KANDAHAR AIRFIELD, Afghanistan – The goal to have a lasting impact in Afghanistan is evident as Afghan National Security Forces prepare for the Afghan presidential and provincial elections in April.
On Aug. 27, 2013, all Regional Command (South) security force assistance advisory teams gathered to discuss what gains would critically impact ANSF as the North Atlantic Treaty Organization prepares to withdraw from Afghanistan.
Logistical class IX repair parts and components – used to support all military equipment and vehicles, supply management, and authorized stockage list were the critical issues that both International Security Assistance Forces and ANSF saw as the biggest challenges requiring immediate attention before the elections.
Petty Officer 1st Class William Hawkins, a logistics specialist for the logistics training advisory team, explained that one of the main issues of class IX supply that the 205th Corps, Afghan National Army, faced was a surplus of parts and supplies that they didn’t need, and missing critical parts necessary to keep equipment and vehicles up and running.
“The problem was there would be a push of supplies from Kabul and they would take whatever they had, divide it into four, and send it out to the 205th brigades,” Hawkins said.
Having a surplus of unnecessary parts and little space for them made it hard for the 205th to find or receive the parts required to fix vehicles and equipment, which presented a problem on a larger scale.
“When the vehicles are compromised and they are not online, ready for use, that poses a problem for operations,” Maj. Kathryn Christie, ANSF sustainment deputy, from the office of the Vice Chief of the Australian Defense Force, said. “Having the right tools to maintain equipment provides greater security for elections.”
A coalition "Warlord Tiger Team" was put together, consisting of 10 ISAF service members who specialize in logistics, to teach four different ANA brigade supply teams how to implement a more effective receiving and distributing system of class IX supplies.
Within six weeks, the team was able to plan and resource the mission and dive directly into execution mode.
On Oct. 19, 2013, “Tiger Team” started their first training course for members of the 205th Corps’ 4th Brigade supply management team.
“We set them down in a classroom for three days to talk doctrine, and to create a dialogue and a common understanding of how logistics works in their organization,” Capt. Coleman Harris, RC (S) ANSF duel sustainment officer, 4th Infantry Division, said.
“Most of the training was hands-on, about 75 percent. They were much more receptive and engaged when outside of the classroom, and so far they have been very successful,” he added.
After 11 days of training, the team moved onto 2nd Brigade on Nov. 3, 1st and 3rd Brigades Nov. 24, and started the final course at the 205th’s Regional Logistics Support Command on Jan. 5, 2014.
“We faced a lot of challenges, but the team was very well received and that showed by high participation. This is something they believe in and they will do what needs to be done to fix it because they recognize the problem,” Harris said.
In four months the team taught and implemented the use of a more transparent system using the existing tools within the Corps, and provided encouragement and confidence for the professionalization of the logistical branch within the 205th.
“What we tried to teach is the concept of anticipating what you need and to order it before it runs out, and to not order what you don’t want,” Christie said.
To show the benefits of the training, Foreign Military Sales purchased the first initial fill, called a “warlord,” for the 205th, encouraging them to implement what they learned on a day-to-day basis, so they can grasp the rewards of an effective system.
“When the system works, it builds confidence. It is all about demand and what is needed,” Harris said. “The warlord was just as important as the training itself.”
The warlord is seen as a huge reward across the board.
“It helped kick-start a process and a flow of class IX equipment that they need,” Christie said.
In total, Tiger team trained 102 Afghans on class IX, ASL, and the utilization of re-order points.
“We simply looked at their system and helped them to develop it further,” Harris said.
The process that was implemented during this training will hopefully be applied to other areas of 205th logistics as well, Christie added.
“The hope is that they can take what they’ve learned here and apply it to other areas of supply,” Christie said. “I have already seen improvements, which makes it really terrific to see ANSF and ISAF work together as a team.”