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NGA DevCorps puts land navigation skills to test

 Nov. 22, 2022

 NGA Media Relations
 Office of Corporate Communications
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NGA DevCorps puts land navigation skills to test

Lisa Simmons, NGA DevCorps software developer, practices plotting points Nov. 3 at Jefferson Barracks, St. Louis. (Photo by Darrell Melrose, NGA Office of Corporate Communications)
Lisa Simmons, NGA DevCorps software developer, practices plotting points Nov. 3 at Jefferson Barracks, St. Louis. (Photo by Darrell Melrose, NGA Office of Corporate Communications)

ST. LOUIS – Forty team members of the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency DevCorps broke out their compass’ and protractors, and shot their azimuths while participating in the second annual land navigation field training exercise in St. Louis, Nov. 3.

The exercise was conceived by DevCorps Branch Chief Rodney “RJ” Mosquito, and conducted by Army ROTC cadets, in coordination with Missouri Army National Guard UH60 Blackhawk helicopter pilots, providing air transportation to and from Weldon Springs Army Reserve Center.

The day began with the DevCorps team gathering at the Jefferson Barracks historical site for the classroom portion of the course, where cadets took turns teaching DevCorps members how to use land navigation tools, how to read a map, and learning their pace count by determining how many steps an individual must take, on average, to cover 100 meters. 

After all participants got a good pace count, three Blackhawks descended upon Jefferson Barracks parade grounds to scoop up the DevCorps team and cadets, and inject them into the notional mission awaiting them at Weldon Springs.

After a short flight, participants exited the choppers, and broke up into small teams to begin shooting azimuths to their navigation points. When asked about conceptualization of the land navigation exercise, Mosquito stated he was, “trying to discover a way for software developers to gain the perspective of our Warfighters by walking a mile in their shoes.” 

DevCorps employees arrive at Weldon Springs Army Reserve Center via Missouri National Guard UH60 Blackhawk helicopters to participate in a Nov. 3 land navigation focused field training exercise. (Photo by Kari Siltz, NGA Office of Corporate Communications)
DevCorps employees arrive at Weldon Springs Army Reserve Center via Missouri National Guard UH60 Blackhawk helicopters to participate in a Nov. 3 land navigation focused field training exercise. (Photo by Kari Siltz, NGA Office of Corporate Communications)

In light of his own military experience, Mosquito believed that this would best be accomplished by teaching DevCorps software developers to navigate using a map and compass.

During the classroom portion of the day, Cadets warned that sometimes the true nature of land features cannot be captured on the topographical maps typically used during land navigation.

Army Lt. Col. Ray Kuderka, professor of military science for the Gateway Battalion, related a story of a Joint Special Operations Command mission in Afghanistan to take out an enemy encampment. According to Kuderka, the mission had been planned using all of the best maps, and technology available, but the mission was scrubbed due to an unforeseen treacherous landscape, which did not show up on available maps, or imagery.

“This story clearly illustrates why geospatial intel products from DevCorps, and NGA must be timely, relevant and accurate” said Mosquito.

When asked what the participants got out of engaging in an event like this, most answered that it helped them understand customer’s needs. DevCorps Tech Lead Billy Collins said that “through the exercise, and the stories, it helps me understand that what we do (at NGA and DevCorps) really matters.”

ROTC cadet, and Little Rock, Ark. native Sarah Xie stated that the opportunity to teach DevCorps members “is a great opportunity for (cadets) to practice giving a briefing, and for honing our own land navigation skills.”

Mosquito summarized the day saying, “this event continues to demonstrate how the NGA workforce can effectively [work with] local, state, and academic institutions, in order to promote teamwork and knowledge transfer in the furtherance of our geospatial mission.”