Defensive and Evasive Driver Training

Current U. S. Army operations in Iraq, primarily those in the larger cities, such as Baghdad and Mosul, require wheeled vehicle drivers to be well versed in congested traffic driving techniques. Although we employ measures to keep local traffic away from our vehicles and convoys, such as distance warning signs and hand and arm signals, the local population does not always obey. Unless drivers have previous experience driving in heavy urban traffic, they are learning on the fly. Even the most experienced driver will need training to overcome the dangers of driving in hostile environments. To ensure drivers are sufficiently trained to maneuver among obstacles common to urban environments, the Army needs to develop a train-the-trainer course in evasive and defensive driving techniques, to include practical exercises, for unit master drivers to use when conducting training for inexperienced soldiers prior to deployment. The U. S. Army’s current doctrine, Army Regulation (AR) 600- 55, The Army Driver and Operator Standardization Program (Selection, Training, Testing, and Licensing) and U. S. Army Field Manual (FM) 21-305, Manual for the Wheeled Vehicle Driver, are deficient in addressing evasive driver training.1 Currently, the only training resource available to unit commanders for evasive/defensive driving techniques can be found on the U. S. Army Combat Readiness Training Center’s website in the “Driver’s Training Tool Box.”2 The site has a copy of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s Emergency Vehicle Operators Training Manual, as well as examples of courses taught by military police (MP) to MP students.3 MP driving courses are taught in accordance with AR 600-55 as indicated by the following excerpt: Emergency Vehicle Operation “Emergency vehicle operators must complete an emergency vehicle training program prior to assuming operator duties, and every 3 years thereafter. This training will include instruction in the subjects outlined in Appendix Hand will be annotated on DA Form 348, section III, upon completion.”4 In AR 600-55, Appendix H addresses the emergency vehicle driver training course and highlights the requirement, but fails to provide instruction on unit-level training. The regulation outlines tasks that may or may not support evasive driving techniques, but there is no recommended course of instruction that units can use to train on at home station. Appendix H, AR 600-55, provides the following program of instruction:

• Unit A covers the introduction, course organization, and material review.

• Unit B covers state, local, host nation, and post traffic regulations and laws.

• Unit C covers selection of routes and building identification.

• Unit D covers use of radios and communications procedures.

• Unit E covers emergency vehicle driving, which includes lights and sirens, parking and backing, negotiating traffic, intersections, turns, following distances, road conditions, right of way, and negotiating curves.

• Unit F covers handling unusual situations, such as adverse weather, collisions, skids, vehicle malfunctions, and placement of warning devices.

• Unit G includes specialized instruction broken down into: - Section I — ambulances. This section includes responsibilities, route planning, inspection and maintenance of medical supplies, life-support equipment authorized for the type of ambulance the individual is being tested for, driving to the scene, at the scene, directing traffic, and driving with a patient aboard. - Section II — police vehicles. This section includes responsibilities, emergency communications, pursuit driving, making a traffic stop, emergency escort of another vehicle, and directing traffic. - Section III — fire apparatus. This section includes responsibilities, inspection and maintenance of specialized equipment, vehicle characteristics, selecting routes, operating systems, and special considerations. - Vehicle dynamics. - Size and weight. - Speed. - Basic control tasks, which include steering, braking, shifting, backing, parking, and intersections.

• Unit H covers the introduction to the driving range and safety briefing.

• Unit I covers the driving range.

• Unit J covers operator’s performance evaluation.5 Wheeled Vehicle Operation The Manual for the Wheeled Vehicle Driver, FM 21-305, covers the general principles of non-tactical wheeled vehicle operation. It also describes special instructions for tactical vehicle operation. Military and civilian drivers of government-owned vehicles use this manual as a guide for safe and efficient vehicle operation. Instructions in this manual help the wheeled vehicle driver maintain a high degree of driving efficiency. This manual does not restrict its contents to any particular vehicle. It is a guide to normal everyday operations and to driving under difficult conditions. When more information is needed for a specific vehicle, check the technical manual written for that vehicle.6 Chapter 8, FM 21-305, “Operating Practices and Maneuvers,” should address evasive driving techniques, but instead only focuses on driving practices, starting, steering, turning, braking, stopping, ground guide safety procedures, backing, turning around, parking, and the elements of safe driving.7 Typically, unit driver’straining standard operating procedures (SOPs) will include reviews of the above information with additional training that is unit specific or condition specific. For example, the objective is to establish a training program at the squadron and troop levels for motor vehicle drivers and equipment operators that promotes the highest standards of technical proficiency, equipment safety, and driver knowledge. The SOP should outline the following criteria, requiring unit leaders to:

