Its developed by a former nco and software engineer. The author invites the reader to be part of his men seeing their unique attributes and sometimes quick end of life or permanent disfigurement. Using a lean style and a sense of pacing drawn from the tautest of novels, mcdonough has produced a gripping account of his first command, a u. The unit in the movie platoon is identified at the beginning and end of the film as bravo company, 3rd battalion, 22nd infantry, 25th infantry division. One platoons descent into madness in iraqs triangle of death. The difference in the communities nswaf is refreshing. Now retired from active duty, mcdonough lives with his family in tallahassee, florida. Once a week, have a formal sit down meeting with your platoon sergeant and squad leaders. Initial counseling must include goalsexpectations for most. Platoon leaders philosophy orders line of duty equal opportunity officer candidate school preparation warrior leadership course preparation useful vocabulary recommended army readings survey sop chain of command sexual harrassment us repneo warden.
Stephan ambrose, the outstanding historian of americas role in europe in world war ii, states that 70% of the casualties were sustained by 10% of the troops, the likes of company g and its counterparts. Sergeant major of the army dan dailey is putting together a professional reading list, and hes asked soldiers for their ideas and. I knew that there is a movie called platoon based on the vietnam war and decided to give the novel a try. A military theorist who has helped shape the postcold war armys thinking, he is also the author of the defense of hill 781 and the limits of glory. In the army, counseling is an almost daily requirement. Much credit goes to 1lt ginther for clearly learning the right lessons as a young leader. If you are backbriefing your commander, and your platoon sergeant is squared away, bring him. A remarkable memoir of small unit leadership and the coming of age of a young soldier in combat in vietnam. I would say that in the regular air force, and afsoc, acc, and aetc 1st hand experience in all not nearly enough focus is placed on leadership, and most certainly not on the enlisted side. A remarkable memoir of smallunit leadership and the coming of age of a young soldier in combat in vietnam. That unit was commanded at the time by captain robert hemphill, now lieutenant colonel, retired. I had come across this book while book hunting in a second hand book shop.
Tell your psg what you want to happen and trust that hell get it done. R eading a post on the military leader one day, a question reminded me of a critical leadership lesson i learned from my time in command. British soldiers reading some leadership books leaders are readers. Learn some secret advice to help you develop a cohesive team of trained warriors. On the battlefield, platoon leaders and sergeants build their platoons. Dye, a vietnem veteran himself, and is based on the screenplay by oliver stone. Backbrief your platoon sergeant before you talk to your commander. You will be busy as a platoon commander, especially a new one. This is especially true with communications equipment. I n his 2014 article, army first lieutenant scott ginther related 20 lessons from his path from west point cadet to platoon leader in afghanistan. I guess what im getting at is, what do you have in your leaders book that is helpful to have other. The platoon leader receives orders from his her commander and passes them down to there platoon. Lessons from platoon leader by james mcdonough dzone agile. Books i recommend that every lieutenant reads include platoon leader by.
This is a thoughtful book of a platoon leaders time in vietnam. The film is about a newly commissioned infantry lieutenant who arrives in vietnam to take over his first platoon. The platoon sergeants duty is to get the troops beans and bullets as its commonly referred to as. Have an agenda, and use the company training meeting information as a.
If he repeatedly shows that he cant get it done, bring your squad leaders in to compensate for his short comings. James mcdonough graduated from west point and served in vietnam as an infantry platoon leader in the legendary 173d airborne brigade. Line 44 platoon 342 may 26, 1976 to august 9, 1976. Leadership books the army leader practical leadership advice. There are many versions of the leader book both in official army publications and on the commercial market.
Must complete two sixweek training sessions at ocs. The final mission of dawn of war ii has your small platoon of space marines and imperial guardsmen holding off thousands of tyranids while poisoning the hive mind until gabriel angelos and the chapter fleet arrive. The scout platoon sop is available on computer disk in microsoft word for windows and ascii formats. You have dropped behind german lines and must use your platoon leaders to command squads through various missions. I read platoon leader by james mcdonough because it was a firsthand account of a rookie leader in the vietnam war. In wartime combat, the platoon leader dirrectly commands the platoon. It is narrated by mcdonough in first person view and tells of his story in the vietnam war as a lieutenant in command of 2nd platoon, bravo company, 4th battalion, 503rd infantryairborne plot introduction. My best opd was conducted at the simulation center in preparation for our national training center ntc rotation. A scout platoon leaders perspective on the complex threat. Whether its meant to guide a soldiers growth, document career milestones, or correct improper behavior, it can be a challenge to find the words to adequately describe a soldiers performance and potential. Army leaders book lb is designed to keep track of your soldiers important, but nonsensitive information in order to better lead them and maintain their. One of the sequels actually explains why it thinks this, turning it into a brick joke.
