Exclusive: Welsh Cavalry head to head with elite US Blackhorse regiment
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- čas přidán 1. 06. 2024
- Forces News joined British troops as they were tested by the US 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment 'Blackhorse' whose job is to wreak havoc on visiting forces and make them better soldiers.
The gruelling Exercise Diamondback is a game of cat and mouse in one of the world's most unforgiving landscapes: the US Army's giant National Training Center at Fort Irwin.
Read the exclusive report on the Super Bowl of military training.
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Gotta love the yanks and our relationship with them. Mutual respect and appreciation really has grown. No other two countries understand each other and work as well jointly as the British and US Military. Facts
We're two brothers who beat the tar out of each other when we were young, yet we're still family.
Plus you can't desert training areas in Canada! :)
@@MM22966So true.
Love back to the UK 🇬🇧 🤝🇺🇸
love from across the pond!
I was OPFOR 11ACR in the mid 90s. UK were by far the most professional and humble rotations: understanding of purpose for rotation is not to "win," but to learn lessons and grow. Canadians generally had the wrong idea upon arrival. Quick learners though. Japanese at NTC or up in Yakima had a very odd unprofessional attitude. Indian Army at Yakima were terrific. Very serious and professional. Excellent artillery. Taught us lessons.
Are you British? Do you like the USA and Americans?
Did british ride m1 and m2 at ntc? Or they brought their own
I spent 3 years in the 11th ACR 1987-1990 on Downs Barracks in Fulda, Germany. We patrolled the E/W German border and were the eyes and ears of the V US Corps. Blackhorse Regiment was highly feared then and glad to see nothing has changed! BLACKHORSE!!!
I was in the 58th combat engineers. Bad Hersfeld Germany. 11ACR. 89-93
Gelnhausen and before that, 82nd. SALUTE Orlando!
I was a dependent in Bamberg Germany in the late 70’s to early 80’s while my dad was stationed there as an artillery officer. We had the 2/2 Cav (Toujours Pret) who were assigned the Hof border patrol. Those dudes were insane and routinely got into brawls with the German cabbies who were outside their garrison.
@@patoshannessy37754 REPLIES
What a cracking bunch of professionals! Great attitude, confidence, and characters. Well done 👍🏼 🏴🇬🇧
I remember doing a training rotation there over 20 years ago (DCX 2001), and it was an experience like no other. Training at the NTC is definitely a rite of passage, and I have the utmost respect for the members of the 11th ACR (Blackhorse).
Allons!
Years ago, I remember reading one of the OPFOR (now the Blackhorse) saying "we fight like the Soviets should fight with this equipment." They can really make your life a living hell but commanders who want their units in prime condition try to get a training run there as often as possible.
Why soviets how soviets do fight.. whith this equipment..?
Because soviet equipment was never even close to as good 😂
@@elnesti1890 The Blackhorse trains (trained) with Soviet tactics, wore Soviet-ish uniforms, and had their vehicles mocked-up (modified) to look like Soviet vehicles and tanks.
@@MM22966and how do you know that
@@savagewrld236 There are books about it, pictures, that sort of thing. Tom Clancy's nonfiction Into The Storm covered the early years of NTC, because of his co-author, General McCaffery, was one of the guys who set it up. NTC's realistic training was one of the lesser known things that let the US Army win during the Gulf War so easily.
I was there when Ft. Irwin opened as the NTC. I still remember when the first rotational unit came through to fight us. That was such a huge deal. I was always proud to be part of the 1/73rd Armor and OPFOR. I'm glad to see our tradition is being carried on by the 11th ACR.
One of the best Forces News posts I've seen. Thank you.
My late Dad was in the 1KDG-1QDG from 1949-63. He would have been very proud. Despite also serving int he RAF Regiment and the Australian Army, if asked he always said his regiment was the QDG!
Being there in the summer is hell.
Yes it is.
I've experienced it. 🔥
125 degrees last summer
I love the Apache trooper singing corb lund's "I wanna be in the cavalry" at 19:05. Classic song, excellent setting
Great piece of reporting, max respect to all. So positive in their attitude.
