After Shabbat ended we went to the field to start firing real ammunition from the tank. This is our big week which culminates with us loading a firing a real 120 mm shell from the tank. On Sunday we did a quick exercise just to feel what its like to fire real ammunition from the MAG and 0.5" machine gun. Firing from the MAG was awesome - you just put the butt of the gun to the side of your helmet and hold the trigger as you start to spray bullets. It was very different and easier to fire the MAG when it was attached to the tank than when we were out in the shooting range where the butt of the gun was pounding against your shoulder and your body absorbs all the energy. We were shooting at targets down below and as you hold down the trigger you see all the dust kick up from the bullets. It was even more fun at night when you fired the tracer bullets which light up when you shoot them to help you see at night.
Aside from the fact tanks are awesome they are a pain in the ass to clean and prepare. Before we do anything on the tank we have to check everything. There is also a midday checkup and an end of day cleanup and post-preparation (yes, I am aware that is an oxymoron, but believe me that it exists). There is also an end of week cleaning of the tank which reminds you that all fun things come at a cost. The enjoyment of cleaning is inversely proportional to how much fun we have during the week. The more fun we have, the dirtier the tanks and weapons get, and therefore the harder it is to clean. So what kind of tools do you equip yourself with to clean tanks and guns? Toothbrushes and screwdrivers. And that's just the tip of the iceberg.
I had the test during the day and again at night. In order for everyone to complete it in the same day we woke up at 220AM. By 4AM we were preparing the tank for the day. Once the sun rose I waited and waited for my hour-ish long test. I realized that tests are much more fun when they involve firing ammunition from tanks as opposed to arranging formulas and banging my head against a desk in frustration. A helmet would have come in use then as well. After everyone finished the test we sat around and did nothing until the sun went down so we could do it all over again at night - which made for a really long day. The first 45 minutes was without ammo constantly loading and unloading the 50ish pound shells from inside the tank to jumping up and reaching for the MAG out side the tank. After less than 5 minutes I was already completely soaked with sweat pouring down my face. Aside from the fact that its not easy work and clearly you have to load the shells more quickly than as fast as possible it gets very hot. Firstly we are out in the middle of the desert. Secondly, it was exceptionally hot this week for February - over 30 degrees. I'm also in a tank so it's always hotter inside than outside the tank. On top of the weather conditions you have the uncomfortably hot dress attire: A one piece jumpsuit (in place of the 2 piece uniform), a thick shrapnel proof vest and on top of that my equipment vest that holds the ammo to my M16, helmet and gloves. The last 10 minutes of practicing without ammo was done with a gas mask on, and thus made it more hot, difficult to see and exponentially harder to breathe. The not seeing in the gas mask was not that bad because I am already used to not seeing anything in the dark. At night you set the light so that you can just start to see things. The test was very similar to what we did the day before. We didn't fire real shells but test shells that fire 20mm bullets instead because the IDF has no money. When you fire the bullet from the cannon you hear a click which is very uninteresting and uneventful.
After I completed the test at night in accordance to the IDF I am now prepared for war, and that I have been given the bare minimum amount of training needed to go to war if need be. I still have 4 more months of training before I am ready to really start guarding the borders and be fully trained, but apparently now I am ready, however I beg to differ. But since when do I know what is best? I'm just a trainee.
The last 2 months of learning my job as a loader has come to the pinnacle where we get to fire a real shell from the cannon with all 4 crew members in the tank together. Ironically it was much more awesome to stand on my chair in the tank looking outside through binoculars while the tank 7 meters away from me fired its shell. We were listening in on the radio so we knew what was going on and when the tanks were firing. When the tank next to me fired, there was a loud boom, there was dust everywhere and the ground shook - it was awesome. Then it was my tanks turn. The shell was loaded, and ready to be fired, I was behind my safety bar and just waiting for it to happen. The commander shouted 'fire!' and then all of a sudden - BOOM! The shell was gone, and in a split second the cannon recoiled with a force of 70 tons less than an arms length from my face. Surprisingly I didn't feel the tank shake like when the tanks next to me fired, and the boom wasn't as loud as when I had my head outside the tank, but it was still awesome.
We returned back to base on Wednesday at lunchtime and for the next day and a half cleaned the tanks and barracks. As I was cleaning one of the MAGs I managed to somehow misplace one of the pins. One of the things you have to be aware of is not to lose parts of the gun, because then they don't work. For the M16 there is something called the Shabbat pin, which means if you lose it they make you stay shabbat as a punishment. On the MAG there is the pin chodesh (month) basically meaning your stuck on base for a month if you lose it. The good news is that I didn't lose that pin. The bad news is that the pin I lost doesn't have a name because nobody ever loses it because nobody ever takes that pin out. As we were cleaning up and putting the MAG back together I realized it didn't work, and the commander came over and looked at and took out one of the pieces and asked where is the pin that is supposed to hold this. I realized at that moment that I was completely screwed and there was no way in hell I was going to find this pin that I didn't even know I lost because it wasn't something I was supposed to take apart. He started yelling at me asking me why I took it apart because I wasn't supposed to. I told him I swear I didn't take it apart and I have no idea how I lost it. He said find 2 friends and find that pin - your not leaving here until you do. Thankfully my friend found the pin within 5 minutes in a tank of diesel (which was my first guess of where it might have been because that is what you clean the gun in). I gave him a big hug because I don't know what would have happened to me if I didn't find that pin. Within 5 minutes after I found the pin the same commander called everyone over to explain that someone had already lost a pin, and then the best thing that could have happened happened. He then held up the exact same pin that I had lost and said that somebody else had ALSO lost the pin. I had a big smile on my face because then he knew that I wasn't the only fool that managed to lose it and that it couldn't have been my fault.
Next week is the last week of basic training where we have our final masa (25 km) where on completion we get to rid ourselves of our green trainee beret and finally get our black beret which identifies us as shiryonairim! After that we start our advanced training phase of training, which hopefully starts with a full week off from the army! Either I have a week off starting on the 25th or the week after. I still have no idea, so I'm not able to make any plans yet, which is a real pain in the ass.
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