Ex FIGHTING WARRIOR 2019

ARTICLE WRITTEN BY THE MEMBERS OF THE RMR PLATOON

Westmount, Quebec – 13 January 2019: The yellow star that we call the sun was rising above sunny Virginia when the RMR within A Coy conducted the final attack on OBJ TOWER. A distraught enemy force from the previous night was there to receive them, angry and seeking vengeance. Unfortunately, A Coy had different plans for them. Our goal was to overwhelm the enemy with violence and aggression in a Company sized assault in an urban environment. The assault contained a combination of infantry, armored recce, military police, medics and engineering elements. With each of these elements in play, the platoons were able to successfully advance and secure the objective building by building. The speed and assertiveness shown by the RMR left the enemy force reeling and the objective was taken with minimal friendly casualties. During the Urban Operations period of the exercise, the RMR showed its true grit under stress; remaining resilient and thorough in their tactics. Building after building, floor after floor, room after room, there was no stopping the regiment’s willingness to achieve its objective. On that day we proved through our aggressive tendencies and undoubtable resiliency who we really are, the RMR once again out performed and out skilled any regiment in our way.

            But it’s all started five days before when the whole platoon met in JR Mess and celebrated the beginning of the exercise. Country Roads by John Denver, which later became the theme song of the exercise, was playing in the background and everyone was sharing their expectations of the upcoming week. No longer in the cold climate of Canada, there were new challenges to face in Fort Pickett, Virginia. Notably, creatures such as ticks, snakes and other various venomous creatures while the company set up hides every night. Although in the field, the spirits of the soldiers never dampened even as the weather took bitter cold turns during the night.  Luckily, during the day temperatures were optimal and visibility was as well making the platoon attack practices go as well as any could have hoped.  Morale remained high from beginning to end, fueled by good performance, group cohesion, solid logistics, and a well-balanced training tempo.

            The RMR proudly impressed even the American Range Control on the live range performance, by well exceeding the standard. Not only did our platoon excel during the live shooting, stepping off kilometers before the step-off of the marines, the RMR was congratulated with it’s outstanding performance during the end of exercises parade, by Lt. Col Tremblay. The success of the exercise was also do to the excellent collaboration between the units in A coy. In the past there were always bitter regimental rivalries but on this particular exercise the RMR along with the Black Watch and a platoon made up of the 4R22eR and 6R22eR showed they could work together in tandem which made this one of the best exercises in years. EX Fighting warrior was a good training experience for the RMR and enjoyed by all the troops with stories that will be told and remembered for years to come and an excellent way to start off the new year.