As part of Exercise Anakonda-16, Polish and American tank crews and artillerymen worked together. Polish tank crews from the 1st Battalion of the 10th Armored Cavalry Brigade (10BKPanc) cooperated with soldiers from the 1st Battalion of the 64th Armor Regiment of the United States Army.
American Abrams tanks and Bradley infantry fighting vehicles, together with the Polish brigade’s Leopard 2A4s, took over the Świętoszów training ground. Their operations were supported each time by Polish and American artillery subunits. The support company of the 1st Battalion of the 64th Armor Regiment, together with the 10BKPanc self-propelled artillery squadron, provided fire support to combat subunits. The allies carried out fire missions using two 120-millimeter mortars, the largest in service with the American army, while the Świętoszów artillerymen used 122-millimeter 2S1 “Goździk” self-propelled howitzers.
– We performed the fire missions to a very good standard. This demonstrates the high level of preparation and commitment of both the forward observer sections and the firing battery. I am pleased with my soldiers, who once again confirmed their professionalism – summarized the commander of the self-propelled artillery squadron, Lieutenant Colonel Robert Wiese.
For the 10BKPanc artillerymen, this was another exercise conducted in an international formation. Recently, they trained together with American artillerymen from the 3rd Battalion of the 69th Armor Regiment, 1st Armored Brigade, 3rd Infantry Division of the U.S. Army, as part of Operation Heavy Detachment. They have practical experience working with soldiers from the United States, the United Kingdom and Belgium. – All exercises are an excellent opportunity to exchange experience, especially exercises such as Anakonda-16, in which we cooperate with seven allied nations. Each time, we learn from one another – notes Lieutenant Colonel Janusz Tucki, head of the Rocket Forces and Artillery of the 10BKPanc.
Soldiers from the Polish and American artillery reconnaissance units also worked together. While improving allied cooperation between artillerymen במסגרת NATO procedures, they repeatedly practiced carrying out fire missions using the Call for Fire procedure (CFF). – We are constantly gaining new experience that we can share. This exchange is two-way: we learn from the American soldiers, and they learn from us – notes Captain Marcin Dancewicz, commander of the 3rd self-propelled artillery battery of the 10BKPanc.
During Exercise Anakonda-16, the artillerymen intensively carried out missions with live ammunition over ten training-ground days, both during the day and in conditions of limited visibility, while strictly observing the required time standards. The most important of these missions was providing fire support to Polish and American combat subunits during operations.
2nd Lt. Radosław Gruźlewski/ii