• Ensure that, at a minimum, troop master drivers, under the supervision of the squadron master driver, license all soldiers who are not in command positions on high mobility multipurpose wheeled vehicles (HMMWVs) within 60 days of their arrival to the unit.

• Teach and/or sustain basic operator skills on motor vehicles and equipment.

• Instill in vehicle operators and supervisors a safety attitude and a greater sense of pride in his/her assigned equipment.

• Ensure soldiers are aware of all state and post environmental protection and traffic laws.

• Ensure that soldier’s motor vehicles and equipment are in proper operational status by complying with proper preventive maintenance checks and services (PMCS).

• Promote safety. Breaking Contact When vehicle patrols make enemy contact, the patrol has two choices: attack immediately or break contact. In those cases where continuing the engagement could hinder the overall mission, the better choice may be to break contact. To effectively train vehicle drivers how to break enemy contact, a unit-level convoy leader’s handbook, which focuses on breaking contact, not evading it, should outline the following procedures:

• The platoon leader/convoy commander determines the convoy cannot gain fire superiority and the decision has been made to break contact.

• The platoon leader/convoy commander designates that either rally point “rear” or “forward” will be used. If necessary, both rally points may be used. Communications systems and appropriate pyrotechnic signals will be used to communicate “break contact” and “rally point.” “When vehicle patrols make enemy contact, the patrol has two choices: attack immediately or break contact. The better choice is usually to break contact. The patrol is most likely on another mission, and continuing the engagement will very possibly hinder the accomplishment of that mission.” 12 —

• Personnel will deploy obscuration measures, if available. Using cover and concealment, aid and litter team(s) will evacuate all casualty(s) under support of gun trucks and other protective fire(s).

• Personnel will maintain position and suppression in the contact zone and assist aid and litter team(s), as necessary.

• Disabled vehicle(s) will be abandoned or destroyed as directed by leaders.

• Vehicles will displace either backward or forward through the convoy lines under leader control. The most forward vehicle in the contact zone moves first, followed by the next most forward vehicle. Vehicles will continue to displace in order. As vehicles displace, gun trucks reposition, as necessary, until contact is broken.

• If breaking contact occurs with vehicles on both sides of the contact zone, displacement of vehicles will occur using an alternating displacement technique.

• Once the rally point is occupied, leaders will immediately position vehicles, security, and conduct consolidation and reorganization.

• If the convoy vehicles get separated when not in enemy contact, personnel and vehicles stay together and move to the closest rally or check point. Evading Contact Several federal agencies and private contractors have programs that emphasize evading contact. One of these programs offered by the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) is the Tactical Emergency Vehicle Operators Course (TEVOC). The TEVOC program instructs new agents and other law enforcement personnel on the basics of defensive driving and emergency vehicle operation techniques. It is used to improve driving skills and confidence of personnel and reduce the possibility of accidents. During the course, students receive classroom instruction in vehicle dynamics, defensive driving principles, and legal and liability issues. Students also are given skill-development exercises in skid control, performance driving, and evasive driving techniques at the new tactical emergency vehicle operations center. Sending master drivers to the TEVOC or other federally sanctioned courses would assist the Army in building a training base that would prepare units for combat driving in the big cities of Iraq. Combat Drivers Assault Course (CDAC) Below is a scaled-down/modified CDAC concept that was used to train soldiers who were participating in pre-deployment training. The purpose of the course was to improve drivers’ survivability in a combat environment. The course consisted of limited classroom training and a series of driving exercises designed to teach drivers new techniques and instill confidence in their abilities. The following is an example concept brief used to brief the participants, and included the following training objectives:

• Free a trapped vehicle.

