Photo By Julianne Sympson | From left to right, Joint Communications Support Element (JCSE) members U.S. Air Force...... read more read more
NAVAL STATION NORFOLK, Va. – From May 27 to July 18, seven members of the 290th Joint Communications Support Squadron (JCSS), the Florida Air National Guard unit affiliated with the Joint Communications Support Element (JCSE), provided uninterrupted connectivity during Pacific Partnership 2014 (PP14), U.S. Pacific Fleet’s annual humanitarian assistance operation in the Indo-Asia-Pacific.
Although this was JCSE’s third time supporting Pacific Partnership, this was the first opportunity for the 290th JCSS to participate in this unique mission, which included traveling to remote locations in Vietnam, Cambodia, Indonesia and the Philippines.
JCSE regularly provides rapidly deployable, mobile and reliable communications to contingency and crisis operations worldwide.
For the past three years, JCSE has set a precedent for the communication capabilities they provide to the Pacific Partnership mission, which is focused on strengthening partnerships and ensuring the international community is better prepared to deliver foreign humanitarian aid in times of natural disasters or crises. Since 2012, JCSE has provided reliable communication services to the combined teams of medical, dental, veterinarian and engineering professionals, who are strengthening relations and collectively assisting the local people in need.
This year, the 290th JCSS employed three Initial Entry Packages (IEP) to provide mission-tailored communications services to the PP14 teams. By employing these highly-mobile communication kits, the 290th JCSS enhanced coordination and information sharing between the Mission Operation Center (MOC), the operational focal point at each port call, and the various remote sites that were executing mission requirements nearby.
“The versatility and mobility of the communications equipment was a great advantage during the PP14 mission to keep open lines of communication between the various PP14 teams,” said U.S. Air Force Tech. Sgt. Gabriel Peterson, who served as the JCSE noncommissioned officer in charge. “Our communications capabilities provided the teams with secure, non-secure voice and video teleconferencing and voice-over-Internet protocol services.”
Throughout the course of this unique deployment, the 290th JCSS team traveled from one destination to the next by commercial airlines to join the PP14 teams who were executing mission requirements in each country.
“Without our capabilities the doctors, vets and public affairs experts would not have been able to send emails, retrieve online forms and update the Pacific Partnership staff on what the teams were doing,” said U.S. Air Force Tech. Sgt. Alexander Tressler, who served as the team chief in Roté, Indonesia.
“We gave the Pacific Partnership teams the ability to reach back and update their parent units, research issues that might arise in the field, consult other physicians and even talk to their families back home,” added Peterson.
In addition to supporting the MOC, several two-man teams from the 290th JCSS also traveled with PP14 teams to rural areas where the residents were in need of medical attention and additional services.
“JCSE’s equipment sets are small and mobile which makes them a perfect fit for this mission, especially when traveling to remote sites to provide humanitarian support,” said Tressler.
“When asked to support additional requests, we were able to set up our equipment within hours at sites with no previous infrastructure, and our ability to move on a moment’s notice proved to be mission critical,” said U.S. Air Force Capt. Danielle Wren, the 290th JCSS officer in charge. “For instance, during our time in Cambodia, I traveled with a team of veterinarians on short notice to Kupong, a remote island over two hours away, where the team provided much-needed vaccinations and other veterinarian services to the locals.”
While in Cambodia, a fast-moving storm nearly destroyed the MOC and communications tents on the pier. The JCSE team reacted instinctively to maintain limited connectivity during the storm and then regained full communication services once the weather passed. The 290th JCSS team’s expertise allowed them to make quick, deliberate decisions which kept communication services intact.
“The hurricane-like weather in Cambodia was erratic but we took measures to maintain connectivity,” said Peterson. “The weather issues strengthened our ability to respond to unforeseen issues and built confidence in our ability to deal with any issue no matter the severity.”
The 290th JCSS team’s wealth of knowledge served them well as they adapted to a wide range of circumstances which tested their ability to provide uninterrupted communications throughout the PP14 mission. These joint communicators fully demonstrated their ability to support the ever-changing mission requirements.
“This deployment required us to be flexible in regards to how and where we set up the equipment. We also had to be creative in identifying ways to provide the communication services needed for mission success,” said Wren. “The experience moving equipment in different countries further honed our communications expertise. We know what we need to bring and how to quickly set up in remote areas with very little support.”
Despite the natural challenges of inclement weather, varied terrain conditions and unreliable power infrastructure at various locations, the 290th JCSS team’s flexibility and use of its highly mobile kits proved mission essential during PP14. This unforgettable deployment not only showcased the 290th JCSS’ expertise in providing communication services anywhere in the world, but it also left the team with an incredible sense of accomplishment in their skill sets.
After a rewarding and meaningful deployment, the 290th JCSS team returned home and shared lessons learned with fellow JCSE members to further prepare the JCSE team for potential mission requirements.
| Date Taken: | 07.31.2014 |
| Date Posted: | 07.31.2014 14:34 |
| Story ID: | 137855 |
| Location: | NAVAL STATION NORFOLK, VA, US |
| Web Views: | 77 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, JCSE completes support to Pacific Partnership mission, by Julianne Sympson, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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