GUNS UP, READY TO FIRE

Didn’t that used to be an old naval gunfire pre-fire report, the “GURF report”? I seem to remember that from my formal naval gunfire training back in late 1991, at the old naval base at Subic Bay. But that was back in the Old Corps—no name tapes, PRC-77 radios, etc, etc. You get the point. Ah, the Philippines. We trained hard, we played hard.

It seems that the GURF report is no longer in use, or at least so I gathered from my course last week at EWTGLant. I went through the Joint Terminal Attack Controller (JTAC) Primer, which now certifies me as an entry level JTAC-in-training and establishes a training regimen. Great course, taught by outstanding Marines. I hadn’t done any thing like that in a while; it was good to get back into the call-for-fire and nine-line briefs. The simulators we trained on are superb, like nothing I have seen before. Best of all, it gets me back on track for more training when revert to the SMCR—the Shooting, Moving, Communicating Reserve.

So, WTF? I take a week off, and look what happens… Charlie heads downrange—good luck, soldier, and remember the footsteps in which you tread—then Lebanon explodes, Somalia talks trash to Ethiopia. Also, I’m pleased to say that my good friend Major M.F. is out of Iraq and on his way home. Good work, Brother Rat, I’ll be glad to see you home.

Many thanks to Pinch for PINCH-hitting, and I applaud his posts, especially the one on Canadian defence. At any rate, I’M BACK, and it’s GUNS UP, READY TO FIRE.