This makes him a target, so he should appear very much like a rifleman. The way platoon leaders and sergeants work together as a team can cause the. One minute a communications check with the platoon leader is successful and the next minute you cant reach anybody. Platoon officers were the most expendable as the enemy worked to knock off the leaders. Platoon leader is a 1988 cannon films film set in the vietnam war and directed by aaron norris. Had clint romesha depicted the soldiers at keating as a collection of steelyeyed warriors, their feat would. The marine corps platoon leaders course plc is an alternative for nrotc or ocs for college students who wish to become commissioned officers in the united states marine corps. The platoon leader is the most senior leader in the platoon. New platoon leader ebook for platoon leaders in the army national guard and army reserves. Army soldiers is an honor you should not take lightly.
Army nco leaders book item covering team squad section and platoon training deployment sequence of events suggested u. Colonel hemphill considers platoon to be its directors own artistic interpretation of events that occurred in his infantry company. The trapped indigenous people along with the gore and horror of war. The busy platoon commanders reading list grounded curiosity.
Utilize him and your squad leaders as often as you can. Chain of command goes from the platoon leader directly to the squad leaders. College students can enroll in plc when they are freshmen, sophomores, or juniors in college. There are several questions on what joes think we can improve on as a platoon as well as. His platoon is charged with manning an outpost next to the village of truong lam. Platoon leaders class plc the platoon leaders class is the most common path to becoming a marine officer. He is the person everyone else looks to for orders and sets the uniform standards. Platoon leader is a noncard driven, non combat results table system that utilizes sectors and zones to regulate possible german activation. The whale has an entire internal monologue, but the bowl of petunias just thinks oh no, not again.
Navy spec warfare platoon leader course shadowspear. The israeli defense forces idf has traditionally put heavy emphasis on junior leaders, at the platoon and company level c. Navy chiefs own the culture, set the standard, and are the tactical leaders. Leadership and unit effectiveness in combat infantry platoons. Like many who were in either iraq, afghanistan, or both, i often read books about the wars reluctantly, because it is hard to capture the essence of the experience. I created a miniature online platoon climate survey in order for me to know what the platoons strengths arefind out which squadssquad leaders are rated highest internally by joe. The dawn of war intro, in which a squad of space marines with heavy bolters charges into melee with orks. The army leader book iphone app helps leaders take better care of their soldiers. The lowstress way to find your next platoon leader job opportunity is on simplyhired. Also, requiring squad leaders to build and maintain leader books.
Discover how to be an effective, excellent and efficient leader while balancing your family time, civilian job and military career. A young officer, just out of west point is sent to vietnam, where the men dont respect him until he gets wounded and returns to be a wiser soldier and a better commander. There are over 36 platoon leader careers waiting for you to apply. The platoon leader and platoon sergeant are two of the most important leaders in the u.
The future platoon leaders, who will be commissioned later in may, gathered in their classroom to gain insight about leadership and army life from. This estimate is based upon 76 us army platoon leader salary reports provided by employees or estimated based upon statistical methods. Counsel your platoon sergeant and squad leaders after every training event. Commanders and platoon leaders are authorized to modify the sop and publish their own versions, incorporating tactics, techniques, and procedures to reflect the unique sop requirements of their platoons and higher headquarters. Mcdonough, chronicles the authors experiences as an officer in the vietnam war from 197071. It read, when was the last time you heard a unit commander ask for feedback, consider the input, publicly admit hes wrong, and change his opinion given that i have a vivid example of being humbled while in command, i felt compelled to share my story. Platoon sergeants mentor future platoon leaders article. The commanding officer 1st battalion, royal australian regiments reading list is one of few that is broken into recommendations for various rank bands and explains why each book is present. One of the wayside school stories involved a new student in miss jewels class turning out to be a dead rat hidden under a pile of raincoats.
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