FORT KNOX, Ky – With graduation soon approaching, Cadets from 2nd Regiment, Basic Camp, enter their final stage of Cadet Summer Training with their Badger Field Training Exercises.

For many of these Cadets this is their first field experience. Because of this, the Field Training Exercises of Basic Camp are operated on a smaller scale compared to that of Advanced Camp. Missions are practiced at the squad level instead of platoon, and the event takes place over the span of two days instead of 12. This allows Cadets to become familiar with the roles and tactics involved in order to prepare them for the more complicated formations for those who choose to move on to Advanced Camp.

Stepping off her first mission, Cadet Darianna Browning, Michigan State University details the structure of training, closely resembling the crawl FTX phase of Advanced Camp.

“Today they’re walking through everything. We’re sitting through classes, sitting through briefings, and getting to learn all of the steps of each lane,” said Browning. “Tomorrow they will be more hands off and we’ll be able to kind of conduct these lanes ourselves.”

The focus here is guidance, but Cadets are still being challenged as they sharpen their understanding of ambush, attack, and movement to contact missions and tactics. 

“It feels exhilarating because we’ve worked 25 days hard for this,” said Cadet Grayson Jordan, Appalachian State University. “Actually putting together all the knowledge that we’ve been given by our instructors just feels good. They’re here just to mentor us and make sure we’re going through the motions, correcting any bad habits we may have built into our training.”

By focusing on smaller scale missions, Cadets are better able to learn and grow on an individual level to build them towards working as a large scale unit.

“I’m not the main character,” said Jordan. “I work with my team as a unit and that’s a dynamic that I gotta learn to face. It’s hard because I’m not just an individual anymore, I’m with the squad. So I have to learn to work with others to achieve the mission.”

Jordan admitted that this adjustment does not always come easy, but it is one you have to face when encountering these new experiences.

 I don’t want to mess up but I know I’m gonna mess up because I’m not gonna know everything about this,” Jordan said “ I’m gonna mess up but I’m confident I’m also gonna have fun.”

After the completion of their Field Training Exercises, these Cadets will begin preparation for graduation, taking with them the knowledge, skills, and confidence that will give them an advantage for wherever they go in the future.