Army Chemical Review presents professional information about Chemical Corps functions related to chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, smoke, flame, and civil support operations.
Issue link: https://chemical.epubxp.com/i/533676
14 Army Chemical Review T he 23d Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear, and Explosives (CBRNE) Battalion, Camp Stanley, Korea, is the largest—and only forward-deployed— U.S. Army CBRNE battalion capable of weapons of mass de- struction (WMD) and hazard reconnaissance, exploitation, and decontamination in the Korean theater of operations. The battalion consists of the— • Headquarters and Headquarters Detachment. • 4th Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear (CBRN) Company. • 61st CBRN Company. • 62d CBRN Company. • 501st CBRNE Company (Technical Escort). • 718th Ordnance Company (Explosive Ordnance Disposal). Each of the CBRN companies consists of one nuclear, bio- logical, and chemical reconnaissance vehicle (NBCRV) pla- toon and three decontamination platoons—two of which are assigned the additional mission of reconnaissance and sur- veillance. The 23d CBRNE Battalion trains for two distinct war- time mission sets: • Freedom of movement and maneuver. • WMD elimination operations. The battalion must execute these two distinct mission sets with a high level of technical competence at the same time that it endures continuous personnel turnover. Our chal- lenge is to meet the need to "Fight Tonight" in two comple- mentary areas—how we train and how we sustain. The 23d CBRNE Battalion, which is assigned to the 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team (1ABCT), 2d Infantry Divi- sion (2ID), has an operational control training relationship with 1ABCT maneuver battalions. Therefore, to further en- able both mission sets, the 23d CBRNE Battalion formu- lates as a company team package consisting of one maneu- ver support CBRN company and one chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, and explosives response team (CRT). The company team package is task-organized to one of the 1ABCT maneuver battalions and, along with the CBRN company commander, forms a complete package. The CBRN company commander, who is colocated with the maneuver battalion commander, provides the maneuver battalion com- mander with technical advice on how to best use the full spectrum of CBRNE assets under his or her control. To maintain the "Fight Tonight" standards of 2ID, the 23d CBRNE Battalion must continuously conduct driver's training courses, combatives training, weapons range exer- cises, and Tactical Combat Casualty Care courses. There- fore, the battalion training plan must account for the signif- cant turnover of personnel (approximately 50 percent every 6 months) in Korea. To meet this challenge, the battalion de- veloped an aggressive, 6-month training cycle—formalized in a unit training plan—that provides space and predictabil- ity for companies to train at individual and collective levels. The primary focus during the frst quarter of the 6-month training cycle was a battalion level NBCRV gunnery and squad situational training exercise that resulted in the certifcation of NBCRV squads and subteams within each reconnaissance and surveillance platoon, CRT, and decon- tamination platoon. The frst dismounted reconnaissance sets, kits, and outfts (DRSKO) were concurrently felded to six reconnaissance and surveillance platoons and four CRTs within the 23d CBRNE Battalion. A secondary focus was on driver's training, the Combatives Level I Course, monthly weapons range exercises, and Tactical Combat Casualty Care courses. Other priorities included operationalizing leader development and certifcation through a comprehen- sive lieutenant development program; battalion competi- tions; and focus areas aimed at physical readiness, weapons profciency, medical tasks, maintenance, and logistics. The culminating event of the second quarter of the train- ing cycle was a battalion level, combined CBRNE feld training exercise that included participation from maneu- ver battalions and aligned Republic of Korea partners and was executed according to the WMD elimination mission. By Major Denise R. Little and Major Rogelio A. Pineda