Under the scorching 38-39°C sun, each reserve soldier of Company 2, a training unit of Regiment 176, had their backs drenched in sweat, yet their movements in mounting and loading artillery remained precise and decisive. Not far away, on the training ground of the reserve soldiers training to operate 12.7mm anti-aircraft machine guns of Platoon 2, Company 1, the commanding orders of the gun crew and the shouts of the gunners filled a corner of the training ground.

The 176th Regiment is training its A-frame officers before commencing training.

Without prior introduction, I wouldn't have been able to distinguish whether this was a training area for the main army or the reserve forces. During a break, while chatting with Corporal Le Van Manh, the reserve squad leader of Platoon 3, Company 2, Regiment 176, he said: “Reliving our days in the military, we are all excited and actively training. Although the weather has been extremely hot these past few days, and the training content requires high concentration and sets high standards, the soldiers always uphold a high sense of responsibility in training and practice, and adhere to the unit's regulations and rules.”

We observed Major Tran Van Nghia, Platoon Leader of Platoon 4, Company 2, of the recoilless rifle (DKZ) training unit, Regiment 176, training in the "Fire Command Execution" section of the gun crew. Before starting the training, he checked the tasks of each gunner, then commented on and evaluated their strengths and weaknesses before training them on the new content. According to Major Tran Van Nghia, in order to improve the quality of training, along with implementing the principles and viewpoints in the training process, the unit always emphasizes the combination of reviewing old knowledge and learning new things, and strengthening the training of model teams for the soldiers to observe.

Reserve forces of the 176th Regiment are undergoing conversion training for the recoilless rifle (DKZ).

Lieutenant Colonel Phan Xuan Lich, Commander of Regiment 176, shared: “Currently, the Regiment is conducting retraining for reserve soldiers from Phong Dien district, Thua Thien Hue province. Retraining reserve soldiers from combined arms to communications, engineering, artillery reconnaissance, and air defense branches involves many difficult aspects, requiring the application of knowledge in mathematics, physics, etc. Therefore, during the verification and infiltration process, the unit prioritizes selecting soldiers with a high school education and younger age to perform the mission for a longer period.”

It is known that, in preparation for the training season to achieve the best results, from the beginning of the year, Regiment 176 focused on thoroughly preparing all aspects of material resources, training grounds, training models and teaching aids, and training and developing officers. During officer training, the Regiment intensified competitions and inspections; for those whose performance was still limited, the unit organized additional training during breaks and days off. The training process increased practical and visual training time through models, drawings, technical innovation initiatives, and combined various viewpoints, principles, and relationships; maximizing the mobilization of unit officers to closely monitor the training grounds and guide soldiers in their training.

The commander of the 968th Division (Military Region 4) mobilized the reserve forces of the 176th Regiment to participate in training.

Lieutenant Colonel Tran Duc Thong, Deputy Regiment Commander and Chief of Staff of Regiment 176, added: “Compared to previous training sessions, this year the unit has maintained Party and political work activities very effectively. Not only are there activities to encourage training on the field such as banners, slogans, and reading newspapers… but we also strictly maintain the system of scoring for emulation and commending good people and good deeds. At the end of the training session, the unit sends a report on the training results of each comrade to their local area…”

Thanks to the combination of policies and measures during the training process, along with the efforts of the soldiers, the quality of training in all subjects was achieved, with 100% meeting the requirements, including over 75% achieving good or excellent results.

Text and photos: NGOC THANG