MIHAIL KOGALNICEANU AIRFIELD, Romania — Joint Task Force-East hosted about 40 senior enlisted service members of the Romanian Land, Naval and Air Forces at the Mihail Kogalniceanu Airfield, Romania, for the third annual Non-commissioned Officer Day, Oct. 8.

U.S. Army senior NCOs discussed command relationships, leadership styles and training techniques to more than three dozen Romanian command sergeant majors and other senior NCOs visiting from around the country. U.S. Army Command Sgt. Maj. Darius Zagara, of the Joint Multinational Training Command based at Grafenwoehr, Germany, and other U.S. senior enlisted Soldiers presented ideas and concepts on how to develop and sustain a solid NCO corps to leaders of the Romanian Land, Naval and Air Forces.

"The Romanian Land Forces are still forming their NCO corps," said U.S. Army Sgt. Maj. Shane A. Austen, command sergeant major of JTF-East. The leadership classes became discussions and an atmosphere for brainstorming ideas to help improve the Romanian NCO ranks. "By bringing sergeants majors of both countries together, we can all help make a standard for the Romanian NCO corps," Austen added.

JTF-East's annual NCO Day showcases the leadership and professionalism of the U.S. and Romanian Armed Forces' enlisted ranks. The one-day seminar included virtual weapons training systems and a Humvee Egress and Assistance Trainer, simulating vehicle rollovers. Two U.S. Stryker combat vehicles from the 4th Squadron of the 2nd Stryker Combat Regiment (4/2 SCR), based in Vilseck, Germany, who have been conducting training at a nearby maneuver area were on display.

"This event is an opportunity to see other NCO jobs and ways of training," said Romanian Land Forces Command Sgt. Major Tudora Bararu, command sergeant major of the 1st Infantry Division, headquartered at Bucharest, Romania. "This will help us improve our knowledge and functions of the NCO ranks and take these newfound skills back to our units and soldiers at home," she added.

JTF-East has an integrated operation with over 3,800 Romanian, Bulgarian and U.S. servicemembers and other military and civilian support personnel participating in the three-month exercise from August to October in the two countries. The purpose of JTF-East is to build interoperability capabilities and develop relationships with other militaries in regional security cooperation.

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