720th’s Martinez becomes NMNG’s first “senior gunner’ graduate from new Army course

By Joseph Vigil, Chief of Public Affairs, NMNG

SANTA FE, N.M. – Staff Sgt. Fabian Martinez is the New Mexico Army National Guard’s first graduate of the Army’s new senior gunner course for sustainment type units. He was coined and recognized by Maj. Gen. Ken Nava, the Adjutant General of New Mexico, on August 25, 2020, for completing this new, tough, grueling course conducted by the U.S. Army Reserves.

Martinez serves as a squad leader for the 720th Transportation Company and works full time in Range Operations as a range control officer.

The three-week senior gunner course, held at Fort Hunter Liggett, Calif., is a new multi-component platform gunnery training course developed by master gunners who saw a need for trained platform gunnery experts – not only the division level but the brigade and battalion levels as well.

The training is designed to produce senior gunners who can standardize gunnery courses for non-combat arms units, strengthening a training gap in areas of convoy protection and base defense operations.

The fast-paced, 168-hour course focuses on crew-served platform gunnery and challenges its students with in-depth classroom instruction, long days on weapons ranges and dedicating countless hours to late-night studying. Graduates from the inaugural and other earlier classes described it as a rigorous, intense and mentally challenging course.

“Congratulation to Staff Sgt. Fabian Martinez for graduating from this tough, new course,” said Nava. “He is a pathfinder for the 720th Transportation Company and the New Mexico National Guard. Fabian is going to take what he learned and teach some of our other Soldiers this new platform when he completes his deployment.”

Martinez said the 22 day course, specifically designed for sustainment MOS’s that we have here in the NMNG, grades with a tough 90 percent test rate which resulted in a 48 percent attrition rate for his class.

“During week one we took three exams,” said Martinez. “Week two consisted of six exams and you must score a 100 percent on weapons. In phase three, you prepare a unit training plan for a brigade-size element on a pass or fail basis and if you fail, you go home. Then you move to live-fire weapons, crew leader, tower and range operations, and accountability of ammunition and weapons.”

Additionally, Martinez said graduating from the course has enhanced his confidence and sharpened his focus on his military career.

“The course has definitely helped me improve personally and motivated me for college,” he said.

Martinez also said he looks forward to training other fellow Soldiers when he returns from his deployment and recognizes there is lots of work to be done in assisting our brigades and battalions in implementing the senior gunner program.

Staff Sgt. Jason Obert, senior gunner, U.S. Army Reserve Command who served as Martinez’s course/class manager, previously stated in an article published for the U.S. Army Reserves after the inaugural class in February, that graduates of this course are going to be in demand by several units.

“This course combines being a weapons expert with being a planning expert,” said Obert. “When students graduate, they are able to execute their unit’s gunnery program to standard.”