Training to survive a threat situation
Members of Army’s 17th Sustainment Brigade brushed up on their warfighting skills on a Combat Behaviours training course.
CAPTION: Captain Harrison Keynes from 17th Sustainment Brigade undertakes Combat Marksmanship Continuum at the Weapon Training Simulation System facility at Holsworthy Barracks. Story by Captain Andrew Page. Photo by Captain Thomas Kaye.
Key areas covered on the recent 12-day course included combat shooting, Army Combatives Program Level 1, Tactical Care of the Combat Casualty, Army First Aid and Combat Communications.
Regimental Sergeant Major of 17th Sustainment Brigade Warrant Officer Class 1 Trudy Casey said Combat Behaviours was all about upskilling.
“By making this training universal across Army, and for anyone deploying into an environment where they could be confronted with the threat of physical harm, we give them the fundamental skills they need to be able to cope with that situation,” Warrant Officer Class 1 Casey said.
“This is a system by which people can learn responses that are both ethical and predictable to save their life, or protect the people around them when confronted by someone who means them harm.
“You don’t need to have a high level of fitness or prior experience to be able to pick this stuff up; with the right instructors and resources it can be delivered safely over a couple of days to a very good standard.”
Brigade Training Warrant Officer Warrant Officer Class 2 Nicholas O’ Halloran said understanding the psychological and physiological responses of battle was just as important as understanding the weapon system.
“We are trying to create within our soldiers and officers the ‘pre combat veteran’,” Warrant Officer Class 2 O’ Halloran said.
“The combat behaviours and associated teaching is about progressive training that becomes close to the reality and rigours of combat, so they have those experiences to draw on should they be put in that position.
“We aim to create experiences so if our people ever find themselves in a hostile situation, the brain will recall the solution with a level of subconscious competence, so they survive that threat encounter.”
17th Sustainment Brigade movements operator Private Elizabeth French said she found the combating shooting learning environment positive and supportive.
“It was slow and not rushed, with the material explained in a logical way, so we could improve our combat shooting skills quickly,” Private French said.
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