- 7 weeks ago
Mounted soldiers in the US Army Caisson Detachment support one of the military’s most sacred missions: transporting fallen service members to their final resting places inside Arlington National Cemetery. The casket is placed on a wagon, known as a caisson, and conveyed through the cemetery by three soldiers. Each soldier rides one horse and controls another with their right hand.
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00:02it's the US military's most sacred mission mounted army soldiers transport
00:10the remains of fallen service members to their final resting place in Arlington
00:16National Cemetery today only 27 soldiers are qualified for the role many start
00:26off with no riding experience to get here they have to endure more than four months of training
00:34if you keep riding two meters over left you end up in the wrong funeral and it all comes
00:40down to one final test instructors grade the riders form and posture and one wrong move could mean
00:51failure we went inside their training to find out what it takes to be a horse soldier in the US
01:01Army
01:02caisson detachment soldiers who passed the first 12 weeks of basic horsemanship training move on to
01:21the final phase six weeks of advanced instruction in Ocala Florida known as the horse capital of the
01:30world Army soldiers trained at live oak stud a 4,500 acre farm owned by the family of Chester Weber
01:39an
01:39heir to the Campbell's soup fortune so my great-grandfather started the Campbell's soup
01:44company I'm not a maker of soup other than as a hobby Weber is an accomplished equestrian
01:50athlete having won 23 national championships in the sport of foreign hand carriage driving
02:00in 2024 the Army hired Weber to assemble a world-class team to train the soldiers like their riding
02:09instructor Inga Kuhn thank you spot I want straight lines I need space between my horses I'm not happy if
02:18you turn too late you will bounce into each other too early won't hurt you too late will hurt you
02:24nice
02:25soft good that's because I'm German I grew up as a daughter of a horse trainer so I was riding
02:34before I was
02:35born I was always into horses my whole life send the line boys men are you with me good case
02:43on detachment
02:43candidates are selected based on their discipline composure and physical fitness most of the soldiers
02:50arrive with little or no experience with horses your work horse support no first time what's that like
02:58it was scary at first but now I get used to it all the training so turn turn now don't
03:05wait when we do it
03:06perfect and I want it perfect then the center line is gonna be between Roberts and Sims she's very strict
03:13and
03:13that's one thing I like about her because I don't want some trainer that's like not
03:17gonna tell me what I need to work on and she gets she's on my tail 24-7
03:22specialist Jamie Sims is the only woman in the squad what's that like um I I think it's kind of
03:29normal I was at my old companies I was the only female too so I kind of got used to
03:33it it kind of
03:35helped having like the trainers that are females where are you sims you are like two meters over to
03:41the left if you keep riding two meters over left you end up in the wrong funeral division
03:51we are starting with putting the boys into the correct posture and in the correct position and
03:58helping them finding balance in case if something happens a horse spook to the side or gets a little
04:04faster or slower that they don't get out of balance and when we achieve this we start to ride in
04:08sections
04:09so we ride behind each other and when they can do this we put them pairwise together and let them
04:13ride in
04:14information wait everybody needs to work together since this was the mistake you did from the
04:20beginning on we deleted this mistake totally you never did it again now you're doing it again I don't
04:27want it I give you four and a half from ten points that could be better a person like that
04:32they really do
04:33care about you they want you to succeed and you know look great on a horse so I don't blame
04:39her for
04:39being you know hard on us if a person really cares they're gonna be hard 23 year old sergeant Nick
04:44Cardenas joined the army in 2022 as a motor transport operator for joining case on I had zero force
04:52experience I knew nothing so I just started asking questions started seeing guys what they were doing
04:57on a daily basis and over time it just I started flowing like water you need to react quick quick
05:03quicker when the mistakes happen you pick it up when they come in you go okay good this is gonna
05:08be hard and maybe we're not gonna make it and but I learned now say chill it's gonna be fine
05:15I'm very
05:15confident they get all through and we'll be fine way better reward the horses say them all good they all
05:23good learning to ride one horse is challenging enough but the soldiers also train on a six horse hitch the
05:32formation that pulls the wagon carrying the casket known as the caisson okay oh when you're going
05:41left get over to the right when you're going right get over to the left okay always check your own
05:47shit
05:47I know it seems like that's not a problem through there but it looks bad so we always check your
05:53equipment to train soldiers on the caisson Chester Weber hired David Saunders who worked as a coachman for
06:00the British royal family I was Duke of Edinburgh's coachman I worked for the Queen and I was served a
06:06majesty's pleasure for 20 years I told you yesterday the horses have got to cuddle up against each other
06:10that the horses are green and the drivers are green the riders they've just learned to ride so it's all