Thank you guys for showing us what you go through. Thanks for the opportunity to learn. I pray that everyone can see what is done for us by those who can and will. I may have been harsh and not understanding of everything as I have past seen but with time I am getting better at it. Thank everyone for what you do and we will continue to stand and argue for you at home as you do for all of us all over the world. God bless everyone thank you.
USA to UK - Love you cousins.
Best allies we've ever had
💪🏻
What a great article @Forcesnews!! I first read about Fort Irwin in Tom Clancy's book "Armored Cav" like *gulp* 25 years ago? and even then OPFOR was feared and respected everywhere for their ability find the "cracks in the armor" (bad pun) of any units they came in contact with. I love the Welsh captain's comment: [my troops] are having fun, and if they're having fun, they're learning.. So true.
This is amazing! I watched the episode from Luisiana a few months back. Glad u guys are making this series. Next episodes should be in Germany! Thanks again for the episode!
Graf ain’t no joke. We went January through March and I’ve never been so cold in my life.
This just makes everyone tougher, smarter and better. Love it.
Well done Forces News on a very well done video. Thoroughly enjoyed that and could have watched another hour of it.
Are you British? Do you like the USA and Americans?
Walk through like you own it respect
Glad to have you guys on our side
Qudos to the channel team on the ground to bring this amazing content and high quality too.
Also, love the working with different countries.
👍👍❤❤ Welsh Cavalry
11 ACR, Blackhorse! My old unit. Served in the Blackhorse in OCONUS and in CONUS. Loved every second of it.
Sian, Please come back to Louisiana. We enjoyed your visit.
👌👏... awesome job by both Force's!!👍....Great commentary, Sian!!...🇬🇧 🇺🇸
Are you British?
Seeing the Mojave of NTC is bittersweet. I love that soldiers are getting down & dirty while being pushed to their limits there but I get flashbacks. 😆 My unit, 4th ID always went during the summer usually in July when it was at least 100 & could easily hit 115. Our Abrams tanks have a lot of electronics inside & no AC so it’s even worse in the turret & driver’s hole. I don’t know if it was malfunctioning but when I read the ammo temperature gauge to enter it into the ballistic computer it read 120. You couldn’t even pick up tools you left on the hull without them burning you hand. You cannot really explain the heat, discomfort, sleep deprivation or the funk emanating off of you after like 18 days in the box training - you have to experience it.
Still I love seeing that troops are training hard there & stories covering NTC & the soldiers there are being made. Love seeing our allies especially our closest friends like the UK, Australia & Canada have a go in the Mojave desert training. It won’t be a shock to a lot of Aussies & Kiwis who have some brutal landscapes of their own but UK soldiers & Canadians have no real analogous type of terrain in their countries. I remember seeing a bunch of Aussies in the “shade” which is where we all stay for a week to prep for training before we go out into the desert (“the box”) for 2.5 weeks. You are uncomfortable & miserable the whole time but you feel good training out there because units regularly get to train at such a large scale where its brigade vs brigade level fighting where thousands of troops are involved. One of my unit’s mechanics had a terrible injury out there. My Abrams tank engine blew so we had to split it & repair it. We worked like 18 straights hours on it & then had to immediately join the fray. Anyway when we were reinstalling the power•pack or engine the engine got snagged on the hull. My mechanic tried hitting it in with his arm which got crushed between the hull & 2 ton engine. I had to call in a MEDEVAC & a Blackhawk came because the training area is that large. That should give a clue about the scale of the place & training.
Thanks for showing this & hope the Welsh troops had a great time training & learning out in the Mojave. JRTC in Louisiana is not joke & hardcore too but the Mojave is a whole other animal. 11th Cav are total professional try-hards who like to beat you down. They know the terrain like the back of their hand & know every tactic & trick in the book. It’s humbling out there too. It’s like no other experience. Good stuff.🙂👍
Canada, being the largest country in the world has more than enough different types of terrain and climate, take Suffield to name but one, but Americans seem to know very little about the world outside of there own borders, and we British train all over the world in differing climates and terrain, not just in some US desert. We wrote the book on jungle warfare, infact we had to sort the Vietnamese out, because the French couldn't. And all this while juggling the greatest empire known to man, not bad for a bunch of tiny islands. See all the countries Great Briton has invaded, here on CZcams, you might enjoy it.
God bless the 11th a.c.r. I was in 2/11th 80's! was like the marines to me!!! "Allons"!!!
