Photo By Staff Sgt. Daniel Yeadon | U.S. Army Soldiers assigned to the 627th Movement Control Team, 21st Theater...... read more read more
Subscribe
KAISERSLAUTERN, Germany – The 21st Theater Sustainment Command’s 627th Movement Control Team was named the National Defense Transportation Association’s 2025 Military Unit of the Year for outstanding performance, rapid operational support and consistently high customer satisfaction in demanding conditions.
For Soldiers who spent nine of the past 12 months supporting missions across the U.S. Army Europe and Africa area of operations, the recognition carries particular weight.
“Sometimes at the MCT level, it feels like what we do doesn’t get seen,” said Sgt. 1st Class Kendrick Brown, detachment sergeant. “It’s great for Soldiers to know that not only our battalion and brigade, but ‘Big Army,’ recognizes the work they’ve been doing in Poland, across USAREUR-AF and down in Africa.”
During the award period, the team supported several of the Army’s most visible transportation missions. Brown said the unit played a key role in Operation European Assure, Deter and Reinforce, pushing ammunition, vehicles and equipment forward to support Ukraine. The team also managed major transportation requirements for African Lion, the largest annual U.S. military exercise on the African continent.
Capt. Allegra Jenkins, detachment commander, said the team’s work falls under theater opening: receiving personnel and equipment at ports, establishing cargo accountability and ensuring combat power arrives where it is needed. The 627th MCT is part of the 16th Sustainment Brigade, one of the Army’s busiest logistics formations.
“When the Army needs to bring combat power into this theater, this team is the one standing at the ports receiving it,” Jenkins said. “Without them, there would be a noticeable gap in capability across the theater.”
Much of the team’s success relies on junior Soldiers who spend long days tallying equipment, checking serial numbers and relaying information to noncommissioned officers tracking cargo movement.
“The Soldiers are the ones in the yard running the operations,” said Sgt. Mbosse Ba, a transportation management coordinator assigned to the 627th MCT. “We rely on them completely. Without them, we couldn’t do the mission.”
The 627th MCT consists of 21 personnel divided among four movement control elements, each led by an NCO. According to Brown, missions routinely require the MCT to send elements forward for 30- to 60-day rotations, including over holidays.
The Army’s shift between different tracking systems also tested the team’s adaptability. Over the last year, the unit used the Portable Deployment Kit, or PDK; the Distribution Replacement Automated Management system, or DRAM; and the PDK-Lite scanner.
Throughout those transitions, the team maintained the ability to operate entirely by analog methods if a cyberattack disrupted digital systems.
“One of the biggest things we’ve focused on is proving we can accomplish the mission even if our computers go down,” Jenkins said. “It forces us back to the basics and makes us more capable in a contested environment.”
Working alongside NATO partners has also become routine for the team.
Ba recalled coordinating movements with roughly a dozen partner nations while on a mission in Poland. Jenkins added that customs processes and host-nation requirements vary widely across Europe and Africa, requiring Soldiers to adjust quickly on each rotation.
“No matter where you go, the language of logistics feels the same,” Brown said. “Move it, get it there and get it back. That doesn’t change.”
As several senior NCOs prepare to rotate out this year, Jenkins said her priority is passing on their experience to the next generation of Soldiers.
“This award shows the standard,” Jenkins said. “My goal is to make sure the next group can perform at the same level and keep this team ready for whatever comes next.”
| Date Taken: | 11.21.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 11.25.2025 05:15 |
| Story ID: | 552305 |
| Location: | KAISERSLAUTERN, RHEINLAND-PFALZ, DE |
| Web Views: | 134 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, 627th Movement Control Team earns National Defense Transportation Association’s Military Unit of the Year, by SSG Daniel Yeadon, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
No keywords found.
