lessonslearned Tune-Up Training A 74 MILITARY OFFICER JUNE 2015

Under the guidance of his enlisted troops, a new offi cer not only learns his way around the motor pool, but he also learns to appreciate the expertise of those in the trenches.

As a brand-new ROTC-commissioned Regular Army second lieutenant, I joined a mechanized infantry battalion in Germany in 1966. I was responsible for all three rifl e platoons, and a two-page list spelled out my other duties, including “company motor offi cer,” responsible for the “care and feeding” of 17 armored personnel carriers, three jeeps, and a 2½-ton truck. I visited the motor pool, introduced

myself to the motor sergeant, and told him that other than a short lecture at the of- fi cer basic course, I didn’t know anything about this job but was willing to learn. He shook my hand and smiled. “OK, Lieutenant, we do maintenance Mondays and Fridays, and on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays, you’ll be in fi eld training. On Saturday mornings, we have inspections. I’ll see you here Monday morning.” When I arrived on Monday, he

gave me a set of coveralls with a 2-inch-long gold bar on one collar and a set of crossed wrenches, made from cardboard, on the other. “Lieutenant,” he said, “you are now the junior mechanic in this shop. You’ll be working under the direction of Specialist Jones Monday and Friday mornings and with Specialist Smith, our records clerk, afternoons until you’ve mastered logbooks and requisitions. There is your toolbox.” I performed preoperations checks, lubes, and spark plug changes; pulled engine packs, broke track, and replaced track pads, shocks, and road wheels; and made out req-

uisitions and fi lled in logbooks — all under the watchful eyes of my enlisted specialists. A few weeks later, the battalion com- mander arrived unannounced in the motor pool. I was under a jeep replacing an oil pan, and he kicked my boot sole de- manding, “Where’s the motor offi cer?” “Right here, sir,” I replied, rolling out

from under the jeep on my creeper. “What are you doing, Caine?” he asked. “Learning my job, sir,” I explained.

“Once I’ve done every task here, I’ll know how long each takes to do, what tools and parts it requires, and what defi nes accept- able performance. If it takes a mechanic longer to do, or the result doesn’t meet standards, I’ll know there’s a problem. I can schedule work more eff ectively and supervise with greater confi dence.”

humility He snorted and walked off . The next

week, a new battalion policy was distrib- uted and the other company motor offi cers showed up in coveralls lugging toolboxes. The lesson stuck with me: the power of experiential learning under the guidance of those who do the job every day.

MO

— Bruce T. “Woody” Caine is a retired Army lieutenant colonel and a Life Member of MOAA. He lives in Mount Pleasant, S.C. For submission information, see page 6.

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