Where do you get the french "allons" from? Does it refer to any unit?
It refers to the 11th cav!
It the 11th ACR motto. Latin, they don't have a reason for a French reference.
HHT 2/11 ACR after they moved to Wildflecken.
Allons!
(Let's Go!)
@donavonrobbins1908 pretty sure that "Allons" is not Latin but definitely French, since I speak French
@@superwout
Modern-day French came from a mixture of Celtic, Latin and Germanic roots.
The History of the French Language | OptiLingo
My dad's regiment,, and he has such a supriseing link with the welsh cavalry
I was attached to the 11th ACR during my time in the army (1980-1983). I got to Fulda in 1981 and spent two years with them. Awesome unit with an incredible history. Blackhorse! Allons, Allons!
13:26 Ah yes, sounds like my unit when an OPFOR light armour rushed us. Good times. 🤣
Great reporting by Forces news!
More than a decade ago, the 3rd UK Div did an exercise at the Mission Command Training Program, (MCTP) formerly the Battle Command Training Program, (BCTP). It is an electronic, computer version of the JRTC. The 3rd UK division did OK, but, the General Officer Command, (GOC) was personally embarrassed because of his general ineptness. He was livid with the AAR process where the Trainer/Coaches highlighted his indecisiveness, his lack of understanding of basic concepts of warfighting, and his lack of knowledge of his systems capabilities. But, that is what the CTCs are all about.
When NTC opened, they were relieving commanders who lost the mock-engagements. After a bit, they took a deep breath and realized the point was to learn from mistakes and stopped doing that.
Better a computer program does it than a real enemy force does
@@ianwatson194 I don't think that was his point. NTC and other similar training areas exist because "command post" exercises using paper maps (or computers, now) do not replicate the realism or prepare troops to face enemy troops as well as the close-to-real thing that NTC does.
Sounds like what is currently CPXF - command post exercise, functional. I did that some time ago and it was mostly using systems like the CPCE, receiving canned scenarios over radio to test HHCs SOP, and running briefings and commander update briefs with the other units to simulate reporting to the next higher headquarters.
It doesn’t count among the CTCs though.
Well done. Good reporting. Thank you. Strong democracy.
I was stationed at Ft Irwin from 1989 to 1992 , Had a great time with the OPFOR . This Video brought back lots of memories……. Seems like yesterday but it was more than 30 years ago , love the British Accent by the way ✅👍
I was with the Blackhorse in the 90's. I was a memeber of the OPFOR, I lived that life for four years. Its definitely not for everyone.
Did you enjoy it or not?
@@becky2235 what's there to enjoy about it?
no you weren't
@davidarango4679 which Squadron were you in?
Whats the point of this post? even just the statement here is incorrect, and not the way a military person would list his mil history.. " i was with the Blackhorse in the 90's".. lol
Interesting to note that the OPFOR exercises are named after rattlesnakes. The Diamondback is a rattlesnake indigenous to the Southwest of USA.
I never had the chance to go to ft Irwin and go to NTC I was with the 10th mountain and we went to JRTC instead at the beautiful ft Polk 😅 . The terrain in Cali is definitely a good readinesses training center seeing the marines also are out there in 29 palms . Somedays you miss it but it’s nice to be out unfortunately my time was cut after 6years after being medically retired but the 100% is a blessing now my mission is finish my degree stay high speed
I loved the video. I wish the Canadian Forces had the same sort of channel.
Dragons at War by Dan Bolger is a great book if you are interested in how this was conducted back in the early days ( 1980's ). Some folks have left comments that the NTC turned too much to counter-insurgency style training (for units going to Iraq and the 'Stan) and perhaps needs to go back a little to its roots for the possible next war. Bolgers book is a nice illustration of how that training used to be. Another excellent book set in the NTC is The Defense of Hill 781by James McDonough.
Hammer Slammers is based on the Blackhorse. So I'm not surprised they gave the welsh a good spanking.
I see you, too, are a man of culture!
