Photo By Sgt. 1st Class Justin Hardin | Cody Carroll (right), a heavy equipment transport mechanic with Saw TST LLC at...... read more read more
More maintenance means more movement
FORT CAVAZOS, TX -- The 298th Support Maintenance Company (SMC) is on Fort Cavazos executing their mission of integration with Directorate of Plans, Training, Mobilization and Security (DPTMS) at North Fort Cavazos and providing field maintenance in order to sustain the mobilization support force (MSF) units as well as any mobilizing units.
The 298th SMC has very specific types of military occupational specialties (MOS) such as small arms repairer, night vision goggle repairer, radio repairers, allied trades specialists and a few more vehicle maintenance specialties. Their mission is part of a mobilization exercise (MOBEX) designed to test an installation’s ability to act as a Mobilization Force Generation Installation (MFGI) in the event of a large-scale mobilization operation (LSMO).
With so many different specialties the 298th SMC Soldiers are spread across the installation doing different tasks. Some are working at North Fort Cavazos at the equipment concentration site 64 and some are working at main cantonment at phantom supply support activity.
“We have a couple people working at the Army Field Support Battalion(AFSBN) in the electronics section working on radios and radio mounts. the armament guys are doing M17 services and working a safety recall on them for their trigger and the rear sites apertures. then we have a crew of allied trades Soldiers, they do welding of anything metal they are dealing with exhaust manifolds on Abrams tank engines” said Staff Sgt. Aaron Crowell, a mechanic with the 298th SMC.
Some of the maintenance being performed will directly affect mobilizing units’ readiness while the rest of the maintenance will help with training leading up to mobilization. The armament team is working closely with the AFSBN to fix M48 mounts for the M1 Abrams as well as working with the Directorate of Emergency Service (DES) to get the M17s used at checkpoints serviced.
“This MOBEX has been extremely different from any other MOBEX or annual training for the 298th SMC. Usually there isn’t much need for our type of unit, so we usually get tasked with security detail.” Said Capt. Joseph Crespo, commander of the 298th SMC.
Department of the Army employees and contractors are appreciative of the opportunity to work with the 298th SMC. The overall response from the 298th SMC Soldiers and their civilian counterparts has been the same. When asked both parties stress how pleased they are with the opportunity to work together and the relief it is to have additional manpower.
“It’s nice because I’m a retired motor sergeant for the Army, so I’m glad I can get out here and teach Soldiers” said Cody Carroll, a heavy equipment transport mechanic with Saw TST LLC at equipment concentration site 64.
“Listening to the Soldiers at the end of the workday discuss the equipment that they worked on and how much they enjoyed working, was very satisfying to me. That’s what these Soldiers signed up to do, so why not let them experience that. Let the Soldiers do what they want to do. Their jobs,” said Crespo.
| Date Taken: | 06.29.2023 |
| Date Posted: | 07.17.2023 16:46 |
| Story ID: | 449151 |
| Location: | KILLEEN, TX, US |
| Hometown: | JOHNSTOWN, PA, US |
| Web Views: | 52 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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