Photo By Staff Sgt. April Tessmer | Soldiers from the 16th Sustainment Brigade, 21st Theater Sustainment Command prepare...... read more read more
BAUMHOLDER, Germany – Soldiers and civilian employees from the 21st Theater Sustainment Command’s 16th Sustainment Brigade learned how to safely load equipment onto railway cars April 10 during a training here at Quartermaster Kaserne.
The “Knights” trained to prepare specifically for equipment transport to Hohenfels, in support of Combined Resolve II – known to the initiated as CbRII – an exercise involving 13 countries and slated to begin later this month.
“The 16th SB plays a major role in CbRII as it is the only sustainment brigade within the whole region of Europe,” said Sgt. 1st Class Juan A. Roman, a transportation management coordinator with the brigade and a native of San Juan, Puerto Rico.
The 16th SB intends to not only execute support missions to CbRII, but also develop “technical interoperability” among NATO and partner-nation forces and support the U.S. Army’s goal of building smart, adaptable and capable coalitions.
The 51 Soldiers in attendance for this one-day training event represented three different battalions stationed all over Germany. Amongst the students were Army explosive ordnance disposal technicians, mechanics and transportation specialists.
The instructors emphasized the importance of certification for rail load teams across U.S. Army Europe’s operating area. The 16th SB’s 515th Transportation Company orchestrated the training. Platoon leader, 2nd Lt. Stephanie N. Hasenfus, a Dover-Foxcroft, Maine, native, planned and executed the railhead training course.
“Soldiers across USAREUR attended the training to provide critical skill sets for their units, ultimately ensuring that units can efficiently and effectively mobilize,” said Hasenfus. “Units will practice equipment mobilization via railhead for the upcoming training mission [at] CbR II.”
“This training contributes to a unit's operational readiness, validating that they can deploy equipment via rail,” Hasenfus added. “The trained rail load teams may also be called upon to assist [1st Brigade, 1st Cavalry's] movement across Germany.”
The railhead course curriculum consisted of hands-on exercises to teach Soldiers how to “block and brace,” military vehicles to railcars. The class learned techniques on safely harnessing large vehicles, such as the M1097 HMMWV, M969 fuel tanker truck, M1088 tractor truck and the M88 tracked recovery vehicle. Rail load team members learned the differences between European and American shipping practices.
“In Europe, the railcars and tunnels are narrower, making rail loading a greater challenge for American equipment,” Hasenfus said. The trainers emphasized safety and security for troops and equipment were paramount. Hasenfus also arranged for an emergency first responder class to reinforce the importance of safety.
“I'm really grateful that I could help facilitate this training,” said Sgt. Matthew Phillips, a six-year veteran combat medic and one of the two instructors for the first responder class.
“Accidents happen. Having first-hand knowledge of how to treat injury is critical to mission success. Imparting medical knowledge during downtime not only helps to take care of Soldiers, but it also helps to increase mission readiness Army-wide,” the Belleville, Ill., native added.
The Soldiers will use their training as soon as late April in support of the 16th SB’s 39th Movement Control Battalion to transport military vehicles from Western Germany to Bavaria in support of the CbRII exercise.
“The transport by rail is the main means to deliver over 105 pieces of equipment,” said Roman, “including a containerized kitchen, 20-foot shipping containers, [tri-con modular containers], Deployable Rapid Assembly Shelter tent systems and [military] vehicles.”
| Date Taken: | 04.10.2014 |
| Date Posted: | 05.04.2014 15:25 |
| Story ID: | 128666 |
| Location: | BAUMHOLDER, BW, DE |
| Hometown: | BELLEVILLE, IL, US |
| Hometown: | DOVER-FOXCROFT, ME, US |
| Web Views: | 168 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Knight’s Brigade blocks and braces the way to Combined Resolve II, by SSG April Tessmer, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
No keywords found.
LEAVE A COMMENT