Deputy Thiel visits Fort Pickett - April 4, 2014
Deputy Secretary of Public Safety and Homeland Security Adam K. Thiel visits Fort Pickett April 4, 2014, to learn more about the capabilities that make Fort Pickett one of the premier military and public safety training destinations on the East Coast. Maj. Gen. Daniel E. Long, Jr., the Adjutant General of Virginia, and Lt. Col. Preston Scott, Fort Pickett garrison commander, hosted the tour that included stops at the Maneuver Area Training Equipment Site, the Virginia Army National Guard Headquarters, the 183rd Regiment, Regional Training Institute, newly-renovted troop barracks, Range Operations and the Multi-Purpose Range Complex. At the MPRC, Thiel met with Marines from the Camp Lejeune, N.C.-based 2nd Tank Battalion, 2nd Marine Division who were live firing their M1A1 tanks on the range.
Fort Pickett is approximately 41,000 acres and operated by the Virginia National Guard and features a combination of open and wooded terrain maneuver areas and 21 ranges capable of supporting almost any weapons system in the U. S. Army inventory. In addition, the installation has a rail spur and C-17 capable airfield as well as barracks to support more than 5,000 personnel and morale, welfare and recreation facilities including a gym, post exchange and leisure center.
The Maneuver Area Training Equipment Site at Fort Pickett where more than 120 personnel assigned provide maintenance support on more than 500 combat vehicles and other equipment positioned at Fort Pickett including M1A1 tanks, Bradley fighting vehicles, howitzers and a variety of other tracked and wheeled vehicles. In addition to Virginia National Guard vehicles, MATES personnel maintain equipment assigned to the West Virginia and Pennsylvania Army National Guard that is drawn when units from those states come to Fort Pickett for training. In addition to vehicle maintenance shops, MATES also contains supply areas and a variety of repair shops including vehicle painting, body work, communications equipment and small arms.
The 183rd Regiment, Regional Training Institute was recently declared an “Institute of Excellence” following an accreditation process conducted by U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command. The schoolhouse earned an overall score of 98 percent, marking it as one of the best U.S. Army learning centers in the nation. RTI’s personnel teach infantry, military police and transportation military occupational skills as well as conduct commissioning programs for officers and warrant officers. The education facilities and living quarters for personnel conducting training at RTI were dramatically improved with a new education complex completed in December 2010 and barracks facilities completed in September 2012 at a total cost of $57 million.
