out: After leaving the Navy, Bell found work in carpentry in Chicago, where he lived for 10 years before moving to Mobile. Bell was a superintendent of building maintenance for Mobile County Schools until he retired in 1988. He is enjoying every minute of his life with his wife of 61 years and 17 grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

Lois Bell

• Age: 79

• Residence: Mobile, Ala.

• Memories: The War Department sent a telegram to Lois Bell, notifying her that her husband was injured but alive on the day the news of the USS Indianapolis' sinking was announced on the radio. But it would be a month before she heard from her husband, Maurice, whom she married in October 1944, nine months before the fateful day.

After Maurice Bell was treated at a hospital in Guam, he had the option to report to any station in the United States. He chose Chicago to reunite with Lois, who lived in Nineveh.

"I was just glad to see him because we never had a honeymoon," she said.

• How life turned out: She met Maurice while he was stationed at Camp Atterbury. Her father worked at the camp, and he often gave Maurice and the other enlisted men rides to the base.

"(My dad) told me about that nice-looking young man," Lois said. Maurice and Lois spent their first date at an ice cream shop in Edinburgh, Ind. Even after the harrowing experience, her husband was "just himself," Lois said, and the Bells finally found the chance to honeymoon in California.

Richard Thelen

• Age: 78

• Residence: Lansing, Mich.

• Military rank: Seaman 2nd Class

• Memories: Thelen enlisted at 17 with high school friend Norval Mitchell, a fellow USS Indianapolis survivor. Thelen recalled drawing strength from his faith. "I'm Catholic. My religion helped me in the water."

• How life turned out: After the incident, Thelen worked as a truck driver for 44 years. He said he has never been in an accident. "Give people a break," he said. "Don't be selfish on the road."

Thelen has six children. His wife died four years ago.

Sam Lopez

• Age: 80

• Residence: Monongah, W.Va.

• Military rank: Seaman 1st Class

• Memories: Lopez enlisted with several friends, including Harry Linville. But on that night aboard the Indianapolis, Lopez lost his friend. "I'd seen him a couple hours before the ship got hit," Lopez said. "He didn't make it. He was the only boy in the family. I come from a family of 12."

• How life turned out: The tragic experience taught this grandfather of four the fleeting nature of life. When Lopez left the service in 1946, he worked in coal mines for 40 years, mindful of the dangers compounded by his earlier experience. "You don't take life for granted."

Robert Bunai

• Age: 92

• Residence: West Roxbury, Maine

• Military rank: Seaman 1st Class

• Memories: Bunai still remembers that trouble on the ship started at "12 minutes past midnight" July 30. "We heard a terrifying hell break loose. We didn't know what happened. Our power was knocked out."

Leila married Bunai in 1968. She said Bunai, who worked at the First National Bank of Boston after his service, had not mentioned his experience for years.

"It's better now," Leila, 76, said. "But I think I still feels for his friend that didn't make it."

When Bunai retired from the bank, he took a AARP-sponsored "trip around the world in 49 days."

• How life turned out: "Right now, I'm luckier and luckier I'm alive," the retired banker said. "Nearly every day, I do the same thing. I take a walk in the mornings. I'm still driving a car. I go grocery shopping for my wife. If it weren't for my wife, the loving care, I wouldn't be here today."  Indianapolis Star - United States

January 21, 2005 - Small Base Now Big Asset to Military, Local Communities

By Sgt. 1st Class Doug Sample, USA
American Forces Press Service

CAMP ATTERBURY, Ind., Dec. 9, 2004 -- For more than 50 years, the only life here was on weekends and for two weeks in the summer. Now, you actually have to keep a watchful eye for marching troops and military convoys at the four-way stop entering the camp.

For the first time since the Korean War, Camp Atterbury, a National Guard training center first activated June 1942 as a World War II training facility, has become an important military asset. Today, it prepares thousands of troops for deployment in the war on terror, while providing millions of dollars in economic impact to the state.

Army Col. Kenneth D. Newlin, who took command here in October 2002, said over the past two years more than 20,000 Army National Guard and Army Reserve members have been mobilized here for duty in Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere.

That number is expected to remain steady as the Army presses more Guard and Reserve soldiers into active duty and the Defense Department has called for more troops in Iraq. Roughly half of the forces serving there now are Guard and Reserve members.

Newlin said the camp's gymnasium, which serves as the personnel readiness center, processes an average of 200 soldiers each day. Often, the center operated seven days a week.

A mix of units comes here: medical, engineer, infantry, armor and even training. For example, recently the 98th Division (Institutional Training) out of New York, a unit that consists mostly of drill sergeants, deployed to help the 42nd Infantry Division train the Iraqi army.

The camp's 64 beige concrete barracks house about 4,500 soldiers from more than 39 Guard and Reserve units from across the country, part of the third rotation of troops bound for Iraq. They will spend six to eight weeks in training, learning to avoid convoy ambushes and how to identify unexploded ordnance, two of the most serious dangers they will face in duty.

Newlin said the training here is based on the 40 Warrior Tasks directed by Army Chief of Staff Gen. Peter Schoomaker. All soldiers, regardless of specialty, must be proficient in the tasks, which include rifle and survival skills.

Besides those tasks, there are individual and collective training events in which soldiers are put in a forward operating base laid out exactly as they would see in Iraq. The idea is for soldiers to "see, smell and train" in the environment they would experience in Iraq, he said.

Iraqi nationals are brought in to be role players and play the role of insurgents to make the scenario more realistic. The FOB is attacked with mortar fire, and vehicle convoys are hit with improvised explosive devices.

