On June 5, the 7th Engineer Brigade of the Army announced that it is conducting a joint river crossing exercise with the U.S. 2nd Division and the Combined Division’s Multi-Purpose Bridge Company in the Namhan River in Yeoju, Gyeonggi Province from June 3 to 7.
The exercise aims to improve the realistic river-crossing operational capabilities of both South Korea and the U.S. This creates operational methods using combined assets and verifies the interoperability of Korean and U.S. river-crossing assets. A total of approximately 590 soldiers from the 7th Engineer Brigade, 301 Aviation Battalion of the 2nd Combat Aviation Brigade, Mechanized Infantry Battalion Task Force of the 2nd Armored Brigade, and the Multi-Role Bridging Company of the U.S. 2nd Infantry Division/ ROK-US Combined Division participated in the exercise.
A total of 243 air and armored power, including engineer equipment such as Ribbon Bridge Set (RBS) and Improved Ribbon Bridge (IRB), CH-47D Chinook helicopters, K1A2 tanks, and K808 armored vehicles, were deployed.
In the exercise, the K200, K1A2 tanks, and K808 armored vehicles conducted a river crossing through four pontoon bridges built by interconnecting bridge sections such as logs. Immediately after, Korean and U.S. soldiers joined forces to connect the internal bridge sections in a cross-pattern, completing a 918-foot combined bridge across the Namhan River in just three hours.
Through this bridge, Korean military power quickly maneuvered to the target point across the river. This included K1A2 tanks and K600 obstacle-clearing tanks.
During the exercise, Chinook helicopters transported the Korean Army’s Ribbon Bridge Set (RBS) and the U.S.’s Improved Ribbon Bridge (IRB) twice by air and supported bridge construction. The exercise was performed considering an event where river crossing assets were damaged due to enemy attacks.
Lieutenant Colonel Won Seong Hoon, who commanded the exercise on-site, said, “I put my best into the exercise with the mindset that operations are training and training is operations. It was a great opportunity to maximize the interoperability of Korean and U.S. river crossing equipment and enhance the alliance’s operational capabilities.”
Captain Owen Matthew, the U.S. training unit commander, said, “Through the exercise, we shared knowledge with the Korean military and were able to further strengthen our joint operational capabilities. We will do our best to ensure the mobility of the combined forces anytime, anywhere.”