06:16a magical mystery to lead if you don't give them enough room oh you're screwed okay gentlemen at your
06:22leisure follow me they have to be spatially aware because it's all about starting stopping and
06:29steering three golden rules of doing postillion in the postillion riding style each soldier rides one
06:37horse while guiding a second with their right hand good job riders train on both a smaller wagon and the
06:45longer caisson which requires much wider turns good job look before you turn look before you turn take
06:51control wheel man take control there are three roles on the six horse hitch that pulls the caisson the rider
06:58in the front is the lead the rider in the middle is the swing and the rider in the back
07:04is the wheel the
07:06team works together to start stop and turn training on an obstacle course all together girls so together
07:14the course includes tighter turns than the horses would ever see at Arlington plus ground obstacles like
07:21pool noodles and hula hoops placed throughout this is nothing to simulate how they're going to do in a
07:29funeral but if they can do all this then the funerals will be a piece of cake
07:35it's kind of nerve-wracking because now it's higher stakes like it's training right now but
07:40then you have to also think okay this is real life missions like we can't mess anything up
07:48for decades the horses pulled a heavy artillery style wagon that weighed nearly 3 000 pounds in 2025
07:56the army introduced a redesigned caisson that weighs less than half as much as the previous model and has
08:03a price tag of $256,000 today more than 400,000 people are buried at Arlington National Cemetery the
08:15caisson detachment supports up to 10 funerals each week for select service members for 75 years the unit was
08:23synonymous with one of the military's most sacred traditions but in 2023 the army shut the program down the army
08:31says it is
08:31suspending the use of its military horses following reports the horses are living in unhealthy conditions
08:39the deaths of multiple army horses exposed unsanitary conditions and a lack of open space for grazing during
08:47the suspension more than 2 000 arlington funerals took place without horses
08:56the program returned in 2025 thanks to the army's investment of over 30 million dollars to build new
09:03facilities and revamp training that's why the army called chester weber you get there they said okay so
09:10when are you moving to haymarket virginia to help us with this program i said hold on a second guys
09:14there's
09:15no moving to haymarket virginia but i'll make you a deal if you guys come down to okla florida i'd
09:20be
09:20more than happy to help put together a team of fantastic people to bring excellence and perspective
09:25back to the program the army also put a horse veterinarian in command of the unit as we look
09:31at this and really kind of put the animal first and really put the animal welfare piece of it front
09:35and
09:35center it puts a different outlook on it than just solely completing the missions really completing the
09:39mission and actually more of the way we do it and you know putting the horses first
09:46the soldiers are the primary people that are actually telling us like hey something's wrong
09:49we're seeing them all the time so they can pick up on those little the little telltale signs where
09:52rather than treating an illness we're trying to prevent it before happens
09:57the soldiers are responsible for taking care of the horses
10:03feeding them cleaning their hooves and bathing them
10:10taking care of horses is a lot of work it depends on what you define as a lot of work
10:14some of it can
10:15be a little bit tedious but once you get in a rhythm once you just take things step by step
10:19it's not
10:20it's not too bad would you call horses high maintenance yes absolutely they're absolutely
10:25high maintenance all of them have their own like little personalities and you can see that in their
10:30ears their eyes their facial expressions everything
10:36most of the horses used by the caisson detachment are percherons a breed known for its strength endurance
10:44and calm temperament but they're prey animals instinctively wired to flee from danger just one
10:53spooked horse can disrupt a military funeral so they're trained to remain steady in an unpredictable environment
11:05former law enforcement officer casey farrell's specialty is desensitization so my role here is
11:11to teach the horse that if something scary comes in real life when they are doing their duty back
11:16in virginia is to stay calm and relaxed and then also teach the soldiers how to handle that
11:22during training an air cannon goes off without warning exposing the horses to the kinds of sudden
11:30noises they may encounter during a military funeral yeah just relax who cares about a cannon if you don't
11:38care the horses don't care so it's an air cannon and nothing comes out of it it's just gas most
11:43people tend to when they hear a big scary noise they tense up and when we're relaxed as riders then
11:49the
11:49horses relax as well there's a bang we don't want the horses to run away so they've got to be
11:53expect a
11:54bang all the time so it's for both of them so they don't shit their pants but don't put that
11:58on the
12:11so they're going to hear a lot of drums they're going to hear a lot of sirens gunshots birds so
12:23it
12:23just simulates anything that they're going to hear
12:27so i just call it the noise maker it's just a metal paint can it's got rocks it's got screws
12:33it's
12:34got pennies it's got all of that we were trying to figure out what can simulate the noise of a
12:39casket going on and off any of that so those horses get used to it back in the barn the
12:47soldiers wave
