Photo By Maj. A. Sean Taylor | Spc. Dominic Baglieri, Elmwood Park, Ill., resident and a construction engineer with...... read more read more
FORT STEWART, Ga.—When the 334th Quartermaster Company, an Army Reserve unit based in Elwood, Ill., was stood up on April 1, 2012, Master Sgt. Justin Erickson of Roanoke, Ill., was the only unit member.
Now close to two years later, he accompanied over 70 Soldiers of the 334th to their first annual training at the Quartermaster Liquid Logistics Exercise 2014 here.
It was challenging bringing this young of a company to the QLLEX 14 exercise said Erickson, the Senior Maintenance Supervisor. “Of the 76 pax we have with us, 36 graduated from A.I.T. between March and April of this year.”
The 334th convoyed from Elwood, Ill. to Ft. Stewart with less than a handful of experienced Non-Commissioned Officers and two less experienced second lieutenants.
The company commander, 2nd Lt. Stephanie Barnes of Bellwood, Ill., and a recent graduate of the Logistics Basic Officer Leadership Course, led a convoy of 16 trucks over the close to 1,000 miles to the exercise. They experienced challenges like breakdowns along the way but the overall movement was a training success.
“Everyone here is stronger than before,” 1st Sgt. Art Villasenor of Huntley, ill., said speaking of the convoy experience. “We are planning to have a young specialist be the convoy commander on the way back.”
QLLEX 2014 has provided valuable, hands-on training that is rare to get during normal annual training exercises and very difficult to accomplish on battle assembly weekends.
Units like the 334th QM Company, are designed for bulk fuel distribution of around 100,000 gallons of fuel. “At a Warrior Exercise or CSTX, a company might handle one HMMT 5K, but that is about it,” Lt. Col. Chuck Wack, Commander of the 327th Quartermaster Battalion and Officer-in-Charge of the QLLEX at the Ft. Stewart site explained. “During this exercise, units took over the distribution of fuel from the Defense Supply Fuel Point in Charleston, S.C. that is usually performed by civilian contractors.”
These types of real world logistical exercises have been part of the Army Reserve for the past 34 years, with 99 percent of fuel assets residing in the Army Reserves according to Wack. “The opportunity for the Army Reserve to maintain proficiency with bulk fuel I is credited with the successful push into Bagdad during OIF 1.”
“Prior to attending this exercise, no one but me knew how to hook up a wrecker,” Erickson said. “This training has allowed us to give one to one, hands-on training that they do not get on a battle assembly weekend.”
During the QLLEX, the 334th QM vehicle mechanics have fixed vehicles, generator mechanics have fixed generators, truck drivers have gotten over 2,000 miles behind the wheel and construction engineers have dug ditches. This valuable hands-on experience will allow this new unit to excel in its mission and be ready to serve when called upon.
| Date Taken: | 06.12.2014 |
| Date Posted: | 06.21.2014 10:56 |
| Story ID: | 133915 |
| Location: | FORT STEWART, GA, US |
| Web Views: | 516 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, New Quartermaster Unit Attends First Annual Training, by MAJ A. Sean Taylor, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
No keywords found.
LEAVE A COMMENT