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Focus on mission essential training

By Sgt. 1st Class Juan C. Ayon

1st Battalion, 3rd Aviation Regiment (Attack Reconnaissance), 12th Combat Aviation Brigade

April 30, 2018

Sgt. 1st Class Juan C. Ayon, platoon sergeant and 15R40, Apache attack helicopter repairer, with A Company, 1st Battalion, 3rd Aviation Regiment (Attack Reconnaissance), 12th Combat Aviation Brigade, Katterbach Army Airfield, Ansbach, Germany, wrote an article titled A Look into the Future of Army Aviation about training improvements for his military occupational specialty. Below is his response to a second question posed by the NCO Journal. What training should the Army focus on to better prepare your MOS for future conflicts?

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Focus on mission essential training

Sgt. Stefan Thorne, an Apache helicopter crew member from the 1st Battalion, 3rd Aviation Regiment (Attack Reconnaissance), 12th Combat Aviation Brigade, conducts phase maintenance on an AH-64 Apache helicopter on Oct. 3, 2017, at Katterbach Army Airfield in Ansbach, Bavaria, Germany. (U.S. Army photo by Charles Rosemond, Training Support Activity Europe)

The main point I'd like to get across is that it has been very difficult over the past few years, due to the drawdown in 2012 and the high operations tempo, to meet certain training requirements.

As a noncommissioned officer, I will always adapt and overcome by finding new, innovative ways to train and mentor my Soldiers. However, I still find myself spending more time reacting to numerous last-minute tasks not associated with the mission.

All I am looking for when it comes to the future of Army aviation is to remove the unnecessary, non-critical tasks and focus on the mission essential training that truly helps us to be the best we can be. "Army Strong" and "Be All You Can Be" were slogans I based my Army beliefs on. However, we can't do that unless we have ample time for our NCOs to properly train our next generation of Soldiers. Until then, we will need to develop our Soldiers for the future as best we can with current resources and the NCO education system we have in place.