Fort McCoy supports first major rail movement of 2023

Photo By Scott Sturkol | The Fort McCoy rail operations team with the Fort McCoy Logistics Readiness Center conducts a rail movement operation May 19, 2023, at Fort McCoy, Wis. This is part of the first rail movement at the installation in 2023. Fort McCoy’s rail operations support team is staffed by people operating locomotives to move railcars in place for loading, people working with units and unit Soldiers to get training on how to load railcars, people to assist with moving cargo, and more. As a whole, Fort McCoy is one of few installations Armywide that operates and supports Army-owned locomotives and conducts rail operations in the level like it does. In 2022, Fort McCoy supported three major rail movements. During those three movements, the Fort McCoy rail operations support team helped load and move 315 pieces of equipment on 116 railcars that was approximately the equivalent of 4,311 short tons of cargo. (U.S. Army Photo by Scott T. Sturkol, Public Affairs Office, Fort McCoy, Wis.)  

FORT MCCOY, WI, UNITED STATES

05.22.2023

Story by Scott Sturkol                                                                                         

Fort McCoy Public Affairs Office           

Staff with the Fort McCoy rail operations team at the Fort McCoy Logistics Readiness Center are supporting their first major rail operation of 2023 with the reception of 210 railcars between May 19-26 at the installation.

The post has a railcar capacity at any one time of 184 railcars, said Installation Transportation Officer Douglas “Terry” Altman. But for this rail movement, the number of railcars loaded with equipment will be staggered over several days.

“This is a significant rail mission for Fort McCoy that will test our capacity and rail capability,” Altman said. “We will have 140 railcars on station for most of this mission. This will require the Transportation Office to utilize a significant amount of track space.”

Fort McCoy’s rail operations support team is staffed by people operating locomotives to move railcars in place for loading, people working with units and unit Soldiers to get training on how to load railcars, people to assist with moving cargo, and more.

As a whole, Fort McCoy is one of few installations Armywide that operates and supports Army-owned locomotives and conducts rail operations in the level like it does.

In 2022, Fort McCoy supported three major rail movements. During those three movements, the Fort McCoy rail operations support team helped load and move 315 pieces of equipment on 116 railcars that was approximately the equivalent of 4,311 short tons of cargo.

Besides completing the rail movements with units that have equipment involved in the loading of the railcars, the Fort McCoy rail support team also must work with organizations and personnel across the military and the transportation system spectrum to ensure these movements are completed successfully, Altman said.

Some of the military organizations where coordination is completed through by Fort McCoy personnel are U.S. Transportation Command, U.S. Army Forces Command, U.S. Army Central, U.S. Army Reserve Command, Military Surface Deployment and Distribution Command, and more.

Some of the civilian organizations they coordinate with include the BNSF Railway, Union Pacific Railway, Quality Transportation Services, Farrell Lines, Transportation Coordinators' Automated Information for Movements System II Helpdesk, and the Cargo Movement Operations System Helpdesk.

As rail operations continue in the future at the installation, LRC officials said they welcome each and every opportunity to demonstrate the capability.

“Rail is one of our strategic transportation missions, and rail movements allow us to exercise our capability,” Altman said.

Fort McCoy was established in 1909 and its motto is to be the “Total Force Training Center.”

Located in the heart of the upper Midwest, Fort McCoy is the only U.S. Army installation in Wisconsin.

The installation has provided support and facilities for the field and classroom training of more than 100,000 military personnel from all services nearly every year since 1984.

Learn more about Fort McCoy online at https://home.army.mil/mccoy, on the Defense Visual Information Distribution System at https://www.dvidshub.net/fmpao, on Facebook by searching “ftmccoy,” and on Twitter by searching “usagmccoy.”

Also try downloading the Digital Garrison app to your smartphone and set “Fort McCoy” or another installation as your preferred base.

• Date Taken: 05.22.2023
• Date Posted: 05.22.2023 17:40
• Story ID: 445265
• Location: FORT MCCOY, WI, US