402nd Army Field Support Brigade in media spotlight

Photo By Cpl. Daniel Negrete | Staff Sgt. Shawn R. Conti, a Marine Corps Martial Arts Program instructor for Special-Purpose Marine Air-Ground Task Force Continuing Promise 2010, teaches the basic-warrior stance to Costa Rican police officers and coastguardsmen at “El Murcielago” training camp on the Pacific coast of Costa Rica, Aug. 24. For seven days, Marines of Company A, 2nd Assault Amphibian Battalion from Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, N.C., conducted a subject-matter expert exchange with Costa Rican police officers and coastguardsmen to enhance both nations’ capabilities of conducting humanitarian assistance missions. Marine Corps Martial Arts Program instruction was given to the Costa Ricans in relevance to non-lethal weapons techniques for crowd control and rapid and effective distribution of relief supplies in the event of a disaster relief operation.  

JOINT BASE BALAD, IRAQ

09.04.2010

Story by Galen Putnam 

402nd Army Field Support Brigade

JOINT BASE BALAD, Iraq - The 402nd Army Field Support Brigade came under the media spotlight during two major media engagements in August.

Lt. Col. Garry Bush, commander of the 2nd Battalion, 402nd Army Field Support Brigade, welcomed a contingent of international media to the Redistribution Property Assistance Team Yard on Contingency Operating Base Adder, Iraq, Aug. 18. Also on hand was Lt. Col. Andy Parker, commander of the U.S. Division – South Logistics Support Element.

Media members included Martin Chulov, correspondent for the Guardian (UK) newspaper, Chris Albert a videographer for “60 Minutes,” and Mike Shuster, diplomatic and roving foreign correspondent for National Public Radio.

The visitors received a briefing on the 402nd AFSB, Army Sustainment Command and Army Materiel Command’s missions, then took a tour of the RPAT yard while peppering Bush and Parker with questions.

“It is awesome that the media wants to know what we do here. Even though it isn’t glamorous, it is important, perhaps even the most important mission in regard to the Responsible Drawdown,” said Air Force Capt. Le Tran, RPAT Yard officer-in-charge who hosted a duo of 60 Minutes producers Aug. 25, in an unrelated visit just five days after coming on board. “It means a lot to the people who work in the yard knowing that the world wants to know what they are doing and that their efforts are valued.”

A second group of international media descended upon Joint Base Balad, Aug. 27, to meet with Col. Lawrence W. Fuller, commander, 402nd Army Field Support Brigade, and other base logisticians.

Fuller briefed the media members and then conducted one-on-one interviews with Associated Press Television; Rania El Gamal, correspondent for Reuters News; Takeshia Tsuchiya, staff correspondent from the Cairo Bureau of Kyodo News (Japan); and others.

“These media events provided a great opportunity to tell the 402nd Army Field Support Brigade, Army Sustainment Command and Army Material Command story directly to the international media,” said Col. Lawrence W. Fuller, commander, 402nd AFSB. “One-on-one interaction is the best way to communicate and we were glad to be able to point out the many accomplishments the 402nd AFSB has made here in Iraq.”

• Date Taken: 09.04.2010
• Date Posted: 09.04.2010 10:51
• Story ID: 55714
• Location: JOINT BASE BALAD, IQ