Winter training exercise returns to Camp Grayling on Jan. 20
GAYLORD — Several years ago military leaders saw the need for cold weather training, leading to the first "Winter Strike" exercise at Camp Grayling.
Northern Strike 23-1, this year’s winter exercise hosted by the Michigan National Guard, isscheduled to take place across Northern Michigan’s National All-Domain Warfighting Center (NADWC), Jan. 20-28. Northern Strike 23-1 is part of the semi-annual Northern Strike exercise series, which includesNorthern Strike 23-2, scheduled for August.
Officials said the NADWC, which includes Camp Grayling and Alpena Combat Readiness Training Center, offers a cost effective way for units to experience cold-weather, joint all domain operations. The ability to easily transport people and equipment to Camp Grayling via rail and roadway helps units save time, money and training days. Air component units can fly to Alpena CRTC without leaving U.S. air space.
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“For a decade, Northern Strike has helped our nation’s reserve component forces build readiness as a lethalfighting force,'' Army Lt. Col. Adam Jenzen, Northern Strike land component exercise director, said in a statement. “This marks the fourth cold-weather iteration of this event and as our national defense strategy changes, so does the exercise.”
Maj. Gen. Paul D. Rogers, adjutant general and director of the Michigan Department of Military and Veterans Affairs, added “Wind, snow and single digit temperatures force units to adapt and overcome conditions they could potentially face against a near-peer threat. In years past, temperatures at Camp Grayling have actually been colder than Alaska, so this exercise serves as one of the best opportunities for units to train in some of the most challenging conditions they could ever face.”
Approximately 600 participants will brave the cold-weather conditions while training to meet objectives of the Department of Defense’s arctic strategy. Participating units will include the 120th Field Artillery from the Wisconsin National Guard, the 1432nd Engineer Company from the Michigan National Guard, and Marine Corps F-18 fighter aircraft from Marine Corps Air Station Buford, South Carolina, among others.
A new factor in this year’s exercise is the cold weather equipment pool offered at Camp Grayling. Visiting unitswill be able to draw from items such as skis, snowmobiles and snowshoes to meet their training objectives.
“By offering the cold-weather equipment our Camp Grayling partners have made the exercise even moretailorable,” said Command Sgt. Maj. Kevin Palmatier, Northern Strike senior enlisted advisor. “Having equipmentpre-positioned here reduces logistical concerns for units so they can focus on their war-fighting tasks. Our goal is to provide rotational training units with the tools to become more effective warfighters, ready to meet theever-evolving demands of today’s security environment.”
Camp Grayling, the nation’s largest National Guard center for air and ground combat training, is a 147,000-acre facility that covers parts of Crawford, Kalkaska and Otsego counties. Currently the Michigan Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is considering a proposal to double its size by leasing DNR land in the three counties.
— Contact reporter Paul Welitzkin at pwelitzkin@gaylordheraldtimes.com.
This article originally appeared on The Petoskey News-Review: Winter training exercise returns to Camp Grayling on Jan. 20
