Operation Cold Steel 2017
Soldiers of the 371st Chemical Company out of Greenwood, S.C., are conducting Engagement Skills Trainer (EST) during Operation Cold Steel held at Fort McCoy, Wis., March 10, 2017. According to the Acquisition Support Center website, EST is designed to simulate live weapon training events that directly support individual and crew-served weapons qualification, including collective and escalation-of-force exercises in a controlled environment. It provides detailed feedback to the individual fire team/squad that covers the fundamentals of marksmanship, fire control and distribution of fires. Operation Cold Steel is a new individual/crew and collective live fire exercise in the Army Reserve taking place Mar 8 to April 25 at Fort McCoy, Wis. The crew-served and platform qualifications are identified as key foundational elements of a unit’s training assessments. In accordance with “Objective T” requirements for 76th Division (OR) Army Early Response Forces (AERF) units, all units must now conduct annual crew-served and platform qualifications in accordance to meet directed readiness objectives. The intent of the AERF is to preserve readiness and increase responsiveness of select capabilities required for contingent sourcing. The AERF construct will accomplish this intent by providing predictable requirements for reserve units.