FORT KNOX Ky.- Sixth Regiment, Advanced Camp Cadets completed their session of Call for Fire! What exactly is Call for Fire and is it an important skill to master? After speaking to a few Cadets who successfully completed the exercise, we have those answers.
6th Regiment, Advanced Camp Cadets learn and test on Call for Fire at Fort Knox, Ky. on July 10, 2018. Photo By: Inayah Bolton
John Atwood from Auburn University explained in his own words what Call for Fire is. “Today we worked on Call for Fire. We’ve had a few classes on Call for Fire before, but nothing as in depth as what we just learned in there. Basically, they split us up into eight groups and we take classes and practice exams. They really thoroughly explained to us what it is and how to do it, and after a few practice tests we all took an exam.”
“Basically, what you do for Call for Fire is you have a map, a protractor, and binoculars and they provide a point on the map, an enemy target, and your purpose is to use those tools to plot and hit the target. The target is shown on a computer simulated screen and we have to use our protractor to plot the point on our given map as accurately as possible,” Atwood continued.
6th Regiment, Advanced Camp Cadets learn and test on Call for Fire at Fort Knox, Ky. on July 10, 2018. Photo By: Inayah Bolton
“Once you have your plotted point, you then call for fire towards that enemy target. After you get closer to the target horizontally or vertically you begin to cut your numbers in half. For instance, if you plot 400 meters over, you would drop 200 meters down. Or if you were under 200, you would add 100 meters. You repeat this process until you reach 50 and successfully hit your desired target.”
6th Regiment, Advanced Camp Cadets learn and test on Call for Fire at Fort Knox, Ky. on July 10, 2018. Photo By: Inayah Bolton
Cadets were a little nervous about completing this exercise but eventually were able to shake those nerves and pass the course with flying colors. “I was a little nervous prior to because at my university we hadn’t talked about it and our Cadre told us we’d learn about it at camp. But we had a brief about it yesterday so we walked into the event today pretty prepared and because of the class I already knew what to expect,” mentioned Brooke Burnette from University of Virginia.
As for future Cadets who will be in these Cadets’ boots, a bit of advice was given from these Cadets.
“When you’re taking this test, relax. I know when I was doing mine, my binoculars were shaking a little bit. So, make sure you relax and not stress too hard about it because the Cadre who are teaching the class are really warm and helpful,” stated Burnette.
There you have it! Sixth Regiment, Advanced Camp Cadets completed Call for Fire and are ready for the next task!