How cool this was my last unit and duty station when I was active duty as a tanker
Rule Britannia from Glasgow 😎🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧👍
Brilliant watch. 👍
Proud to have served under him. He was promoted to Bridget General and went on to Granfenberg Germany, to comand, Then I ETS.
spent 84-86 at NTC with the OPFOR driving M-551 Sheridans with Bravo 1/73. pretty rustic back then, I got there the week the new barracks opened, later called Hanby Barracks for our brigade commander who died in a jeep accident on rotation in 86. Steel on Steel.
If you look in the correct direction while in the Valley of Death, you can see the Paradise Mountains, I always thought that quite poetic.
Solid!!!
Just left 2/11 ACR in Wildflecken Germany in 93 when I was assigned to 1st I.D. and got sent to NTC that November. Arrived in the heat and left in the cold.
Allons!
I trained at Ft Irwin in July, 1975 as a UH1 crew chief in 1/18 Armored Cav of the California National Guard. It was hot!
All of America’s allies to keep some of their own equipment at NTC so they can use and train on what they would use in an actual war situation
Salute the driver from Africa
- Richmond California 👏🏽🥷🏽🫡
Seeing a soldier in the British army with dreads is definitely different lol
@@TheCerebralDude & don’t speak woke & sounds dedicated!! 👌🏽
Looks like he gets special treatment. Not my cup of tea as the Brits say.
I was with 2/11 ACR in 70s in Bad Kissingen we walk the border.we were in the field 8 to 10 months a year At Camp Lt. Lee I do miss the guys And the 11th Eaglehorse Sir!
I’m confused, it says QDG but some have royal lancers cap badges ?
Been there twice, it’s definitely no joke
Loved JRTC and NTC
"I've never seen anything like this before" ... I mean, it maybe more detailed, but that's literally what we did back in 1944 before D-Day, lol.
16:48 this guy looks like the bad guy from Reacher (if he was 7 feet tall at least 😂)
1995 BATUS.....we were playing opfor against every battle group that came out.....using the new TES gear...upset alot of regiments...
Black Horse is not an elite unit. It’s just a hodgepodge of soldiers
In my experience they generally don't utilise the chemical warfare due to the safety hassles and huge time constraint.
Got love the box
Great video. I love to see our allies at NTC. I've done some work as a contractor there a while back. I am an old soldier who trained for NTC in the 80s. There is a problem with the current mindset. NTC had to be revitalized recently for peer-to-peer combat. The current OPFOR mindset is far removed from the glory days in the 80s and 90s. The "peer-to-peer" part still suffers from too much emphasis on Counterinsurgency OIF/OEF stuff. The current generation of COLs, LTCs, MAJs, SGMs, MSGTs and SFCs are all combat vets from the last war and have no idea how to fight a peer competitor. Few of the currently serving combat Veterans ever experienced an artillery barrage, an attack from the air by fast movers or attack helicopters, an enemy armor assault, or spending hours in a MOPP suit waiting for an enemy attack. NTC is now too much like a football game instead of preparation for World War III. Which is needs to be.
Are you British? Do you like the USA and Americans?
Do they have the same function and mission as the 509th regiment of JRTC?
ALLONS!
Their in the 80's , black horse when col Franks was in charge .
Later General Franks , 1st Armor Divisions during the Gulf War.
also " if u a'int 11th cav u a'int!!!!
Get in there qdg
Yep. This brought back memories for me lol. Black horse isn't elite btw, they're just a training regiment. They just get by with not playing by Big Army rules. All them nights in the turn in yard doiing the great cannibalization...
11 ACR AKA The Black Horse Regiment commanded by George Patton’s son George the 4th in Vietnam
Between NTC and JRTC, I’d rather be at NTC most days of the year. The river crossing is new, or at least I don’t remember that last time. They did move big boulders across some of the crossing into Death Valley, but that was more to force a head to head than to simulate anything as specific as a water crossing. I’m interested to see if any new doctrine comes of it.
Just like Geronimo,Black Horse is intentionally handicapped by the scenario and the rules. They will absolutely crush a BCT that isn’t up to par, but the point isn’t to smear RTUs. The point is to teach them, test their TTPs, and certify them as being capable of deployment. You aren’t actually training if you’re just constantly beating them to death, which Black Horse certainly could on a more “level” playing field.
Next year I’ll be at JPMRC Alaska, and I think I’ll have done all the CONUS CTCs at that point. I’m anticipating JPMRC to be my new least favorite.
