Preparing and training to successfully confront and defeat threats to this nation is at the core of the training each soldier undergoes.

For the past nine years, the Army has conducted combat operations in Iraq and Afghanistan.  In prosecuting the Global War on Terror (GWOT), commanders and their soldiers have concentrated on counter-insurgency, or COIN, operations connected to fighting an asymmetrical war.

The Army has not, however, lost sight of the fact that it could be called upon to fight a conventional war, a conflict that demands that each soldier be proficient across a wide spectrum of operations.

A start point for confronting any conventional threat begins with weapons proficiency.

"The weapons training we're getting today allows us to hone our skills," commented Sgt. Guy Mikesell, Bravo Company, 296th Brigade Support Battalion, 3rd Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division during M4 training in the Engagement Skills Trainer (EST) 2000.

Housed in the Battle Command Training Center on JBLM - Main, the EST 2000 is a technological wonder that gives soldiers weapons training in a virtual environment that presents soldiers with different scenarios.

"What we do here is sustain and improve skills," commented Gavino Estrada, the senior instructor at EST 2000.

An Army and Marine trained sniper, Estrada commanded instant respect.  The 20 soldiers from Bravo Company gathered around him and listened intently.

With the training schedule the 296th BSB has ahead of it, they needed to.

In preparing for a scheduled National Training Center (NTC) training in mid-2011, the leadership of the 296th tasked the soldiers of Bravo Company with undergoing the virtual training in order to train the rest of the battalion.

Estrada provided the soldiers with first-rate instruction, something that was not lost on Mikesell.

"We've got an important task in training other soldiers in the battalion on live-fire ranges early next year," he said.

After zeroing their M4s, the soldiers engaged targets from 50 to 300 meters away in the prone supported, prone unsupported and kneeling positions.

Throughout the training, Estrada monitored each soldier's progress by watching two computer screens.

"This technology allows me to see and then critique what each soldier does," he commented.

At times, Estrada stepped away from the technology, picked up a M4 and pointed  out to the soldiers the finer techniques of putting each simulated round on the target.

"Trust the weapons system," Estrada told several soldiers "and it won't let you down."

As the training came to an end, Mikesell seemed pleased.

"This is excellent, and I'm looking forward to the training ahead of us."