Photo By Staff Sgt. Jesse Pilgrim | UH-60's belonging to 101st Combat Aviation Brigade are offloaded from the ARC...... read more read more
Subscribe
Editor's Note: This is the fourth article in a four-part series on Army Materiel Command's support to the whole-of-government response to the COVID-19 pandemic. This installment is focused on maintaining readiness and training support.
(REDSTONE ARSENAL, Ala.) – A recent deployment highlighted how the Army Materiel Command enterprise has made significant contributions in storage and transportation of equipment, and in ensuring the Army is trained and ready to fight, while simultaneously continuing the fight against COVID-19.
Through rail, road, sea and air, AMC continues to keep transportation modes active, projecting personnel, equipment and supplies across the nation and globe to meet the Army mission.
The recent deployment of the 101st Airborne Division’s Combat Aviation Brigade from Fort Campbell, Kentucky, to Europe, demonstrated how the AMC enterprise is working together to enable strategic power projection from fort to port, port to port, and port to foxhole. The 101st CAB deployed to Europe in June for nine months as a regionally allocated force supporting U.S. Army Europe and the Atlantic Resolve mission, focusing on strengthening bonds between allies and partners, increasing interoperability and building readiness.
Prior to the deployment, the 922nd Contracting Battalion at Fort Campbell awarded a contract to a woman-owned small business to wash and sanitize 1,894 pieces of rolling stock and other equipment with a specific solution required before entering Europe due to COVID-19. The equipment included light medium tactical vehicles, aviation equipment and parts, mobile kitchen trailers, water purification equipment and generator sets.
“We were able to award this contract for a nine-month deployment without missing the deployment timeline on time with no mission failure,” said Wanda Jobe, a contract specialist with the 922nd CBN.
The 101st CAB personnel utilized services, programs and facilities from the garrison at Fort Campbell, ensuring Soldiers and families were fully prepared for the deployment.
In Europe, Soldiers assigned to the Military Surface Deployment and Distribution’s 598th Transportation Brigade unloaded the unit’s equipment off ships at La Rochelle, France, and Alexandroupoli, Greece. This was the first time La Rochelle had been used for large-scale port operations since the 1960s, and the Military Sealift Command’s contracted vessel was the largest vessel ever to dock at the port in Alexandroupoli.
“It takes a real ‘team of teams’ to successfully and safely execute port ops like the one here in Alexandroupoli,” said Col. Joshua Hirsch, 598th Transportation Brigade commander. “We worked very closely with the (Military Sealift Command), 21st (Theater Sustainment Command), the 101st CAB, our counterparts in the Hellenic Armed Forces, and with civilian port authorities to make this happen. This is a truly global operation that exemplifies how we conduct strategic maneuver from the U.S. into ports in the European theater.”
The 598th Transportation Brigade was assisted by personnel assigned to Aviation and Missile Command’s Logistics Readiness Center based in Illesheim, Germany, who quarantined for two weeks and underwent COVID-19 tests before traveling to La Rochelle where they helped offload and reassemble 63 aircraft for the 101st CAB. The team then traveled to Alexandroupoli to receive and reassemble 14 more aircraft.
In total, the 101st CAB deployed with approximately 2,000 personnel, 50 UH-60 and HH-60 Black Hawks, four CH-47 Chinooks, 25 AH-64 Apaches and more than 1,800 wheeled vehicles and pieces of equipment, according to SDDC.
In addition to mobilizing, deploying and moving Soldiers, units, equipment and supplies around the globe, AMC helps build Army readiness by supporting Soldier training at installations. Installation Management Command’s garrisons provide direct delivery of services or coordination with other service providers, allowing the U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command cadre at training centers to focus on their mission.
IMCOM continuously evaluates facility capacity and has implemented mitigation strategies to ensure there is sufficient room to receive trainees and maintain adequate capacity for quarantine and isolation, as well as holding capacity for Soldiers that have completed training and are awaiting transportation to their units or follow-on training locations.
Since March, Fort Jackson, South Carolina, has trained over 15,000 basic training Soldiers and sent them to their follow-on locations with no COVID-19 positives on the other end, and the Army Training Center and Soldier Support Institute have implemented screening and quarantine protocols to safely complete Soldier training.
“We have established protective bubbles on the installation to get Soldiers through training and on to their next their next assignment,” said Col. John Hankins, Fort Jackson garrison commander. “COVID has changed how we do things but it will not change what we do. We have been very disciplined and vigilant about adhering to COVID-19 protective measures and protocols daily.”
Army Sustainment Command, together with the Mission and Installation Contracting Command, utilized the Logistics Civil Augmentation Program (LOGCAP) to establish life support areas (LSA) for TRADOC at Fort Lee, Virginia, and Fort Benning, Georgia, in early April. The LSAs provide overflow capacity to house Army recruits and trainees due to COVID-19 movement restrictions directed by DOD. Typical services provided include billeting, food service, showers, latrines, power generation, fresh water production and gray/black water management.
The camps reduce the risk of the trainees being exposed to COVID-19 prior to arrival at their new duty station, said Yewston Myers III, a contracting officer with the MICC-Fort Benning contracting office.
“It is not a camp to quarantine persons infected or suspected to be infected with the virus. It houses school graduates in a confined area. It assists in controlling where Soldiers are and ensures they get to their assigned destinations without violating the travel policy,” Myers said in May.
LOGCAP established additional capabilities in May to support mobilizing and de-mobilizing units at Fort Bliss and Fort Hood in Texas.
AMC’s support also extends to the classrooms and equipment that Soldiers use for training. Teams from AMCOM’s Aviation Center Logistics Command (ACLC) support TRADOC’s schools for Aviation, Artillery and Air Defense by ensuring training equipment is always ready for use. ACLC recently started using a new, extended-use disinfectant that kills a broad range of viruses, germs and bacteria. The disinfectant’s delivery system makes it possible to sanitize a 600-square-foot room in less than a minute, reducing delays between uses.
| Date Taken: | 08.19.2020 |
| Date Posted: | 08.19.2020 09:05 |
| Story ID: | 376311 |
| Location: | REDSTONE ARSENAL, AL, US |
| Web Views: | 97 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
This work, Materiel and installation enterprise maintain Army readiness through COVID-19, by William King, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
No keywords found.
LEAVE A COMMENT