11th ACR is a very capable unit. Anyone who rotates through NTC will come out the other end a much better soldier.
The Mojave is brutal
They went during the winter, which is actually nice weather.
Officer Dryfhout... hahaha that means "driftwood" in dutch
I spent 3 years (80-83) with the 2/11 ACR, Bad Kissingen West Germany (Daly Barracks). Blackhorse Regiment, Eaglehorse Squadron! ALLONS!!! Best job I ever had.
Before that, when stationed at Ft Carson, I did 2 training tours at Ft Irwin. One with CSC 1/77 armor, 45 days there when coincidentally, was when the Iranians took the hostages Nov 1979. Then I was reassigned briefly with 4/64 air defense and was back at Ft Irwin (Feb 1980) for 30 straight days in the desert (no barracks). Now that sucked. We believed we were getting ready to go to Iran. I still have the taped together military maps of Ft Irwin. BTW... my first trip we took off in C-130's from downrange Ft Carson and landed at Bicycle lake Mohave desert. Returned in a C-141 from Edwards AFB to Peterson AFB Colorado Springs where we got to see how the Air Force eats. It was like a restaurant. 2nd trip we convoyed. 3 days, 2 nights with stopovers at National Guard armory's. One in Albuquerque New Mexico, the other at Flagstaff Arizona. That sucked too.
Wait… the a/c actually worked in the humvees? 😂
Doubtful
"Patrolling the mojave almost makes you wish for a nuclear winter".
Are you British? Do you like the USA and Americans?
@TheIceman567 yes, I'm british and yeah americans are fine, but I was quoting. fallout: new vegas
@@Jack-lk7wk cool I’m American and I love the IJK my fiancé and twin daughters are British 🇬🇧🤝🇺🇸
I'm beyond proud to have had the privilege to served as a BlackHorse Mco 3/11 ACR .
ALLONS
M21 WORKHORSE ...
Soldiers with dreadlocks is kind of funny to see
I was there with the 3rd armored brigade
10:05 a whisper carries farther in the night then a low voice tone. ( speaking quietly with your normal voice )
2/11th a.c.r. europe 80's the tip of the spear!!!
Surely they're the King's Dragoon Guard's???
Return match in a Welsh winter?
I really wish I'd of joined the Army as a Cavalry Scout first instead of the Air Force.
Didnt know we had a cav unit? 🏴
Founded in 1685 👍🏴
Hope they brought them in during the winter. During the summer every one of them would have gone down as a heat casualty.
loling at the Vis-Mod T-90 at 16:24 named "Cerebral Palsy"
A bug net is a must.
🇨🇲🇨🇲🇨🇲🇨🇲 we Cameroon
Her !!!!!! Offs whats happened to my regiment and then followed by Lenny Kravitz it gets worse , ok only joking, but what a massive change from the regiment i joined in 1984
Sorry
😮Browerrrrr
What vehicle is on screen at 2:31?
It's an M113 APC hull outfitted with a Bradley turret and visual modifications to represent BMP-esque visual signature. They're exclusively used by the 11th ACR at Ft. Irwin as a training aide.
3:24 well that ain’t going to last long.
I seriously do not miss that pisshole. If any of us were given the choice to deploy without ever seeing NTC again we would have taken that in a heartbeat. 😂
They spelled my name wrong man, it's en not an lol
Whoaaaaaaa you can have dreadlocks in the service ??????????
I've known dreadfull color sergeants, terrible sergeant majors and angry NCO's whose sense of modern style soldiers was so limited by the rigorism of the service... On duty, wear dreadlocks, bandanas, smoke weed, guard the barracks seating on a chair under a cocacola umberlla, wake up as you want , don't wax your boots but let the world admire your shiny pink flip flops, and let youtube transmit this tradition!!!
Special privileges for special people.
dreadlock soldier!
Enjoy Ft. Irwin because the 11th ACR will give you training value and fast paced training. The Mojave desert is very unforgiving either hot or cold. The place is hated by the rest of the US Army to include the guys stationed there.
Absolutely gutted i never got to do this. I will purely criticise because im jealous..
Sit and shout at my TV exactly what they should do haha..
Fair play, great watch.. 🏴
"Allons" - Yoda
I have BlowMan😂😂in ID😂😂