Tag Archives: 116th

Idaho, U.S.

Idaho’s Snake River Militia captures U.S. Army ForsCom!

Video

After five days of grueling events, on 18AUG2023 U.S. Army Forces Command (ForsCom) announced the winner of its Best Squad competition; Idaho Army National Guard’s 116th Cavalry Brigade Combat Team (‘Snake River Brigade’)!

Idaho Army National Guard’s Specialist Christian Brown takes the lead during the 12-mile Ruck March, 18AUG2023. U.S. Army photo by Specialist Jaidon Novinska.

The winning squad is specifically from Idaho’s 2nd-116th Cavalry Regiment, made up of Staff Sergeant Joshua Hutchings, Sergeant Douglas Kenz-Woods, Specialist Evan Skaug, Specialist David Hann, and Specialist Christian Brown.  They are now prepping for the overall U.S. Army Best Squad Competition, in September 2023.

ForsCom Command Sergeant Major Todd Sim, congratulates the Squad from the ‘Snake River Brigade’, during a ceremony on Fort Campbell, Kentucky. U.S. Army photo by Staff Sergeant Elizabeth Rundell, 18AUG2023.

Jumping out of a perfectly good Cold War era CH-47, with no parachute! U.S. Army video (edited by me to show mainly Idaho’s Squad number 8) of the Helocast test near Dover, Tennessee, 15AUG2023:

U.S. Army video by Specialist Mason Nichols, showing the ForsCom Best Squad Fortitude Fitness Test (it should be called the Ma-Duce Fitness Test, ’cause your squad runs carrying more than a hundred pounds of machinegun), 16AUG2023:

The big win for Idaho came just a couple of weeks after winning U.S. Army Central’s (ArCent) Best Squad competition (IDAHO SNAKE RIVER SQUAD; ‘PATTON’S OWN’ CHOSEN ONES!).

Idaho, International, Technology, U.S.

Forever Wars: Snake River M1A2 SEP, boresight Morocco!

Video

Oregon’s 3-116th Combined Arms Battalion (one of three CABs belonging to Idaho based 116th Cavalry Brigade Combat Team [CBCT], aka Snake River Brigade) is taking part in this year’s African Lion 2023.

Bore-sighting the M1A2 SEP, in Tan-Tan, Morocco. Oregon National Guard video by Staff Sergeant Ariel J. Solomon, 08JUN2023:

African Lion took place in Ghana, Morocco, Senegal and Tunisia from 13MAY-18JUN2023. African Lion is the largest wargame on the African continent, involving the United States and other NATO members, as well as Ghana, Morocco, Senegal and Tunisia.

Bore-sighting aligns the Gunner’s sights with the end of the main gun tube, greatly increasing the chance of a ‘first-round-hit’.

More boring bore-sighting video from Staff Sergeant Ariel J. Solomon, 08JUN2023:

Photo by Staff Sergeant Ariel J. Solomon, 10JUN2023.

January 2023: IDAHO INVADES MOROCCO, SWAN SONG OF THE M109A6?

Forever Wars, 2023: NATO GREATLY INCREASES TAXPAYER FUNDING, EXPANDS GLOBAL AMMO SUPPLY, FORMS ‘BIRDS COALITION’ WITH UKRAINE!

New Cold War 2022:  RUSSIAN T-72B3M LIVE FIRE CRIMEA!

February 2019: M1A2-SEP-V2 ABRAMS, IDAHO LIVE FIRE

Idaho, International, Technology, U.S.

Biden’s War: Idaho based Snake-River invades Texas, next stop; Kuwait & Iraq!

Image

17 October 2022 (12:39-UTC-07 Tango 06) 25 Mehr 1401/21 Rabi ‘al-Awwal 1444/22 Geng-Xu 4720/17 октября 2022 года

Snake River M1A2SEPV2 Abrams. Idaho Air National Guard photo by Master Sergeant Becky Vanshur, 13SEP2022.

In September 2022, the Snake River Brigade’s 116th Cavalry Brigade Combat Team (CBCT) was busy in Texas, where it was transformed into Task Force Rattler, next stop Kuwait and Iraq.

The Army National Guard’s 116th CBCT is based in Idaho, but has units spread through Florida, Montana, Nevada and Oregon.

