West Point cadet's tragic death reminds us of dangers beyond combat

The news was jarring. I live a short distance from the academy, and the accident took place off Route 293, near Camp Natural Bridge -- a popular running route among locals in the area. I frequently travel along that stretch, passing combat training facilities, cadet summer barracks, military small arms and ordnance ranges, an active duty troop cantonment area, and even the FBI New York Office's firearms range.

My family has close ties to the academy -- my father graduated in 1960. I followed in his footsteps, graduating in 1987. My nephew graduated with the class of 2013. And the surrounding community counts many active duty military members assigned to the academy as their neighbors and friends.

West Point is a crucible for America's military leadership; it has developed our nation's combat leaders since its founding in 1802. Its sacrosanct motto of "Duty, Honor, Country" continues to guide generations of men and women willing to tackle its challenges by joining the heralded "Long Gray Line."

The consequences of Thursday morning's tragedy were all the more devastating and difficult to grasp with the nation watching live television coverage of solemn observances of the 75th anniversary of the Allies' courageous 1944 D-Day invasion in Normandy, France.

The Supreme Allied Commander of that heroic effort was US Army 5-star General Dwight D. Eisenhower, West Point class of 1915. No doubt his class had trained in close proximity to the accident site. Ike certainly knew what it was like to lose soldiers in the service of our great nation.

Military training accidents are not an uncommon occurrence. In fact, in May of 2018, an article in Military.com highlighted an existing trend that identifies "on-duty deaths" (training accidents) as having exceeded "combat deaths." Lawmakers have weighed in on this perplexing development. Multiple factors affect these statistics, which cannot be evaluated out of context -- a single accident can widely skew the annual numbers of on-duty deaths, while a President's decision to escalate or de-escalate combat operations can certainly impact the number of deaths in combat zones.

For those choosing military service as a career, even beyond combat, the dangers are still abundant, as this accident reminds us. Training is designed to be rigorous and demanding. And while training techniques and scenarios have evolved over the decades, with a safety-first focus, live-fire exercises are intended to simulate combat conditions. Soldiers practicing "shoot, move, and communicate" skills have been struck and killed by live rounds. Airframes transporting troops -- whether planes or helicopters -- have crashed due to pilot error or equipment malfunction. But again, how does one train for actual combat without conducting the necessary maneuvers of soldiers and material that combat requires?

In a brief press conference in the wake of the accident, the academy's superintendent, Lieutenant General Darryl A. Williams, said the accident occurred while an active duty soldier was driving a group of cadets to a land navigation course.

West Point's 2019 graduation was held less than two weeks ago, and it is likely that the cadets and active duty soldiers involved in Thursday's catastrophe were participating in what West Point refers to as a "train-up" or "train the trainer" exercises. Rising "firsties" (seniors) and "cows" (juniors) train with active duty soldiers deployed in rotation to West Point for Cadet Field Training every summer, before incoming "plebes" (freshman) and "yearlings" (sophomores), arrive later in the summer.

Many of the soldiers assigned to summer training are combat veterans. Who better to provide guidance to the callow cadets who are preparing to be tomorrow's combat leaders?

While we mourn the tragic death of a cadet and await further details identifying the injured, it is important to recall the words most often attributed to another distinguished WWII hero and member of West Point's class of 1909, General George S. Patton Jr. He ruminated about how difficult to make the training for troops to be deployed to combat theaters. He understood that rigorous, demanding and dangerous training was not a luxury, but a necessity for those in the profession of arms, when he said: "The more you sweat in peace, the less you bleed in war."

On this, the 75th anniversary of the D-Day invasion, let's pray for all the injured cadets and soldiers. And to the cadet who perished while preparing for a career of service to the nation, we honor your life and legacy with the final strains of the West Point alma mater:

And when our work is done,

Our course on earth is run,

May it be said, 'Well Done;

Be Thou At Peace.'

E'er may that line of gray

Increase from day to day,

Live, serve, and die, we pray,

West Point, for thee.

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