The Army Mountain Warfare School (AMWS) is a

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

school located at the Camp Ethan Allen Training Site,

Jericho, Vermont Jericho is a town in Chittenden County, Vermont, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 5,104. The town was named after the ancient city of Jericho. History Ira Allen and Remember Baker began surveying the town of Jericho in ...

to train soldiers in

mountain warfare Mountain warfare (also known as alpine warfare) is warfare in mountains or similarly rough terrain. Mountain ranges are of strategic importance since they often act as a natural border, and may also be the origin of a water source (for example, t ...

, the specialized skills required for operating in mountainous terrain. It is home to the

86th Infantry Brigade Combat Team The 86th Infantry Brigade Combat Team (Mountain) ("The Vermont Brigade") is an Army National Guard light infantry brigade headquartered in Vermont. It was reorganized from an armored brigade into an Infantry Brigade Combat Team (IBCT) as part o ...

. The school is located in Vermont's

Green Mountains The Green Mountains are a mountain range in the U.S. state of Vermont. The range runs primarily south to north and extends approximately from the border with Massachusetts to the border with Quebec, Canada. The part of the same range that is in ...

Purpose

The school teaches a number of courses to train soldiers of the army (including Active Duty, the

Army Reserve A military reserve force is a military organization whose members have military and civilian occupations. They are not normally kept under arms, and their main role is to be available when their military requires additional manpower. Reserve ...

Army National Guard The Army National Guard (ARNG), in conjunction with the Air National Guard, is an organized Militia (United States), militia force and a Reserve components of the United States Armed Forces, federal military reserve force of the United States A ...

, and ROTC cadets) in military operations in mountainous areas. Graduates of the Basic Military Mountaineer Course (BMMC) receive the special qualification identifier (SQI) of "E," Military Mountaineer. The school runs 'summer' sessions focusing on rock climbing and high-angle tactical combat, and 'winter' courses that also include winter travel, camping, and survival skills. The basic and advanced courses of instruction trains individual soldiers, not

units Unit may refer to: Arts and entertainment * UNIT, a fictional military organization in the science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'' * Unit of action, a discrete piece of action (or beat) in a theatrical presentation Music * Unit (album), ...

. These soldiers then return to their units to provide at least some training and experience in mountain warfare throughout the U.S. Army. Unit training, both at the AMWS and at the requesting unit's location, can also be provided.

Overview

The school was established in April 1983 to train members of the 3rd Battalion, 172nd Infantry Regiment (Mountain) then consisting of company-sized units from several New England states. Enrollment was opened over the years to include members of all branches of the armed services, Federal law enforcement and foreign armies. The curriculum design broadens the soldier's knowledge and unit’s capabilities. The curriculum is designed to enable the soldier to operate in mountains and cold and to enable him to assist in planning operations. The school uses a small group participatory learning process. The school conducts six courses of instruction from basic military mountaineering to specialized advanced mountaineering related courses. Each level is to prepare soldiers to operate in mountains year-round and in cold, snowy, and/or icy environments. The Army Mountain Warfare School is one of three institutions that awards the Skill Qualification Identifier (SQI) "E," Military Mountaineer; the other two being graduates of the

Northern Warfare Training Center The United States Army Northern Warfare Training Center (NWTC) is the name of a United States Army Alaska (USARAK) special skills training unit and facility located in Black Rapids, Alaska, managed out of Fort Wainwright. It is the Active Army's ...

's Basic Military Mountaineering Course (BMMC)—conducted by the

11th Airborne Division The 11th Airborne Division ("Arctic Angels") is a United States Army airborne formation, first activated on 25 February 1943, during World War II. Consisting of one parachute and two glider infantry regiments, with supporting troops, the div ...

in Black Rapids,

Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S., ...

—and the Special Forces Advanced Mountain Operations School—conducted by the

John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School The U.S. Army John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School (SWCS) – known informally as "Swick" – primarily trains and educates United States Army personnel for the United States Army Special Operations Command and United States Specia ...

Estes Park, Colorado Estes Park is a statutory town in Larimer County, Colorado, United States. The town population was 5,904 at the 2020 United States Census. Estes Park is a part of the Fort Collins, CO Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Front Range Urban Corr ...

. The school is the executive agent for military mountaineering for the

United States Army Infantry School The United States Army Infantry School is a school located at Fort Benning, Georgia that is dedicated to training infantrymen for service in the United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United State ...

. The school is responsible for the content of Field Manual 3–97.61, Military Mountaineering. The school is the only non-European permanent member of the International Association of Military Mountain Schools (IAMMS). The curriculum is broken down into a two-week course, with three general type of mountain-specific skills taught in each: individual, small unit, and medical. The Basic Military Mountaineer Course is a prerequisite to attend the Advanced Military Mountaineer Course. The training focus is on providing the force structure with soldiers capable of assisting their units in mountainous environments. Courses for the Basic and Advanced Mountaineering Courses run monthly from May through October and January through March. It is very common for

Army ROTC The Army Reserve Officers' Training Corps (AROTC) is the United States Army component of the Reserve Officers' Training Corps. It is the largest Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC) program which is a group of college and university-based offic ...

cadets to attend AMWS as a specialty school during ROTC. Cadets take the course during the summer as they are in school, and training during the school season. Other ROTC summer schools include:

Airborne School The United States Army Airborne School – widely known as Jump School – conducts the basic paratrooper (military parachutist) training for the United States Armed Forces. It is operated by the 1st Battalion (Airborne), 507th Infantry Regime ...

