Soldiers of the 20th Special Forces Group Military Intelligence Company (MICO) conducted a water jump at Green River Lake in Kentucky to enhance their proficiency in conducting airborne operations that require a water landing.
The training event was designed to ensure soldiers’ safety during such operations over water. Jumpmasters ensured that all soldiers had a thorough understanding of the jumping process, including the survival swimming required to avoid entanglement or entrapment beneath a parachute in the water. The soldiers made a total of four flights over the lake, with the only thing standing between them and a fatal fall being a pack full of fabric and rope secured to their backs – their parachutes. The soldiers’ families and locals gathered by the lakeshore to watch the training exercise. The training exercise was crucial to properly train and maintain proficiency in this skill, particularly as new soldiers arrive in the MICO from AIT.
