Kansas State University - Royal Purple Yearbook (Manhattan, KS)

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TRAINING IN THE FIELD Rangers gain realistic experience through exercises by Bren Workman pulsating whop-whop sound of UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters intensified as they came in for a landing on the KSU Stadium parking lot. The 23 students of the ROTC Ranger Company went airborne April 17, 1993, to spend the next 30 hours in the field-training exercise, FTX. The main purpose of the weekend was to put all of the Rangers ' technical knowledge to the test, said John Highfill, Ranger commander and senior in engineering technology. The FTX provided the group training as well as goals to strive toward. The students are trained in light infantry tactics, said Dave Almquist, Ranger executive officer and senior in animal sciences and industry. The goal of the operation is to develop leadership skills, which are crucial to all military officers. The FTX started with an air insertion to the training site, courtesy of three Blackhawk helicopters. The students later performed boat operations, using two RB-15 Zodiac Commando Assault Boats, and took a 10-km foot march with a rucksack. They finished with an air insertion back to the KSU Stadium parking lot. When we train the Rangers, we train realistically, Highfill said. We also outfitted the Rangers in the Multiple Integrated Laser Engagement System, MILES, for the FTX. The MILES is the military ' s form of laser warfare, which also adds an extra sense of realism to field training. The Ranger Company was composed of basic-and-advanced course cadets from the U.S Army and Air Force ROTC. One of the good lessons learned through the Rangers is the ability to (Continued on page 15) Heath Polkinghorn, Manhattan armed with a light anti-tank weapon and an M-16, consults his map of the area while in a wooded ravine. All M-16s carried by the were fitted with a laser that set off a loud buzz on a harness worn by cadets when they were shot. (Photo by J. Kyle Wyatt)

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Ranger Charles Harriman, senior in history, dons gloves while waiting for the UH-60A Blackhawks to depart near Milford Lake. Cadets trained in basic light infantry tactics over a 30-hour period. (Photo by J. Kyle Wyatt) A Ranger patrol moves out on a patrol through tall grass on the first morning of the field training exercise. The patrol was soon to heavy resistance from OPFOR, or opposing forces, and was offcourse. (Photo J. Kyle Wyatt)

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One of the three UH-60A Blackhawk helicopters carries ROTC cadets over K-18 on the way to the insertion site near Milford Lake. The cadets were picked up in the KSU Stadium parking lot where they were returned 30 hours later by Blackhawks stationed at Marshall Army Airfield in Fort Riley. (Photo by J. Kyle Wyatt) Hansen and Ben O ' Dell prepare a defensive position late in the on the first day of the FTX. The position was on the side of a berm and fortified by an M-60 machine gun and an M-16 rifle. (Photo by J. Kyle Wyatt)