FORT PICKETT, Va. –
At the Virginia Army National Guard’s 183rd Regiment, Regional Training Institute, the infantry-focused 1st Battalion is putting the “train as you fight” mindset into action. In a first for any National Guard schoolhouse across the 54 states and territories, they ran three military occupational specialty transition courses at once, bringing together Soldiers working toward the 11B Infantryman and 11C Indirect Fire Infantryman MOS for more realistic, integrated training. The culmination of that combined effort took place July 21, 2025, with a combined arms live fire exercise at the Infantry Platoon Battle Course at Fort Pickett, Virginia.
“This live fire allows us to demonstrate to the 11Bs how to effectively use fires, gives them a chance to call for fire and adjust rounds on actual targets, and the 11Cs get to understand how they can incorporate their fires while an element is maneuvering,” said Master Sgt. John Fracker, chief instructor at the 183rd RTI’s 1st Battalion.
Forty Soldiers from all three U.S. Army components and multiple states participated in the exercise, alongside more than a dozen experienced cadre who provided expert instruction and oversight. The students were enrolled in three different courses: an 11B Infantry Transition Course for junior Soldiers, an 11B Infantry Transition Course for junior noncommissioned officers, and an 11C Indirect Fire Infantry Transition Course for junior Soldiers and NCOs.
For Fracker, the inclusion of this live fire event was a dream come true. As a longtime member of the cadre team at the 183rd RTI, he said he’s wanted to incorporate a combined arms live fire exercise, or CALFX, into training for 11-series Soldiers for nearly a decade.
“This has been on my heart to try to put together this package, to train as we would fight,” Fracker said. It’s something he couldn’t have done without approval from the staff and leadership at the 183rd RTI, one that he said, “was a huge leap of faith.” In April, Fracker’s team was able to prove the concept and show that it worked and, he said, by July, it felt stressless.
While the CALFX is now a reality, Fracker emphasized that it’s just one part of the training experience for the student Soldiers. When they arrive at Fort Pickett to begin their MOS transition course, they all start out with the basic infantry tasks.
“When they first show up, all the students are on the same page, and they all come together and work together,” Fracker said. Students move through a progressive series of events designed to build their skills from the ground up, covering everything from land navigation and vehicle identification to weapons familiarization and squad-level tactics. Each block of instruction builds on the last, preparing them for the challenges of the final week, which includes the CALFX, and a Field Training Exercise, or FTX. Both training exercises force the student Soldiers to think quickly, react effectively and work efficiently as a team.
“This course has been pretty challenging,” said Staff Sgt. Joshua Bowman, a 19D Calvary Scout from the Nebraska Army National Guard. “I’ve shown up to a lot of Army courses before and it’s been kind of underwhelming. That was not the case here.”
Each of the 40 Soldiers enrolled in the MOS transition courses came with their own reasons for being there. Some were reclassifying to fill critical needs in their units, others were fulfilling long-held goals to serve in a combat arms career field.
Spc. Parker Eastman enlisted into the Massachusetts Army National Guard after a six-year stint in the U.S. Navy and a five-year break in military service. The 11B course provided Eastman an opportunity to earn an Army MOS.
“At my day job, I work on computers,” Eastman said. “I had an itch to get out of the office, away from the computer and go outside, so [11B] seemed like a good fit.”
Spc. Alexander Conklin, an active duty Soldier currently stationed at Fort Riley, Kansas, started his military career as a 19D Calvary Scout, and said he came to the infantry because he liked the idea of it.
“I really wanted to challenge myself and push myself forward,” Conklin said. “I reenlisted for this, so it means a lot to me.”
Conklin, along with several of his peers, had high praise for the cadre.
“I can say my experience here, it’s been great. It’s a very good learning environment, they keep it very nice, very smooth, very professional,” he said. “You’re always learning something, every minute of every day.”
After they finished the CALFX, a long ruck and the FTX, the Soldiers trekked up to the top of a Fort Pickett hill. There, alongside the cadre who had shaped them into infantry Soldiers, they were awarded their blue infantry cords, a symbol of their new identity and commitment. The ceremony marked the proud conclusion of a demanding journey and the beginning of their careers in the Infantry.