NOVO SELO TRAINING AREA, Bulgaria — A thunderous boom emanated as the tracer rounds fired from a M1A2 Abrams tank reached their targets.
Soldiers from the 1-16th Infantry, 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division performed live fire exercises featuring Abrams tanks in Bulgaria earlier this week, according to reports from Army officials. The soldiers focused on emphasizing target engagement, effective maneuvering and crew development.
The 1-16th Infantry, known as the “Iron Rangers,” is stationed at Fort Riley.
Soldiers from the Iron Rangers conducted live fire gunnery tables by engaging tactical targets with their tanks in both day and night conditions. The training aimed to improve crew coordination and equipment effectiveness. Around 15 Abrams tanks executed six distinct gunnery tables while firing a 120-mm M256 cannon.
Gunnery training fosters crew unity and trust, preparing them to work seamlessly in combat situations by improving communication and teamwork. It requires each member to perform their specific tasks effectively, leading to a unified and cohesive team.
Each crew consisted of a driver, gunner, loader and tank commander. Staff Sgt. Riley Croft, a tank commander, described each crew member’s role in the exercise. The loader is assigned with loading the ammunition, the tank commander is responsible for bringing the driver in the direction of the target and the gunner is in charge of identifying the target.
“Everyone has their piece to play,” Croft said. “Everyone has a vital role.”
Croft emphasized the value of training while extending knowledge and experience to new crew members.
“Training builds muscle memory,” said Croft. “The people underneath you are going to be the people that fill your shoes. I’m always trying to teach them better ways to do things so when they reach my position they won’t have the problems that I had or the worries that I faced.”
Spc. Jocelyn Trejo, a gunner with the Iron Rangers, expressed the importance of communication between the crew members.
“Communication plays a big part of being able to succeed,” Trejo said. “It goes all the way from the driver to the TC, telling the driver when to stop, telling the loader to load and then the commands to fire. Communication is the main key.”
Sgt. 1st Class Corey Smith, a master gunner, detailed how training has impacted the newer soldiers in the company.
“My favorite thing is watching young soldiers grow,” said Smith. “We have a lot of new soldiers in this company. Seeing how they’ve progressed from the simulator, to gunner skill assessment until now, they are continuing to progress every day.”