• Precision steering.

• Precision backing.

• Ramming techniques (trained only in a classroom environment).

• React to contact.

• React to media.

• React to civilians on the battlefield (COBs). This particular unit used its home-station military operations in urban terrain (MOUT) site, which provided a great setting for the training. The personnel at the site were able to acquire every training aid requested, which included junked cars, telephone poles, tires, 55-gallon drums, and barriers, which made the training more realistic. Sound effects (call to prayer, weapons fire, and screams) were used to add realism. The MOUT theater also proved to be the ideal place to conduct classroom training and after-action reviews (AARs). Old tires were used to protect the training vehicles from unnecessary damage. Tying used tires with parachute cord to the four corners of the vehicles took about 5 minutes per vehicle and was very effective in reducing training damage. Additionally, the vehicles never collided with anything while moving over 10 miles “This particular unit used its home-station military operations in urban terrain (MOUT) site, which provided a great setting for the training. The personnel at the site were able to acquire every training aid requested, which included junked cars, telephone poles, tires, 55-gallon drums, and barriers, which made the training more realistic. Sound effects (call to prayer, weapons fire, and screams) were used to add realism.”

Driver’s Training Program The target audience for the driver’straining course was wheeled-vehicle drivers, such as supply specialists; nuclear, biological, and chemical (NBC) specialists; and command group drivers. A small group was selected to ensure the student-to-instructor ratio was low. Initially, students were given classroom instruction (the crawl phase), followed by a controlled execution in the motor pool with traffic cones (the walk phase), and then an advanced execution (the run phase), with an instructor in the vehicle, inside an urban sprawl MOUT site. The morning of Day 1 included classroom instruction for afternoon execution. Soldiers were trained on the fundamentals of evasive driving using a serpentine course (see Figure 1) under controlled conditions, and were required to complete a practical exercise (PE) in the afternoon at a typical urban sprawl MOUT site. Each vehicle had a driver, vehicle commander/instructor, and two additional students. As each student executed the course, they were immediately evaluated by the instructor and their peers on the application of the techniques trained. Soldiers executed numerous iterations of the course, and due to immediate feedback and a low student-to-instructor ratio, they retrained effectively. An example of a Day 1 schedule is: Day 1 CDAC, Phase I 0900-1030 Fundamentals of Evasive Driving/4WD Applications (MOUT Classroom) 1030-1200 Media/Civil Affairs Considerations (MOUT Classroom) 1200-1300 Lunch 1300-1330 Prep Vehicles for Operations (Motor Pool) 1330-1430 Drive Serpentine Course (Motor Pool) 1430-1600 Drive Basic Urban Steering Course (MOUT Site) 1600-1630 Review (MOUT Site) 1630-1700 Return Vehicles to Motor Pool The morning of Day 2 included the fundamentals of precision backing (see Figure 2), lane change (see Figure 3), and precision steering courses (see Figure 4) under controlled conditions with traffic cones. A PE was conducted in the afternoon at a typical urban sprawl MOUT site. Each vehicle consisted of the driver, the vehicle commander/instructor, and two additional students. As each student executed the course, an AAR was immediately performed by the instructor and the student’s peers on the application of the techniques being trained. Soldiers executed numerous iterations of the course, and due to immediate feedback and a low student-to-instructor ratio, they were able to retrain effectively. A sample Day 2 schedule is listed below: Day 2 CDAC, Phase I 0900-0930 Prep Vehicles for Operations (Motor Pool) 0930-1030 Drive Precision Backing Course (Motor Pool) 1030-1130 Lane Change Exercise (Motor Pool) 1130-1300 Lunch/Course Set-up 1300-1330 Walk Precision Steering Course (Motor Pool) 1330-1500 Drive Precision Steering Course (Motor Pool) 1500-1530 Walk Advanced Urban Steering Course (MOUT Site) 1530-1600 Drive Advanced Urban Steering Course (slow, MOUT Site) 1600-1800 Return Vehicles to Motor Pool “The target audience for the driver’straining course was wheeled-vehicle drivers, such as supply specialists, nuclear, biological, and chemical (NBC) specialists, and command group drivers. A small group was selected to ensure the student-to-instructor ratio was low. Initially, students were given classroom instruction (the crawl phase), followed by a controlled execution in the motor pool with traffic cones (the walk phase), and then an advanced execution (the run phase), with an instructor in the vehicle, inside an urban sprawl MOUT site.” per hour, and the tires prevented damage to the vehicles’ lights and body. The low-speed collisions included contact with other HMMWVs, junked cars, and 55-gallon drums. The student-to-instructor ratio is very important to providing proper instruction. One instructor for approximately every five students is the desired level. This permits smooth rotation of students and vehicles for each exercise, and it allows some instructors to do administrative work for the course, while others run exercises. The number of instructors also allows students to be split into small groups to better use all training sites in the limited time available. Experienced HMMWV instructors were key to the success of this course. Without experienced instructors, the course would have easily taken several days. With experienced noncommissioned officers (NCOs), the course focused more on the specifics of each exercise. Classroom instruction followed by practical exercises and a written exam completed the certification. Leader Certification Unit leaders and trainers are certified in providing this type of instruction. The course instructor teaches unit master drivers the techniques to be trained and certifies them to teach these techniques. An example of the training included: Leader Certification CDAC, Phase I 0900-0945 Overview/Read-ahead Review (MOUT Classroom) 0945-1030 Media/Civil Affairs Overview 1030-1200 MOUT Site Walk/Obstacle Set-up 1200-1300 Lunch 1300-1310 Motor Pool Orientation 1310-1400 Drive Motor Pool Exercises (all instructors) 1400-1600 Drive MOUT Site Exercises (all instructors) 1600-1700 Revise/Refine/Drive (as required) Obstacles and Exercises 1700 Return Vehicles to Motor Pool *Instructors are responsible for reading instructor packet before leader certification to expedite leader training. 14 —

