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French army 2nd Lt. Thomas Chappelet, a student at the French Combined Arms Academy in Brittany, France, qualifies with an M4 carbine during his visit to the 21st Theater Sustainment Command’s 902nd Vertical Engineer Company, 15th Engineer Battalion, 18th Engineer Brigade Feb. 9 in Grafenwöhr, Germany.
Partnership with foreign militaries is something that brings unique challenges, capabilities and opportunities for service members stationed in Europe.
Platoon leaders of several 21st Theater Sustainment Command subordinate brigades were given the chance to train French lieutenants as the command hosted five French lieutenants for cadet troop leadership training Jan. 22 to Feb. 12.
Two cadets were assigned to the 16th Sustainment Brigade, two to the 18th Engineer Brigade and one to the 18th Military Police Brigade.
“This exchange is a great opportunity for our two militaries to learn a little bit about each other,” said 1st Lt. James Vidal, a platoon leader with 902nd Vertical Engineering Company, 15th Engineer Battalion, 18th Eng. Bde. “I think this visit will strengthen the relationships between NATO officers and immerse our French partners in U.S. Army culture and leadership.”
The French officers are affiliated with a French Army School equivalent to U.S. Army officer candidate school. The exchange is comparable to the cadet troop leadership training required at most military academies.
During their visit, the French officers shadowed, observed, learned from and assumed some officer duties from their U.S. counterparts, said 1st Lt. Peter Orilio, a 500th Engineer Company, 15th Eng. Bn., 18th Eng. Bde.
“I observed him (Orilio) as he led his platoon,” said French Army 2nd Lt. Romaan Juan, a student at the French Ecole Spéciale Militaire de Saint-Cyr (the French combined arms school) in Brittany, France. “I now understand Army leadership a little better and I know the roles of noncommissioned officers and officers in the platoon.”
Several of the exchange officers met up with their host lieutenants in the field during various training exercises. This afforded them the opportunity to take advantage of U.S. weapons training, including qualifying with the M-4 carbine and firing the 240B 7.62 mm and M2 .50-caliber machine guns. The French officers also helped manage some weapons ranges by tracking firers, tracking qualification scores and distributing ammunition.
One French officer participated in a two-week field problem with his U.S. Army host. During the exercise he engaged in a six-day unstabilized platform gunnery, which involved firing the M249 and M2 weapon systems from the back of a gun truck. The exchange officer ran through several courses, using various firing points to engage targets at multiple distances.
“In addition to doing the gunnery and field exercise with us, 2nd Lt. Thomas Chappelet acted as an evaluator for a three-day situational training exercise,” Vidal said. “He evaluated squad leaders on their reaction to indirect fire, reaction to fire, evaluating a casualty and movement under fire.”
At the conclusion of the exchange, each French officer had to prepare a presentation for their school about their time with the U.S. Army. They also prepared presentations for officer professional development about their training in the French Army.
“I really enjoyed getting to know Second Lieutenant Juan,” Orilio said. “We are fairly similar people with similar military experiences. It was great learning a little bit of French, helping him improve his English and exchanging information on our two great military organizations.”
