FORWARD OPERATING BASE SAKARI KHAREZ, Afghanistan — Today the transfer between the 55th Mobility Augmentation Company from Ft. Leonard Wood, Mo., and the 182nd Engineer Company (Sapper) from Massachusetts is complete.
The RIP/TOA ceremony is a long standing tradition between units of the United States Armed Forces, who while deployed transfer authority of their line units and area of operation to the newly arrived units in theatre.
The process takes several weeks. This ensures that the change of authority between the outgoing and incoming units is done smoothly. However, the 182nd’s and the 55th’s RIP took place only over several days. Capt. ChaTom Warren, 55th MAC commander and Capt. Michael Bouchard, 182nd commander worked closely together the past few days to ensure that every Soldier completed training for their respective duty assignment. This was an especially rigid task given the time constraints. Both Warren and Bouchard are fully confident in the progress made during the RIP/TOA for the 182nd to continue the mission of route clearance in Afghanistan.
“I believe the RIP was beneficial on our condensed timeline,” said Warren “We were sure to give them the tools they needed to be successful.”
Bouchard says the past several days have been extremely busy and beneficial. The 55th taught his Soldiers everything they need to know as far as known IED activity in their current area of operation.
“We have big shoes to fill,” said Bouchard “but we’ll get there.”
The TOA ceremony was overseen by Lt. Col. Michael N. Cleveland, commander of the 223rd Engineer Battalion/Task Force Knight. The 182nd will be attached to Task Force Knight during the duration of the deployment.
As the 55th begin their redeployment process to return back home, Warren expressed the importance of taking care of the soldiers and constant leader involvement.
“I pray they stay safe, stay blessed and be careful,” said Warren “God speed.”
Throughout the 55th MAC’s yearlong deployment, they conducted more than 500 route clearance patrols in support of 2-34 Armour and 4-25 Field Artillery resulting in more than several hundred improvised explosive devices being removed from the battlefield. The efforts of the 55th MAC greatly enhanced the effectiveness of the maneuver forces throughout Kandahar and Helmand provinces in Afghanistan. They also ensured the safe passage of vital logistical patrols, ensuring that essential supplies safely reached their final destinations.
The 182nd Engineer Company was mobilized, Nov. 25, 2011 to help the continual efforts of the U.S. Army during Operation Enduring Freedom.
| Date Taken: | 01.27.2012 |
| Date Posted: | 02.10.2012 05:42 |
| Story ID: | 83656 |
| Location: | FORWARD OPERATING BASE SAKARI KHAREZ, AF |
| Web Views: | 316 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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