12:48flags in front of horses in the stalls to desensitize them to sudden movement and noise
12:57as training comes to an end in florida sergeant cardenas celebrates his 24th birthday
13:09the party in florida may be coming to an end but this squad's biggest challenge lies ahead
13:17six weeks later they're back in virginia training for their final test known as validation it's where
13:25we ran into a soldier just beginning his time with the caisson detachment who turned out to be a familiar
13:31face specialist derrick beasley a sentinel at the tomb of the unknown soldier we met while filming an
13:39episode of boot camp in 2025 after reaching the pinnacle of one elite army role he's starting at
13:46the bottom of another i finished my required time at the tomb and i wanted to stay in this area
13:52and
13:52continue working in the cemetery and honoring the dead like i did at the tomb perfect mission here
14:01inside arlington soldiers conduct training rides through the cemetery to familiarize the horses and
14:07themselves with the environment
14:13soldiers known as section workers follow closely to clean up after the horses
14:22everything has a part to play you know there's always a bigger picture so you know some people
14:26have an attitude towards it like oh why did i enlist for this like hey you're doing this because
14:30there's a purpose behind this the horses are connected to the wagon using a complex system
14:36of harnesses straps and reins known as tack the total cost for all of the tack used for the six
14:43horse hitch
14:44is about 160 000 dollars
14:50before they ride in funeral missions all soldiers have to pass the validation test
14:56today specialist sims and sergeant cardenas are getting their chances
15:03the horses held in a parking lot the test simulates the caisson's role in a funeral
15:10riders are graded on their form posture and their ability to control the horses if distractions arise
15:18they're feeling the pressure right now they're nervous because it's the one thing that you're
15:22here at caisson to do but they they have all the training they need and they are fully capable
15:37things were going smoothly until the horses came to a stop
15:51the instructors grade the riders on how they handle the situation
16:04the test is over do you think you passed no i don't think i passed i feel like it went
16:11okay besides the
16:12end the end was a little rough so we'll see what happens so if they pass this validation they're
16:18going to go into the cemetery and conduct military funerals with escort if they don't pass it's back
16:22to the drawing board for a couple weeks they'll get back into the training process and they'll try again
16:35so for the first iteration on lead with cardenas uh you did pass whenever the horse is back you
16:42corrected them you weren't egregious with it so good job on your your part sims uh so you did not
16:49pass
16:50um reason being is because you had dropped the offerings at one point londino went to go call
16:56a case on forward hoe and before he could you had to gather your offerings and then at one point
17:01your
17:01foot did come out of the stirrup just make sure that you're keeping your feet in the stirrup if
17:06something were to go wrong you at least you're maintaining one foot in the strip all right good
17:11job today guys
17:18they said everything was good it's just like one safety hazard that i had my reins
17:24and i didn't have control of my horse at one point i didn't think it was a safety hazard but
17:31honestly they've done this way longer than i have i'm like i'm new to it i have high standards to
17:38myself i'm really strong-headed and like i talked to my sergeant and i was like so when's the next
17:42validation because i was like i'm ready for it like i know what i need to do and not do
17:47i just have to
17:48wait to see what happens according to the caisson detachment specialist sims is still waiting to
17:55attempt her second validation test i feel amazing i can't wait to start it has been a long road i
18:02didn't i didn't think i was going to make it this far you know through all the training and the
18:06prep
18:06it definitely paid off today today sergeant cardenas rides in the lead position on an actual funeral
18:22mission in arlington national cemetery it's a very indescribable experience because months and months
18:31of training just the amount of weight on your shoulders just lets off but the experience like
18:36doing the missions it's humbling it's a great experience this funeral honored air force lieutenant
18:43henry j carlin who was killed in a plane crash during world war ii after being declared missing in
18:50action for nearly 80 years scientists used dna analysis to identify his remains
19:09emotions were all over the place it didn't feel real but at the same time you're just you're doing your
19:15job
19:18you're doing your job we only get one entrance in the cemetery one experience so i wish i could live
19:23it again filming for this story began on march 2nd 2026 the third day of the war with iran
19:36and one day after the first american troops were killed in an iranian drone strike in kuwait
19:43those killed in action qualify for burial at arlington with full caisson honors when you look
19:50at things that are happening overseas it helps you to really put in perspective what we're actually
19:53doing we're taking them to their final resting place that's why it's important that we do it correctly
19:58face on hold the weight of this job is very significant to me it means a lot so to be
20:06able to do
20:07this is something that really like sits heavy with me and just makes me give that extra push to do
20:12this job to the best of my ability
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