DEVENS — The last time Chris Considine visited Fort Devens, he was there to suit up in pads and helmet for Pop Warner football tryouts.
Last week, Considine, a Westford resident, wore a different helmet, this one with camouflage.
The 1999 Westford Academy graduate’s uniform bore the insignia of the Army’s 10th Mountain Division.
And he was heavily armed.
His job? Protect a diplomat from sniper fire on his way to a meeting with an Iraqi general and his staff.
Considine, 27, was one of a dozen soldiers in a role-playing scenario in urban protection training at Devens. Considine and his unit will, “in the near future,” ship out to Iraq.
For the first time, the Massachusetts State Police STOP (Special Tactical Operations) team spent a week training 36 of the 10th Mountain Division’s Personal Security Detail on the finer points of urban protection for civilian and military dignitaries.
For the first time, the Massachusetts State Police STOP (Special Tactical Operations) team spent a week training 36 of the 10th Mountain Division’s Personal Security Detail on the finer points of urban protection for civilian and military dignitaries.
STOP, with 19 full-time members, trained the soldiers in personal security details, sharpshooting, special driving tactics and close-range defensive tactics.
Col. Mark Delaney, superintendent of the Massachusetts State Police, said the training was requested by officials at Fort Drum several months ago and the week involved “very, very technical training.”
The drill was staged on a crisp, sunny morning in a courtyard where, in the glory days of Fort Devens, Army troops once drilled on grass that is now paved over. The soldiers, said officials, did not know what was coming.
Three Humvees pulled up to a three-story building that had already been cleared by a security detail. Rifle-carrying soldiers peered from the top of the first and third vehicles. The vehicles stopped, the soldiers exited and checked the area. Considine, the team leader of the first vehicle, stood at the front of the Humvee, his left hand on the passenger-side grill, his right cradling a black M-4 carbine, another weapon strapped to his right leg.
As the dignitary was ushered to the steps, just below an awning, a shot sliced through the quiet.
The soldiers fell into a semi-crouch, surrounding the dignitary. They pushed him into the middle vehicle, which sped away. Then the other two sped off. The sniper was about 50 yards away, on the second-floor balcony of an abandoned barracks, wearing a ski mask.
None of the soldiers spotted him.
It didn’t matter. The soldiers’ first priority was to protect their charge.
Their job is not about engaging the enemy, but “keeping the assigned person safe,” said Sgt. 1st Class Edward Schlottman.
“No one is asking us to be an organic sandbag,” but the job is about safekeeping the subject.
With terrorism still festering in Iraq, congested urban areas can become a mass of humanity and offer many a nest for snipers.
The State Police protect visiting dignitaries frequently, said Maj. Timothy Alben. Recently, they ushered an Israeli foreign minister through a visit to Cambridge and Boston.
The training began at the 10th Division’s home base, Fort Drum, N.Y., according to Army Master Sgt. Jason Dutt. They know the turf there. The idea, said Dutt, was to remove the soldiers form their “comfort area” and add to their “stress level” while training.
Michael Dominarski, a State Police lieutenant, wore two uniforms. He is STOP’s commander, but is now serving on active duty with the Army National Guard, where he is a first sergeant with the military police.
State Police Sgt. Aaron Washington, who ran the scenario, said the soldiers “did everything to meet the standards they needed to.” Considine never saw the sniper.
“Which means it was a good day for the sniper,” he said. “I thought it went really well.”
As a combat engineer four years into Army service, he served in Afghanistan in 2005 and 2006.
“This is totally different,” he said. “It’s a learning experience.”