The morning of Day 3 included a review and execution of advanced urban steering, freeing a trapped vehicle, and classroom instruction covering evasive driving techniques followed by a PE. Again, an initial introduction to training was first executed under controlled conditions with traffic cones, followed by a PE in the afternoon at a typical urban sprawl MOUT site. For advanced techniques, each vehicle used consisted of the driver and the vehicle commander/instructor. As each student executed the course, an AAR was immediately performed by the instructor and the student’s peers on the application of the techniques being trained. Soldiers executed numerous iterations of the course, and due to immediate feedback and low student-to-instructor ratios, they were able to retrain effectively. A sample Day 3 schedule is listed below: Day 3 CDAC, Phase I 0700-0730 Prep Vehicles for Operations (Motor Pool) 0730-0900 Advanced Urban Steering Course (fast, MOUT Site) 0900-0930 Free Trapped Vehicle (MOUT Site) 0930-1000 Evasive Driving Overview 1000-1200 Evasive Driving Exercise (MOUT Site) 1200-1300 Lunch 1300-1600 Evasive Driving Exercise (MOUT Site) 1600-1630 AARs 1630-1700 Return Vehicles to Motor Pool The purpose of this course was to improve vehicle drivers’ survivability in a combat environment and with a small student-to-Building Serpentine Course Pole Cone N SP Building Precision Backing Course Pole N SP Figure 1 Figure 2 instructor ratio of the first execution CDAC, which was completed in 4 days. Day 4 was left for retraining, vehicle maintenance, and site clean-up as follows: Day 4 CDAC, Phase I 0900-1200 Retraining 1300-1430 AAR (MOUT Classroom) 1430-1700 Clean-up (MOUT Site)/Post-ops PMCS (Motor Pool) Listed below are some of the resources required to execute the training. Again, this training was adaptive to meet the goals of the unit commander, based on available resources and knowledge. Resource Requirements CDAC, Phase 1 Personnel:

• Instructors — 5x NCOs (troop master drivers)

