How the U.S. Military is Training to Use Pack Animals in Afghanistan
According to a July 7, 2009 Los Angeles Times article, students at the Marine Corps Mountain Warfare Training Center near Bridgeport, Calif., are learning to use the Afghan’s own traditional method of animal packing as an alternative to Humvees and helicopters.
The Marine Corps Mountain Warfare Training Center
The 47,000-acre training facility is set on the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest amid jagged, 10,000-foot-high peaks. The terrain, analogous to the mountainous regions in Afghanistan, is a prime location to teach high-altitude combat skills. The animal-packers course teaches soldiers how to use beasts of burden to carry weapons and supplies for missions in Afghanistan.
The 47,000-acre training facility is set on the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest amid jagged, 10,000-foot-high peaks. The terrain, analogous to the mountainous regions in Afghanistan, is a prime location to teach high-altitude combat skills. The animal-packers course teaches soldiers how to use beasts of burden to carry weapons and supplies for missions in Afghanistan.