Asia Pacific Defense Forum Summer 2003

graphic: BALANCE IROQUOIS 2003-01: Indian–U.S. Troops Train to Combat Terrorism

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An Indian-U.S. Special Forces team races to board an Indian Air Force Mi-17 helicopter for combined heliborne operations.

Indian and U.S. SOF conducted the above training scenario and related training activities during BALANCE IROQUOIS 2003-01, a Joint Combined Exchange Training (JCET) Event. Throughout this event, members of the Indian Army’s 21st Parachute (Special Forces) Battalion and U.S. Army Special Forces soldiers lived, worked, and trained together at India’s Counter Insurgency Jungle Warfare School (CIJWS) at Vairengte, Mizoram. The CIJWS Commandant, Brigadier Amrit Kapur, supervised the JCET training event.

JCET BALANCE IROQUOIS 2003-01 included a mass-attack airborne drop from Indian An-32 aircraft. The airborne drop, using Indian parachutes, ended in a traditional jump-wing exchange, which marked the official end of a three-week combined training event in extremely rugged and physically challenging jungle terrain. Throughout the JCET event, Indian and U.S. soldiers learned to trust and rely on each other, building lasting friendships and unit camaraderie – characteristics that foster future interoperability between Indian and U.S. military forces.

Indian and U.S. SOF training activities during BALANCE IROQUOIS 2003-01 ranged from advanced marksmanship and various infiltration/exfiltration techniques to jungle survival and counterinsurgency techniques. Principal training scenarios included cross-country movement in jungle terrain, counterinsurgency operations in rural and semi-urban terrain, and operations against a defended enemy base camp. Before any of these activities, participants planned their combined mission, exchanging ideas and time-proven operational techniques while developing effective tactical plans. During many of these activities, Indian and U.S. soldiers shared equipment, such as night vision goggles, rifles, and jungle boots, providing opportunities to evaluate each other’s field gear.

Members of a combined Indian-U.S. Special Forces team wait to board an Mi-17 helicopter on Silchar Airfield, India, to conduct heliborne operations.

Indian and U.S. Special Forces personnel in an airborne Mi-17 helicopter en route to practice heliborne operations over a drop zone at Silchar Airfield, India.

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