Cadet Battalion Cdr

Fellow Cadets,

I have been incredibly humbled to serve as the Cadet Battalion Commander of the Warrior Training Battalion (WTB) at Texas A&M Army ROTC for the Spring Semester.

During our time this semester we have accomplished quite a bit. We completed the Rudders Winter FTX as well as the OAL FTX for the MS4’s. This allowed us to further develop our skills as leaders and soldiers. The Battalion completed the Army Combat Fitness Test (ACFT) at the beginning and the end of the semesters. I am happy to report that the overall scores across all companies at the end of the Semester drastically improved. We completed Megalab at the regular program level leading to an improvement of soldiering skills and leadership for A, B, and C companies while Rudders Rangers completed their annual Best Ranger Competition where they selected the bests of the best to compete in the Sandhurst Competition at West Point, NY. The Ranger Challenge team did well. The Battalion finished its training during the cumulative Spring Field Training Exercise at Camp Bullis.

On the Corps of Cadet’s side of the house, we recently finished March to the Brazos which is an 18 mile walk (unless you’re a zip!) to the Brazos river in support of local charities. It symbolizes the passing on of rank by each respective class year to the next. We finished the year by conducting Final Review which is the seniors last time in their coveted senior boots. The Corps forms up and performs a pass in review before returning to the dorms to don next years uniform. For the juniors that means boots, and for the seniors that means outfit T-shirts and boots to cheer on their classmates.

As I transition into the Regular Army as an Aviation officer, CDT Jacob Mitchell from Company B-2 will replace me. As Jacob is striving to branch Aviation, I can promise the Battalion another year of successful leadership under him.

The majority of the MS4 class will commission on May 14. A special event has been set up by the University and GEN Miley, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, will be our commissioning officer. The entire class is incredibly excited and humbled by this honor. We are looking forward to the end here shortly.

Once again it has been an absolute honor to serve as the Battalion Commander and I am incredibly proud of each member of the battalion. Watching each person’s respective growth through the semester has been an amazing experience.

Very Respectfully,

Zach Browne. 2LT, Aviation

The AGGIE WARBATT is a quarterly publication published by Texas A&M University Army ROTC Program at College Station, Texas.

Professor of Military Science

Col. Blake A. Connors

Photographer /Art Director / Editor

Lt. Col. Lan T. Dalat

Director of Recruitment /Marketing

Mr. David R. Manning

Chief Military Science Instructor

Sergeant Major Derrick Solomon

Cadet Battalion Commander

Cadet Lt. Col. Zachary Browne

Battalion Public Relations Ms. Christina Rose

DISCLOSURE

The AGGIE WARBATT is a newsletter produced for members of the U.S. Army ROTC. The contents of the AGGIE WARBATT are not the official views of, or endorsed by, the U.S. Government, Department of Defense, Department of the Army, or the 1st Brigade, US Army Cadet Command. It is published quarterly in accordance with AR 25-30.

Aggies Competes in Sandhurst Competition 2021

Story by Cadet Katie Humphreys ‘23

After conducting the obstacle course the next morning, the competition’s grueling culmination, dubbed ‘The Crucible’, took place on Saturday evening. In the end, TAMU cadets embodied the spirit of the 12th man; finishing 12th of 44.

Dylan Ledman, Ranger Challenge Team Captain, acknowledged the struggles his team faced at the competition. “I think we were very physically challenged— West Point put on a really great competition here. Our brigade has its own surprises in its Ranger Challenges too, but there were some real gut checks out there in the Sandhurst competition,” he said.

Ledman also reflected on what teams need to bring to the table to prevail at such demanding challenges. “You need dedication, to be able to listen to the rest of your team and believe in yourself— that’s all it takes.