One Captain, One Country, One Team, and One Water Buffalo

Written by: Matt Thimble

“Hey sir, the hotel manager wants to know if we want to ride the bull?”

I opened the door to my room to find SFC Dougherty, the team’s senior non-commissioned officer, standing in the courtyard. I was certain that there had been some sort of miscommunication. 

Autonomy

Maneuver Advisor Team 5131 had been in Thailand for about six weeks. The team had just finished the frustrating gauntlet of getting to our partner Royal Thai Army (RTA) unit. 5131 had struggled to gain approval to enter Thailand due to its strict COVID-19 restrictions, completed a multi-week quarantine, gained US Embassy and RTA Headquarters approval to leave Bangkok, and completed initial link-up and coordination with our partner infantry battalion. 

One of the most striking aspects of being in the SFAB was the autonomy and trust placed in me as a junior officer. The concept of the 1st Battalion, 5th SFAB’s employment was to maximize presence and engagement in the INDOPACOM region under the motto of “one captain, one country, one team.” That meant that as a Captain team leader, I was the senior SFAB leader in Thailand, responsible for getting my twelve-person team into a country, meeting with senior partner military leaders, and determining how to effectively work with partners while meeting unit objectives. Teams were also responsible for identifying and completing country-specific training before employment (like visa requirements, region-specific immunizations, jungle training for south-east Asia vs cold weather survival for Mongolia). As a leader, I loved the opportunity and responsibility that the assignment offered.      

Working with the RTA

MAT 5131 agreed to partner with the RTA’s 1^st BN, 112^th Infantry Regiment. The general concept was for the team to integrate into this newly established Stryker unit, helping the battalion stand up and learn to employ its vehicles as they arrived from the US. From Monday to Friday each week we conducted physical training with the unit, worked with the battalion staff on their operations process, and trained companies on mounted and dismounted tactics. On weekends the team built classes and prepared for the next week’s events. 

Unlike deployments to Iraq or Afghanistan where Soldiers lived on defended military outposts, or rotational exercises where units arrive at barracks or field accommodations, SFAB teams on regional employments integrate with the culture of their partner force and live off the local economy. The team evaluated several lodging options following our planning conference at the RTA base and booked a suitable hotel recommended by a battalion staff officer. 

Back to the Bull

I walked outside of my hotel room to find most of the team assembled on the wooden deck that connected sections of the hotel. Next to the deck was the hotel manager, holding the nose ring of a large water buffalo next to a plow. I soon learned that the hotel used the buffalo to plow the small patches of open ground between sections of the hotel for rice planting, which was later cooked in the hotel restaurant the team ate in every day. I knew from the pre-employment cultural training the team received through the Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies how important rice cultivation and ceremonies were to Thai and south-east Asian societies. 

Overall, my experience in Thailand demonstrated how to operate in an uncertain environment within the intent of my higher headquarters, how to maintain focus and motivation within my team, and the importance of establishing trust and rapport with partners.