, Air Assault School, Combat Diver Qualification Course, Drill Cadet Leadership Training, and Northern Warfare. This school is not to be confused with the Mountain phase of

Ranger School The United States Army Ranger School is a 62-day small unit tactics and leadership course that develops functional skills directly related to units whose mission is to engage the enemy in close combat and direct fire battles. Ranger training wa ...

Courses

''Basic Military Mountaineer Course:'' Combined both the summer and winter courses of instruction into one combined course that will cover components of each phase depending on the time of year. The purpose of the BMMC is to train soldiers in the skills required to conduct mountain combat operations during any climatic conditions and to award the SQI "E" upon graduation. The following are general subject areas taught during this course of instruction: mountain navigation skills, individual mountain skills, small unit mountain skills, mountain medical skills, and summer specific practical exercises.Army Mountain Warfare School (AMWS), Basic Military Mountaineer Courses (BMMC)
U.S. Army Fort Benning and The Maneuver Center of Excellence official website, last updated 25 May 2018, retrieved 17 March 2019 ''Advanced Military Mountaineer Course (Summer):'' The purpose of the Advanced Military Mountaineer Course (Summer) is to train soldiers in the knowledge/skills required to lead small units/teams over technically difficult, hazardous or exposed (class 4 and 5) mountainous terrain during summer months. Emphasis is placed on developing the level 2 assault climber tasks described in Chapter 2 of Army Field Manual 3-97.6, Mountain Operations (2000 Revision).Army Tactics Techniques Procedures (ATTP) 3-21.50, Infantry Small-Unit Mountain Operations
Department of the Army, dated February 2011, retrieved 18 March 2019 ''Advanced Military Mountaineer Course (Winter):'' The purpose of the Advanced Military Mountaineer Course (Winter) is to train soldiers in the skills required to lead small units over technically difficult, hazardous or exposed (class 4 and 5) mountainous terrain during cold weather climatic conditions. ''Rough Terrain Evacuation Course:'' The purpose of the Rough Terrain Evacuation Course is to train soldiers the skills to care for and safely evacuate an injured soldier over difficult terrain under austere conditions. The course combines classroom and field time with evacuation practical exercises. Many portions of the course are physically demanding as soldiers apply their newly learned skills in various

medical evacuation Medical evacuation, often shortened to medevac or medivac, is the timely and efficient movement and en route care provided by medical personnel to wounded being evacuated from a battlefield, to injured patients being evacuated from the scene of a ...

(MEDEVAC) scenarios. ''Mountain Planners Course:'' The purpose of the Mountain Planners Course is to train mountain leaders the basic skills required to plan, support, and execute operations in mountainous terrain under various climatic conditions. Students are subjected to effects of altitude/cold/terrain on: personnel, equipment, movement, patrolling, reconnaissance, fire control,

casualty evacuation Casualty evacuation, also known as CASEVAC or by the callsign Dustoff or colloquially Dust Off, is a military term for the emergency patient evacuation of casualties from a combat zone. Casevac can be done by both ground and air. "DUSTOFF" is ...

(CASEVAC), offensive/defensive operations, required/available equipment and its use, resupply considerations, and water procurement. Practical exercises cover CASEVAC, patrolling, patrol base operations, rappelling, rope management, and route planning. ''Mountain Rifleman Course:'' The purpose of the Mountain Rifleman Course is to train

snipers A sniper is a military/paramilitary marksman who engages targets from positions of concealment or at distances exceeding the target's detection capabilities. Snipers generally have specialized training and are equipped with high-precision r ...

and squad

designated marksman A designated marksman (DM), squad advanced marksman (AD) or squad designated marksman (SDM) is a military marksman role in an infantry squad. The term ''sniper'' was used in Soviet doctrine although the soldiers using the Dragunov SVD were the ...

a combination of mountain specific skills and angle marksmanship fundamentals. The goal is improving mobility and lethality in mountainous terrain. Soldiers are provided with extensive shooting opportunities at both flat and angle ranges. Soldiers are taught basic mountain mobility and navigation skills. The skills are then combined in practical exercises that test a student's ability to plan and execute missions in mountainous terrain. The tasks taught are: mountain travel techniques, cold weather clothing, environmental injuries, soldier load management, characteristics of mountain terrain, basic mountaineering equipment, long range marksmanship in mountainous terrain, map reading in mountainous terrain, terrain exploitation, and land navigation.

References

External links

*
Vermont National Guard
{{coord, 44.4796321, -72.9508469, display=title Buildings and structures in Jericho, Vermont Education in Chittenden County, Vermont Mountain warfare training installations United States Army National Guard United States Army schools Military installations in Vermont

Purpose

Overview

Courses

See also

References

External links