South Carolina MRAPs. Idaho Air National Guard photo by Master Sergeant Becky Vanshur, 13SEP2022.

Ohio’s HMMWV Ambulances. Idaho Air National Guard photo by Master Sergeant Becky Vanshur, 14SEP2022.

The 118th Infantry Regiment from South Carolina Army National Guard, as well as the 285th Medical Company from the Ohio Army National Guard, have joined with the 116th CBCT.  They are all being deployed to relieve another 116th CBCT led unit which was deployed in November 2021.

Snake River M113 Mortar Carrier. It is basically an upgrade to the old M113 based M106/M125 mortar tracks. New version can carry the 120mm mortar. Idaho Air National Guard photo by Master Sergeant Becky Vanshur, 14SEP2022.

It is all part of the ongoing Operation Spartan Shield. The U.S. Army side of Operation Spartan Shield is called Task Force Spartan, which is dependent upon part time Army National Guard and Army Reserve units.  Task Force Rattler will be the second, back to back, 12 months deployment for the 116th CBCT.

Snake River M2 Bradley Infantry Fighting Vehicle. Idaho Air National Guard photo by Master Sergeant Becky Vanshur, 15SEP2022.

Before they actually deploy to The Middle East, units must spend 45 days on Fort Bliss, Texas, conducting final deployment training, despite having trained in their home states for as long as two years, and very likely having been deployed many times before.

This AH-64 Apache was being used by the evaluation team out of Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington. Idaho Air National Guard photo by Master Sergeant Becky Vanshur, 14SEP2022.

To make things more confusing, the U.S. Army evaluation team on Fort Bliss is not based in Texas.  The U.S. Army evaluators are from the 189th Infantry Brigade Combined Arms Training Battalion, normally based on Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington.

Biden’s War: IDAHO, MONTANA, OREGON DEPLOY, YET AGAIN!

IDAHO, MONTANA, OREGON STUCK IN A DEPLOYMENT LOOP!

2017: IDAHO MILITIA HAS RECORD NUMBER OF DEPLOYMENTS IN ONE YEAR?

Idaho, International

116th Armored Cav NTC, June 2019. Overseas deployment in 2020!

Video

Video, C Company, 3rd Battalion, 116th Cavalry Regiment, M1A2 SEP and M2 Bradley live fire (the voice you hear in the video is one of the first female armor platoon leaders in the U.S.):

At the end of May, 2019, the  Idaho Army National Guard’s 116th Cavalry Brigade Combat Team (which includes personnel from Oregon, Montana and Nevada) deployed more than 3-thousand troops to the U.S. Army’s Fort Irwin National Training Center (NTC) in California.

Idaho Air National Guard’s 124th Fighter Wing also deployed their A-10C Thunderbolt-2s to Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada, to provide close air support at NTC.  Even Tactical Air Control Party (TACP) personnel from Brazil joined in.

Video explainer of helicopter ops:

Specialist James Patrick launches a RQ-11 Raven Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV, drone).

Another 1-thousand-plus support troops from several other state militias (Arizona, California, Kansas, Michigan, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota and Puerto Rico), and several Army Reserve units, joined the 116th Armored Cav.

Specialist Brett Neal on his M1 Abrams based M1150 Assault Breacher.

Video, M1150  Assault Breacher live fire:

11th Cav OpFor ‘surrogate vehicle’ is an M113 dressed up to look ‘Russian’.

The state militias faced off against the U.S. Army’s 11th Cav Opposition Force (OpFor), who provided what’s now called ‘near peer’ threats.  Near peer is a reference to China and Russia.

Even Idaho Air National Guard’s 266th Range Squadron played bad guy, deploying fake 1/1 scale models of ‘enemy’ anti-air vehicles.

The wargame lasted 14 days.  The official report stated that this training is preparation for 116th’s deployment to NATO Germany in Spring 2020.

VEHICLE I-D: M1A2-V2-SEP ABRAMS IDAHO LIVE FIRE, FEBRUARY 2019, preps for NTC

116TH SNAKE RIVER’S 2015 NTC ROTATION

Idaho, Technology

Idaho Militia turns information into lethal weapon!

