Cadets from the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst participate in a live-fire platoon attack at Grafenwoehr Training Area in Germany on Wednesday as part of the first phase of exercise Dynamic Victory. The attack was supported by U.S. soldiers providing suppressing fire from a mounted .50-caliber machine gun. (Lydia Gordon/Stars and Stripes)
GRAFENWOEHR, Germany — U.S. soldiers provided direct fire support for British officer cadets during a live-fire exercise for the first time at Grafenwoehr’s sprawling Army range on Wednesday, delivering suppressive rounds from a Humvee-mounted .50-caliber machine gun.
The firepower-enhanced Dynamic Victory is the final event for Royal Military Academy Sandhurst cadets before they commission as officers. The exercise, held in the hilly Bavarian terrain, tested their ability to conduct a platoon attack under realistic combat conditions.
“Hearing (the machine gun) come overhead was pretty intense (and) made everything a little bit more real … so having that as an asset is super important and it makes everything … way better,” said Officer Cadet Fergus Ruart of the academy’s 16th Platoon, E Company.
Cadets from the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst conduct live-fire platoon attacks at Grafenwoehr Training Area in Germany on Wednesday as part of the first phase of exercise Dynamic Victory. This culminating exercise marks the final event before the cadets can earn their commissions. (Lydia Gordon/Stars and Stripes)
A cadet with Royal Military Academy Sandhurst prepares for a live-fire platoon attack as part of exercise Dynamic Victory at Grafenwoehr Training Area in Germany on Wednesday. This event is the first phase of the exercise, which is a culmination of their 44 weeks of training before the they can commission into the British army. (Lydia Gordon/Stars and Stripes)
A Royal Military Academy Sandhurst cadet prepares for a live-fire platoon attack as part of exercise Dynamic Victory at Grafenwoehr Training Area in Germany on Wednesday. This event is the first phase of the exercise, which is a culmination of their 44 weeks of training before the they can commission. (Lydia Gordon/Stars and Stripes)
The collaboration marked a rare opportunity for Sandhurst cadets to train with international forces, said Maj. Neil Guerin, a senior planning officer with the academy. He added that the academy hopes for similar partnerships in future classes.
“It’s hugely important to train jointly out here in Grafenwoehr,” Guerin said. “There is plenty of experience and history of combined arms maneuver, not just within our own army … but also joint combined arms maneuver on operations with other nations.”
A cadet from the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst runs to the firing line during a platoon attack at Grafenwoehr Training Area in Germany on Wednesday. The attack was supported by U.S. soldiers providing suppressing fire from a mounted .50-caliber machine gun. (Lydia Gordon/Stars and Stripes)
A cadet from the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst fires a machine gun during a platoon attack at Grafenwoehr Training Area in Germany on Wednesday. The event marked the first phase of exercise Dynamic Victory, the academy's culminating event for the cadets before they can commission into the British army. (Lydia Gordon/Stars and Stripes)
A cadet with the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst collects his remaining machine gun rounds during a platoon attack at Grafenwoehr Training Area in Germany on Wednesday. The event, part of exercise Dynamic Victory, is the first phase before the cadets move to the Joint Multinational Readiness Center in Hohenfels. (Lydia Gordon/Stars and Stripes)
A cadet from the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst takes cover in a trench during a platoon attack at Grafenwoehr Training Area in Germany on Wednesday as part of the first phase of exercise Dynamic Victory. This exercise marks the final event before the cadets can commission into the British army. (Lydia Gordon/Stars and Stripes)
A cadet from the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst takes cover in a trench during a platoon attack at Grafenwoehr Training Area in Germany on Wednesday as part of the first phase of exercise Dynamic Victory. This exercise marks the final event before the cadets can commission into the British army. (Lydia Gordon/Stars and Stripes)
Cadets from the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst take cover in a trench during a platoon attack at Grafenwoehr Training Area in Germany on Wednesday as part of the first phase of exercise Dynamic Victory. The attack was supported by U.S. soldiers providing suppressing fire from a mounted .50-caliber machine gun, which marked the first time American forces integrated with the cadets for joint combined arms maneuvers. (Lydia Gordon/Stars and Stripes)
The cadets will continue live-fire exercises at Grafenwoehr before moving south to the Joint Multinational Readiness Center in Hohenfels for the second phase of the exercise. There, they will face simulated combat against opposing forces from the U.S. Army’s 1st Battalion, 4th Infantry Regiment.
