Photo By Whitney Katz | U.S. Army Spc. Angel Martinez, a member of the Joint Communications Support Element's...... read more read more
MACDILL AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. – Twelve members of the Joint Communication Support Element (JCSE) returned to MacDill Air Force Base on Friday, Oct. 4 following an eight-month rotational deployment in support of Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF).
JCSE, a subordinate joint command of the Joint Enabling Capabilities Command, maintains three active-duty squadrons and one U.S. Army Reserve squadron (1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th Joint Communications Squadrons (JCS), respectively) and two Air National Guard units (224th and 290th Joint Communications Support Squadrons), which provide rapidly deployable, mission-tailored communications capabilities worldwide.
Since March of 2002, JCSE teams of varying size have completed rotational deployments to multiple locations in Afghanistan, Pakistan, and other surrounding areas to bring critical communication capabilities to joint and special operations forces supporting OEF missions.
The most recent rotational team, which included members of the Mustangs of 4JCS, departed this past February for their deployment following a comprehensive training cycle, which prepared them for the unique challenges they may face while deployed.
In addition to individual and collective training on the latest communications technology, immediately prior to deployment; the departing team validated their skills and aptitude during a Mission Readiness Exercise.
Lessons learned from previous deployments were incorporated into this exercise to ensure the training was relevant and representative of the communication capabilities required by joint force commanders downrange.
“All of our training was geared to where we might be stationed,” said U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Chris Redmond, a 4JCS member who deployed with the most recent team. “It helps get us into the mindset of what we might be doing when we go forward.”
Members of the 4JCS team were deployed to sites throughout the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility to provide a wide range of communications expertise to the various units supporting missions there.
Regardless of the service branch requesting assistance or the type of support needed, 4JCS members tailored their communications packages to meet the requirements of small, mobile missions as well as larger full scale operations with a broader footprint.
As diverse as the communications support they provided, so were the experiences of the 4JCS members while deployed. For instance, this was Redmond’s third time deployed with JCSE, but his first serving as the Systems Control (SYSCON) noncommissioned officer in charge (NCOIC).
The SYSCON is JCSE’s forward operating base which serves as a synchronization node for the implementation of logistics, intelligence and administrative support for all JCSE units downrange.
The SYSCON NCOIC is responsible for evaluating all the missions, identifying the capabilities and personnel needed and quickly deploying members from the centrally located site. The SYSCON enables JCSE to handle numerous requests and make immediate, real-time decisions to provide the most efficient communications support to those joint force commanders on the ground.
“This was the first time I was able to experience a JCSE deployment from the operational level,” Redmond said. “Being in charge of all the different responsibilities associated with the SYSCON NCOIC position was challenging but rewarding.”
Conversely, this was the first deployment ever for U.S. Army 1st Lt. Jessica Purcell, another 4JCS member.
Purcell initially served as a watch officer at the SYSCON, but after a few months was chosen to deploy to a remote base in Afghanistan and serve as the J6 officer in charge for the task force assigned there.
Purcell was one of the few females on the site and the first female officer to hold the J6 position. That fact, however, did not impact Purcell’s ability to provide the high quality communications expertise for which JCSE is known.
“Being one of the only females around had its challenges, but I’m a soldier like any other soldier,” said Purcell. “I was focused on providing the secure and unsecure network access, voice and video teleconferencing capabilities needed by the task force at all times.”
In addition to bringing unmatched joint communications expertise and capabilities to forces and units supporting OEF, the 4JCS members also gained valuable knowledge and skill sets, both personally and professionally.
The reliable, joint communications services provided to joint and special operations forces currently deployed in support of OEF will continue without interruption as a new rotational team of JCSE communicators picks up where the 4JCS left off.
| Date Taken: | 10.23.2013 |
| Date Posted: | 10.24.2013 14:39 |
| Story ID: | 115671 |
| Location: | MACDILL AIR FORCE BASE, FL, US |
| Web Views: | 308 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, JCSE members return from rotational deployment, highlight unique experiences, by Whitney Katz, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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