During one part of the training, a convoy travels through a village. There, it is stopped, and plastic explosives are set off to simulate an IED. The sound of the blast "literally rocks their world," Newlin said.

"This is not just a little 'pop and drop simulator,'" he said. "The fireball cuts through the air, the black smoke billows out, and the concussion hits you in the face. Talk about shock effect; they know they just got blown up."

The soldiers are trained to fend off such an attack. At the convoy live-fire range, soldiers must engage targets on both sides of the vehicle, using whatever individual or crew-served weapon systems are available, from M-4, M- 249, to Mark 19 and .50-caliber weapons systems.

The training is based on lessons learned from Guard and Reserve units now in Iraq, Newlin said. Some training, however, is refresher courses for tasks learned in basic training, such as first aid and radio communications. Other training, such as rappelling, is designed to build the soldiers' confidence, Newlin explained.

Farewell ceremonies have become an almost weekly ritual here, and Camp Atterbury leaders treat each as a family affair. That's because many of the Guard and Reserve members departing are soldiers they have served with.

"It tough here," Newlin said. "About everyone I've known has deployed somewhere in some fashion or capacity.

"I'm proud to be training and mobilizing them," he continued, "because I truly look at every one of these soldiers as a brother and a friend. And in many cases, most of them are."

Newlin said the 113th Engineer Battalion, 38th Infantry Division, Indiana Army National Guard, is currently training at the camp mobilizing for duty in Iraq. It is the unit where he learned to lead soldiers as a noncommissioned officer, and he commanded until just two years ago.

While the units here await marching orders, soldiers spend off-duty time at the few facilities and activities the camp offers -- a shoppette, a physical fitness center, an "All Ranks" club, a laundry, a barbershop and a movie theater. Newlin said that though Camp Atterbury is small in size aspirations here are big. Since the war on terror began, the installation has become a viable asset to the military.

In February 2002, the Army mobilized Camp Atterbury, the first National Guard mobilization station to be called into service. As a Forces Command Power Support Platform, Camp Atterbury serves as a mobilization and training site for Guard and Reserve troops preparing for the war on terror. That same year, the camp was re-designated by the National Guard Bureau as a Joint Maneuver Training Center, making Camp Atterbury the premier training center in the state.

Newlin said that by becoming a joint training center, Camp Atterbury has fallen in line with the Chief of National Guard Bureau's vision of conducting more joint operations. He said the ability of the camp to "train all components of the services here, and a number of them in joint roles, is part of our ability to adapt and remain viable."

In fact, Guard and Reserve personnel from all services use the camp's training ranges. And Air National Guard units from Indiana and neighboring Kentucky use it to fly sorties overhead and to practice equipment drops from C-130 Hercules transport aircraft. Local state and federal law enforcement authorities use the live-fire ranges to hone their rifle skills.

The Army decision to activate the camp also has meant more military construction dollars for renovations and other quality-of-life improvements. The camp's first commercial franchise, a Subway sandwich shop is set to open next week. It will be the first such franchise on a National Guard base.

Construction has also begun on an $8 million battle simulation center that will enhance training, Newlin said. But what may make Camp Atterbury the NTC of the National Guard is the acquisition of the Muscatatuck State Developmental Center. The sprawling facility, once used to treat people with disabilities, is less than 45 miles east of the camp, and is closing soon. It would cost the state upwards of $40 million to destroy the facility and restore it for agricultural use.

However, Newlin said, Indiana National Guard leaders are hopeful that the ultimate urban warfare-training center could be created there and have put a proposal before the state legislature to do so.

"This would be 10 times the size of any CACTF that's out there," he said. "And it's going to allow us to replicate a more realistic environment for urban training. Instead of having a bunch of cookie-cutter buildings, all made of the same type of materials or facades of materials, you're actually going into a living, breathing city that is self-sustaining."

The residential facility has nearly 1,000 acres of land and some 70 buildings, including a five-story hospital, a minimum-security prison, a school, housing, administrative buildings and its own power station and water treatment plant. A kitchen facility there is capable of serving 4,500 meals three times a day.

Another advantage is the area's large buffer zones, Newlin said -- nearly 1,900 acres to the north and 800 acres to the south of agricultural and forest lands would clear the facility of encroachment. It also has 3,000 feet of underground tunnels, Newlin said, interconnecting the various buildings.

The resurgence of Camp Atterbury and its plans for expansion don't seem to bother the roughly 4,500 residents in the small farming town of Edinburgh where the camp is located. The yellow ribbons on car bumpers and rear windows indicate that many of the people here support the troops.

The local theater gives discounts "all evening, all shows" to those with military ID. And the case of popcorn that sits by Newlin's office door was donated by the local Boy Scouts for the troops, he explained.

Then there is the self-described "Little Old Popcorn Lady." Her business, "Popcorn and More" sells the treat in 100 flavors. Newlin said she ensures that every soldier arriving here gets a bag of the caramel-flavored treat along with a welcome note.

Newlin said he believes the community's appreciation for Camp Atterbury comes in part from the huge economic impact it has on the local community. During fiscal 2003 Camp Atterbury provided more than $78 million to the local community with everything from laundry services to the local seamstress who is kept busy sewing patches and American flags on military uniforms.

"This is truly one of the largest businesses in southern Indiana," Newlin said. The manager of a local pizza-delivery business called to personally thank Newlin, saying that his business increased so much he had to buy a second oven -- which means the pizza delivery traffic here will double. That's something else to watch out for at the camp's main intersection.

(Army Sgt. Les Newport, Camp Atterbury Public Affairs Office, contributed to this report.)