These are pictures I took during the field part of my PLDC class at Grafenwoehr, Germany March 1999.
This is a picture of yours truly while taking a break from
digging our fighting positions. The weather the whole time
we were out there was miserable, but it was still fun.
Another picture of me in one of the fighting positions
we had put together near the entrance to the field site.
That is an M60 I'm behind and one of the last times
I ever saw or touched an M60 during my military career.
My squad was tagged to be the OPFOR during the field portion
of our PLDC class. We took our MOPP suit tops and turned them
inside out to stand out from the rest of the PLDC company. Here
we are getting ready to go out on an ambush against another squad.
Here we are doing a ruck march somewhere. We did a lot of marching
all the time out there if we weren't dressed up as OPFOR attacking
other platoons. It was a lot of fun and the cool weather came in
handy at these times.
Ah, time to return to the real world! Here we are just before we
ruck marched back to the barracks. I got to carry the manpack radio
on top of all my other stuff so my ruck was pretty heavy. Needless
to say, I was hurting on that march back, but I made it.
Graduation day! Here is my entire squad posing for the camera.
Out of all the squads in the company mine was the only one to not
lose a single person during the entire length of the course.
A few days after returning, it was time for me to officially be
promoted to E-5. Here I am saluting LTC Crutchfield, the 121st
Signal Battalion commander at the time just before she pinned
my new rank on.
It's official! I was now known as SGT Casey. I was very proud and
that was perhaps one of the best days I ever spent in the military.
All that work getting to PLDC and graduating on the Commandant's List
was well worth it. I'll never forget the first time someone called
me SGT Casey either. :-)
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