Staff Sgt. Michael Lopez, Unmanned Aircraft System repairer, 52nd Brigade Engineer Battalion, 2nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, prepares a Shadow for flight at Camp Red Devil Aug. 6, 2015. (Photo by Sgt. Nelson Robles)
By Sgt. Nelson Robles
2nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team Public Affairs Office
Soldiers from the 52nd Brigade Engineer Battalion, 2nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, practiced with Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) at Camp Red Devil Aug. 3-6, 2015.
Throughout recent deployments to Afghanistan 2nd IBCT UAS maintainers and controllers provided one of the most valuable assets to Soldiers outside of the wire — eyes in the sky.
The skills needed to provide this asset were practiced and honed to make the UAS capabilities of the 52nd BEB fully mission capable.
“We want our Soldiers to get really good hands-on training working with the UAS, acquiring targets and communicating,” said 1st Lt. Orry Young, platoon leader, 52nd BEB.
With the recent addition of new Soldiers to the UAS element, senior NCOs must ensure the next generation of UAS Soldiers is ready to continue the tradition of providing commanders the opportunity of a real-time, birds-eye view of their operations.
“These guys are going to be the next ones to take control of this unit so we’re trying to teach them the leadership side of running the UAS maintenance section as well as daily deployment schedule-style maintenance and operations,” said Staff Sgt. Michael Lopez, unit UAS trainer, 52nd BEB. “I can’t stress enough to my Soldiers how much of an asset this is.
Just knowing there is someone watching from the sky, looking at the route ahead, gives the guys you’re supporting more confidence in their mission.”
Lopez, who has implemented the Shadow UAS during two previous deployments with 2nd IBCT in Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom, has seen the direct impact the system can have to the battlespace.
“Unit commanders saw us as a huge asset when it came to seeing and communicating with their troops on the ground,” said Lopez. “We could send one of these out and scan patrol routes 1,000 meters out or further. Soldiers would know what they are walking into, what enemies are in the area, and then help relay communication signals from commanders to their Soldiers on the ground.”
The Shadow UAS has saved lives with the use of these capabilities.
“In Afghanistan we caught people burying (improvised explosive devices), and if there was a convoy going that route they’d know to avoid that area,” said Lopez. “Then we could call (the explosive ordnance disposal team) to get the IED out. I can’t even begin to count how many lives this asset has saved.”
Beyond overwatch capabilities, the Shadow UAS can also acquire targets and point them out to ground forces, even passing the targets’ locations to attack aviation units if available.
“We are progressing toward more advanced training. We are trying to integrate direct action type enemy scenarios then linking up with Apache assets from 4th Combat Aviation Brigade (4th Inf. Div.),” said Young. “We will eventually be able to laser designate and hand over targets using our UAS in more of a scout capacity, reconnaissance, not just intelligence collection.”
As training progressed, the Soldiers’ confidence in the UAS grew.
“We’ve focused more on hands-on training, performing maintenance every day and are constantly sending Shadows up,” said Pfc. Andriy Domskyi, UAS repairer, 52nd BEB. “These Shadows can change the battlespace and save a lot of lives with our eyes in the sky. I’m proud of the (job) I’ve chosen.”