JBER soldiers stay hard at work on Veterans Day

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) - About 3,500 soldiers with the 2nd Mobile Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 11th Airborne Division took part in a brigade field exercise on Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson on Veterans Day.

Col. Brian Weightman, commander of the brigade, also known as the “Spartans”, said the exercise is preparation for a larger training event planned for February.

“There’s about 3,500 of us in the brigade,” Weightman said. “And we’re conducting simulated maneuvers, both offensive and defensive, to demonstrate our readiness and our lethality.”

Weightman said the brigade’s training follows a progression. It started at the squad level, then moved to the platoon, company and battalion levels. The whole brigade is now in the field.

The two week training in November has two purposes.

“One, to deter our enemies and protect American interests,” Weightman said. “And the other is to prepare for a further culminating training event, which will be at the Joint Pacific Multinational Readiness Center (JPMRC) up near Delta Junction there in February.”

Weightman added that the JPMRC is “where we really demonstrate our ability to do all of that in Arctic conditions down to negative 50, negative 60.”

Message to veterans

Asked for a message to veterans, Weightman said Alaska has more veterans per capita than any other state. According to the United States Census Bureau, there are over 53,000 veterans in Alaska.

Weightman thanked Kirk Alkire of Gold Star Peak, Inc., a nonprofit aimed to bring veterans and Gold Star Families together, and James Drayton of Arctic Guardian, a nonprofit dedicated to strengthening the readiness of America’s military and law enforcement professionals.

“They are so helpful to our community and we just really, really appreciate them,” Weightman said.

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