• Set-up/tear-down detail — Instructors + 5 soldiers

• Minimum student-to-teacher ratio — 5:1 Land:

• Classroom — MOUT Site Classroom

• Urban Obstacle Course — MOUT Site

• Skills area — Motor Pool Vehicles:

• 1 x dedicated medic HMMWV

• 5 x training HMMWVs Building Lane Change Exercise N *When vehicle crosses this line, instructors block one side, forcing quick decision **Directional braking (no brakes are to be used until this point in exercise) * ** Building Precision Steering Course N SP

Other:

• Urban Obstacle Course — - 20 55-gallon drums (empty) or equivalent - 10 plastic jersey barriers (empty) - 10 junk vehicles (kept at MOUT site permanently)

• Skills Area — 100 road cones/pylons, 18-36" height

• Targets (simulate COBs) The days of conducting simple operator/driver’straining in a sterile environment are gone. Convoy live fires are now away of life for units preparing for combat. Even in the third world, urban sprawl and modernization have made defensive and tactical driving in congested urban environments a fact of military life, requiring the careful application of creative training by unit leaders. This brief article shows how one unit maintained its combat edge by using any and all available tools on hand. Leaders must continue to draw on the experiences of seasoned combat veterans who served during operations in Afghanistan, Iraq, Somalia, Haiti, and Bosnia. Commanders should never stop refining tactics, techniques, and procedures that will improve their unit’s ability to meet the challenges of urban operations. Notes 1Department of Army, U. S. Army Regulation (AR) 600-55, The Army Driver and Operator Standardization Program (Selection, Training, Testing, and Licensing), U. S. Government Printing Office (GPO) Washington, DC, 31 December 1993; Department of Army, U. S. Army Field Manual (FM) 21-305, GPO, Washington, DC, 27 August 1993. 2U. S. Army Combat Readiness Training Center website at https://crc.army.mil/drivertraining toolbox/evoTrainingManual.aspx. 3National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, The Emergency Vehicle Operators Training Manual, online at the U. S. Army Combat Readiness Training Center website: https://crc.army. mil/evoTrainingManual.aspx. 4AR 600-55. 5Ibid., Appendix H. 6FM 21-305. 7Ibid., Chapter 8. Major Richard R. Rouleau is currently serving as an observer controller, reconnaissance squadron S3 trainer, National Training Center, Fort Irwin, CA. He received a B. S. from Niagara University and an M. S. from the U. S. Army Command and General Staff College. His military education includes Armor Officer Basic Course, Armor Officer Advance Course, Cavalry Leaders Course, and Joint Targeting Course. He has served in various command and staff positions, to include tank platoon leader, 2d Battalion, 37th Armor, 3d Infantry Division, Vilseck, Germany; A/S3 and S4, 3d Squadron, 17th (3-17) Cavalry, 10th Mountain Division, Fort Drum, NY; troop commander, A Troop, 3-17 Cavalry, 10th Mountain Division; and S3 and XO, 4th Squadron, 14th Cavalry, 172d Stryker Brigade Combat Team, Iraq. Captain John Hawbaker is currently serving as a maneuver company observer controller, Joint Multinational Readiness Center, Hohenfels, Germany. He received a B. S. from the U. S. Military Academy. His military education includes Armor Captains Career Course and Ranger School. He has served in various command and staff positions, to include squadron planner, 4th Squadron, 14th (4-14) Cavalry, Fort Wainwright, AK; commander, Stryker reconnaissance, surveillance, and target acquisition (RSTA) troop, C Troop, 4-14 Cavalry, Fort Wainwright; commander, Stryker Headquarters and Headquarters Troop, 4-14 Cavalry, Fort Wainwright; scout platoon leader, Task Force 1st Battalion, 33d (1-33) Armor, Fort Lewis, WA; and tank platoon leader, 1-33 Armor, Fort Lewis. “The days of conducting simple operator/driver’straining in a sterile environment are gone. Convoy live fires are now away of life for units preparing for combat. Even in the third world, urban sprawl and modernization have made defensive and tactical driving in congested urban environments a fact of military life, requiring the careful application of creative training by unit leaders.”