Operation Hood Strike 26 Strengthens Total Army Readiness

FORT HOOD, Texas — Soldiers from the Active Duty Army, Army Reserve, Texas Army National Guard, and Canadian Armed Forces trained together during Operation Hood Strike 26, held May 13–16, 2026, at Fort Hood, Texas.

The training exercise focused on wet-gap crossing operations, mobility support, and combat engineering missions designed to strengthen interoperability between units and across the Total Army force.

“This exercise is not just for the Reserves, it’s for the whole Army,” said U.S. Army Col. Adam Rasmussen, commander of the 420th Engineer Brigade, U.S. Army Reserve. “We are partnering with Active Duty, National Guard, and we even have a multinational component from the Canadian Army.”

Participating units included the 341st and 401st Multi-Role Bridge Companies, assigned to the 961st Engineer Battalion, 420th Engineer Brigade; the 671st Multi-Role Bridge Company, assigned to the 321st Engineer Battalion, 301st Maneuver Enhancement Brigade; the 43rd Multi-Role Bridge Company, assigned to the 20th Engineer Battalion, 36th Engineer Brigade, III Armored Corps; the 36th Combat Aviation Brigade, assigned to the 36th Infantry Division, Texas Army National Guard; and the Canadian Armed Forces 5th Combat Engineer Regiment.

Throughout the exercise, Soldiers conducted bridge, raft, and sling load operations while coordinating movement of personnel, vehicles, and equipment across Lake Belton. Units established launch sites, secured crossing points, and rehearsed movement under simulated combat conditions.

Col. Justin Pritchard, commander of the 36th Engineer Brigade, III Armored Corps said the training reflects how Army engineers are expected to operate during large-scale combat operations.

“We’re here augmenting our Reserve partners because that’s how we’ll fight,” Pritchard said. “We’re a total Army, we’re a total Engineer Regiment, and we will fight with them in wartime, so we have to train with them here in peacetime.”

Wet-gap crossings remain one of the most complex operations combat engineers perform because they require synchronized planning, security, maneuver support, and sustainment efforts.

“A gap crossing is the most difficult operation that our force would have to do,” Pritchard said. “It’s not just the bridging, it’s the support system. This is the lifeblood of projecting combat power in a real environment.”

Capt. Bruce Burgener, commander of the 43rd Multi-Role Bridge Company, explained how his Soldiers used an improved ribbon bridge raft system to rehearse assault crossings capable of transporting armored vehicles.

“We built a seven-float raft so we can stress our systems and conduct assault crossings for Abrams tanks,” Bergener said. “This is built at the start of a wet-gap crossing operation when we want to push an assault force across to the far-side objective.”

Leaders across the exercise emphasized how training alongside Active Duty, Reserve, National Guard, and multinational partners improves communication and builds trust between units that may operate together in future combat operations.

“Every time we get reps and sets together, we learn from each other,” Pritchard said. “We may train differently, but we bring it back to doctrine so that when we have to fight together, we know exactly what we’re talking about.”

(U.S. Army article by Spc. Breanna Bradford)