Brigade jumps to readiness

Photo By Sgt. Matthew Waymire | Staff Sgt. Pedro Pichardo, assistant brigade operations sergeant, Headquarters and Headquarters Troop, 2nd Special Troops Battalion, 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, directs Soldiers where to place a DRASH tent during a “jump” tactical operations center set up at Camp Buehring, Kuwait, Nov. 16, 2013. Pichardo was in charge of teaching new soldiers in the unit how to properly assemble the mobile TOC. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Matt Waymire, 2nd ABCT PAO, 4th Infantry Division)  

CAMP BUEHRING, KUWAIT

11.16.2013

Story by Sgt. Matthew Waymire 

2nd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division

CAMP BUEHRING, Kuwait – Soldiers of Headquarters and Headquarters Troop, 2nd Special Troops Battalion, 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, set up the mobile tactical operations center to prepare for any future missions the unit may have while deployed on Camp Buehring, Kuwait, Nov. 16.

A “jump” TOC has the same capabilities as a normal operation center but is smaller and made to be mobile. It includes multiple pieces of communication equipment, and secure and non-secure Internet connectivity for staff of the brigade to stay connected during the battle.

“It’s easy to fall into the garrison mindset of mission command where everything is established,” said Sgt. Maj. Kevin Muhlenbeck, brigade operations sergeant major, HHT, 2nd STB. “So this will give the infrastructure to let the brigade commander have effective ability to conduct mission command.”

Making sure the jump TOC is ready to go at a moment’s notice is important for more than just the commander.

“We’ve lost some of the soldiers we trained with to prepare for our mission in Kuwait,” said Staff Sgt. Pedro Pichardo, assistant brigade operations sergeant, HHT, 2nd STB. “We have to make sure the Soldiers we have now know what they’re doing.”

All soldiers of the brigade staff were encouraged to participate in the set up.

“The goal today is to have the soldiers pretty proficient in what they have to do regardless of what their role is in the set up and takedown,” said Pichardo, also an armor crewman.“I want to feel comfortable that it’s fully operational and won’t fall down on us when we set it up anywhere.”

Throughout the deployment, the brigade staff will partner with multiple countries in the region and plans to use the jump TOC for those situations.

• Date Taken: 11.16.2013
• Date Posted: 11.19.2013 03:30
• Story ID: 116988
• Location: CAMP BUEHRING, KW