EABestSquad

U.S. Army Europe and Africa Best Squad Competition

US Army Europe Best Warrior Logo

Teams from across U.S. Army Europe and Africa will meet at Grafenwoehr Training Area, Germany, to compete for the title of Best Squad, July 31 - August 9, 2024.

The event tests the squad’s effectiveness, communication, and overall cohesion, as well as the individual Soldiers’ technical and tactical proficiency, endurance, and fortitude.

This competitive training event exercises a full range of Squad-Level Skills; highlighting professional excellence and knowledge to determine the command’s top teams.

Winners of this competition will advance to represent U.S. Army Europe and Africa at the Army Best Squad Competition.

One noncommissioned officer and one junior Soldier will be selected out of the final winning squad to be named the Army’s Best NCO and Best Soldier of the Year, respectively.

For more imagery, videos and news visit our DVIDS feature page at: U.S. Army Europe and Africa Best Squad Competition

Videos

Video by Spc. Gavin Hardy

Broll: 173rd Airborne paratroopers conduct weapons qualification in Morocco at African Lion 2025

U.S. Army Southern European Task Force, Africa

May 24, 2025 | 1:50

U.S. Army Soldiers assigned to Destined Company, 2nd Battalion, 503rd Infantry Regiment, 173rd Airborne Brigade, conduct expert level weapons qualification at Cap Draa, Tan Tan, Morocco, May 16, 2025, during African Lion 2025 (AL25). Weapons qualification in austere, multinational environments enhances muscle memory and builds lethality for future operations. AL25, the largest annual military exercise in Africa, brings together over 50 nations, including seven NATO allies and 10,000 troops to conduct realistic, dynamic and collaborative training in an austere environment that intersects multiple geographic and functional combatant commands. Led by U.S. Army Southern European Task Force, Africa (SETAF-AF) on behalf of the U.S. Africa Command, AL25 takes place from April 14 to May 23, 2025, across Ghana, Morocco, Senegal, and Tunisia. This large-scale exercise will enhance our ability to work together in complex, multi-domain operations—preparing forces to deploy, fight and win. (U.S. Army Reserve video by Spc. Gavin Hardy)

Shot List:
(00:00:00) LONG SHOT: Range opening shot
(00:00:07:00) CLOSE SHOT: Soldier grabbing ammo
(00:00:14:00) CLOSE SHOT: Soldier loading ammo into mag
(00:00:21:00) MEDIUM SHOT: Soldier shooting in prone for zero
(00:00:28:12) MEDIUM SHOT: Soldier checking zero groupings
(00:00:34:01) CLOSE SHOT Soldier making adjustments to ACOG
(00:00:41:01) CLOSE SHOT: Soldier shooting in prone
(00:00:46:01) CLOSE SHOT Soldier checking groupings after passing
(00:00:53:01) LONG SHOT: Soldier saying “weapons free weapons free”
(00:01:00:20) MEDIUM SHOT Soldier loading mag into M4
(00:01:07:20) LONG SHOT: Soldier shooting prone with targets being hit in the back
(00:01:14:20) MEDIUM SHOT Soldier shooting prone in qual
(00:01:20:20) CLOSE SHOT Soldiers grip on M4A1
(00:01:25:20) LONG SHOT Soldiers shooting in the knee position
(00:01:31:20) LONG SHOT Targets being shot
(00:01:38:20) LONG SHOT Soldier shooting from the standing position
(00:01:44:20) CLOSE SHOT Soldier Trigger finger
(00:01:50:20) MEDIUM SHOT Soldiers in a group huddle

Tags

multinational exerciseAfricanLion173rd IBCTJoint Service ExerciseskysoldiersStrongerTogether