HOUSTON, Texas–Soldiers at Fort Hood, Texas, are undergoing extensive training to prepare them for deployment to guard prisoners at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Texas’s Crazy Horse Troop trained in detention operations alongside members of Division West’s 3rd Battalion.
The Crazy Horse Troop is newly under the command of Captain Andrew Oliver, from Billings, Montana. His responsibility is to make certain his soldiers are prepared to safely provide care and security for military prisoners being held at GITMO. “Task Force Stallion and the 3rd Cav. started several months ago tailoring our training to fit this mission,” said Capt. Oliver. “It’s quintessential certifying training that’s imperative for [a soldier] to be exposed to before going down to Guantanamo Bay.”
In a press release obtained by Breitbart Texas, Private James Buchner, from Lexington, Kentucky, implied the cross training required for this new assignment was “not that big of a deal.” Buckner stated, “Having that knowledge is important, but I’m able to learn a lot quicker. I haven’t been doing my job that long and this is helping me to learn more, even though it’s not my job.”
Sergeant Anthony Clemente of Woodbury, Connecticut, put things in perspective. “It’s definitely a brand new mission,” said Sgt. Clemente. “It wasn’t that big of an adjustment because we started to prepare five months ago.”
After observing the soldiers working both sides of the training Capt. Oliver stated, “The coordination between both elements was extremely professional and it was further confirmed by the cadre leading the training here.”
Fort Hood, one of the largest military facilities in the United States, is home to soldiers with a wide variety of combat duties and responsibilities. For sixty years, the 108,000 acres of Fort Hood, nicknamed “The Great Place,” has served the training needs of our soldiers as they prepare to defend this country’s interests.
The Fort Hood website states, “The soldiers of Fort Hood are infantrymen, cavalrymen, and tankers. They are engineers, mechanics, and health care professionals. They are the life of Fort Hood. Their training gives Fort Hood its purpose just as Camp Hood soldiers did 60 years ago. They are part of what has made Fort Hood ‘The Great Place’ for six decades.”
Fort Hood has also been the scene of two separate shootings of soldiers by a fellow soldier. The most recent attack occurred in April when Specialist Ivan Lopez opened fire, killing three people and injuring fourteen others.
A response to Breitbart Texas’s request for additional information about the size and timing of the deployment was not immediately available.
Follow Bob Price on Twitter @BobPriceBBTX.