Image

16FEB2018 (12:22 UTC-07 Tango 06)  27 Bahman 1396/30 Jumada l-Ula 1439/01 Jia-Yin 4716

“Information is a weapon the brigade yields. We’re training Soldiers on their mission command weapons systems. We’re making information more lethal.”-Chief Warrant-3 Jerred Edgar, 116th Cavalry Brigade Combat Team

Idaho Army National Guard photo by Captain Robert Taylor, 10FEB2018.

Idaho’s Army National Guard signal personnel spent the early part of February learning how to kill using information.  Actually, the 116th Cavalry Brigade (Snake River) has signal corps personnel spread across four northwestern states, Idaho, Montana, Nevada and Oregon.

Typically a “Signal Corps develops, tests, provides, and manages communications and information systems”, but this year the Idaho based Snake River militia decided to weaponize the information they gather in an exercise they called Signal Gunnery: “We wanted to create a process that trains crews in a manner similar to tank gunnery to create shared understanding with commanders.”-CW3 Jerred Edgar

Can you see me now? Idaho Army National Guard photo by Captain Robert Taylor, 10FEB2018.

The week long Signal Gunnery brought at least 60 personnel from four states together at Orchard Combat Training Center (OCTC), south of Boise.  It’s hoped this weaponizing-info-exercise becomes a annual event.

IDAHO MILITIA RANKED 2ND ONLY TO U.S. ARMY!

U.S. NAVY: SICK CALL WITHOUT GOING TO SICK CALL?

Idaho, International

Snake River militia deployed near Ukrainian border!

Video

“Once we were assigned the mission, we were all over it!”-Lieutenant Colonel Jim Harper, 116th CBCT

116th Snake River Brigade M1A2 SEP arriving in Romania. U.S. Army photo by Specialist Devone Collins, 24JUN2016.

116th M1A2 ‘license plate’. USA photo by Specialist Devone Collins, 24JUN2016.

The 116th Cavalry Brigade Combat Team (CBCT) currently offloading hundreds of armored vehicles, and performing other logistical ops in the former Warsaw Pact country of Romania (Rumania): “The biggest challenge I faced was trying to find the right contact for our operation. Working stateside to move a unit overseas can be a challenge, but once we identified the right contacts they were extremely helpful. We loaded the equipment staged in Montana onto railroad cars on April 23, and the equipment in Idaho on May 9. Upon the vessel’s arrival in Constanta on 20 June we put into effect 24-hour operations with 52 soldiers.  Those soldiers were responsible for offloading all tracked vehicles, staging and preparing equipment for onward movement by rail or line haul. We were able to offload the vessel within 36 hours which came as a surprise, as often the vessel offload is completed in 72 hours.”-CWO2 Steven Howell, 116th CBCT

116th Snake River Brigade M1A2 SEP moving through Cincu-sora, Romania. Idaho Army National Guard photo, 28JUN2016.

It’s part of preparations for U.S. led NATO’s (and the Orwellian titled Partnerships for Peace alliance) 2016 Saber Guardian wargames, right near the border with Ukraine.

The personnel of the 116th Cavalry can be identified by the Snake River patch on their shoulders. These Snake River guys are from the Montana chapter, and the photo was taken by a Snake River guy from the Oregon chapter. Oregon Army National Guard photo by Sergeant Cory Grogan, 29JUL2016.

Snake River patch on one of my old uniforms. I served with 116th Cav from 1996 to 2003.

U.S. Army video by Specialist Devone Collins, 116th Cav M88A2 Hercules arriving in Cincu, Romania, 05JUL2016 (apparently to fix a broke M113):

The 116th Cav (aka Snake River Brigade) is made up of National Guard personnel mainly from Idaho, Oregon, Montana.  Personnel from South Carolina’s National Guard also taking part in this year’s Saber Guardian, which begins on 27 July and ends on 07 August.  It’s being hosted by the Romanian Land Force Combat Training Center in Cincu.

COUP IN TURKEY HALTS IDAHO AIRSTRIKES AGAINST ISLAMIC STATE!

WORLD WAR 3: “THIS IS WHERE ARMOR FIGHTS!” IDAHO NATIONAL GUARD RETURNS TO COLD WAR ERA “TOTAL FORCE” WARFARE TRAINING!