FORT IRWIN, Calif., - The hiss of a rocket propelled grenade flew overhead as an improvised explosive device detonated and screams of terrified civilians could be heard in the distance.
It was not the streets of Kabul, Afghanistan or Baghdad, Iraq. It was Medina Wasi, the imaginary Iraqi village built here at the National Training Center (NTC).
Soldiers from the Illinois Army National Guard's 1344th Transportation Company in East St. Louis are going through the most realistic training the Army has to offer during the unit's annual training in May.
The training is made even more realistic because the villagers are real Iraqi civilians. The town of Medina Wasi was designed by Hollywood movie set designers and is based on a real Iraqi village. There is an operational hotel in the village for role players and news media to stay.
"My jaw dropped when I saw this village," said Platoon Leader 2nd Lt. Brett White. "I knew the training would be realistic, but I didn't expect anything like this."
The village is designed to train Soldiers for various situations they could face if they were to deploy in support of operations Iraqi or Enduring Freedom.
While at NTC, one of the 1344th's missions is to react to enemy fire while driving or walking in an urban area.
During the training the unit drove into the village where they were immediately surrounded with explosions and gunfire coming from every direction, only to discover the explosions they heard seriously wounded two American Soldiers in the area.
White's mission was to rescue two wounded American Soldiers on the ground and keep the 12 Soldiers under his command as safe as possible.
White arrived on the scene, got out of his armored vehicle and began to direct his people to accomplish the mission. He sent a team of three Soldiers to assist the two wounded American Soldiers, while the rest of the platoon provided security with their M249 semi automatic weapon.
Next they loaded the two wounded Soldiers in the vehicle. White counted to ensure he had everyone in his platoon and left the area with his team intact and the two wounded American Soldiers alive.
But that was not the end of the training for White's Soldiers that day.
Once the scenario was completed, the Soldiers met with mentors in a high-tech briefing room for an after action review, where they were shown video footage of the training they had just completed. The unit was shown what they did right and what they need to improve for future missions.
"The training was first class," said White. "Everything was realistic, the role players, the explosions and the feedback we received. This will only make us better if we ever do have to use this training."
While the 1344th has never deployed as a whole unit during the current conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, Soldiers from the Illinois Army National Guard unit have supported deployments for more than 20 units in Illinois and two other states since operations Iraqi and Enduring Freedom began in 2001 and 2002. Many of the unit's Soldiers have been deployed multiple times in their careers.