Marines with II Marine Expeditionary Force conducted a convoy from Camp Lejeune, N.C., to the Port of Wilmington, Sept. 6, 2018, as part of preparations for Trident Juncture 18, a NATO-led exercise happening in Norway in October.
The purpose of this exercise is to enhance the Unites States and NATO Allies’ forces and their abilities to work together effectively, swiftly and collectively and respond to threats from any direction.
“It will be a lot of cold weather training, it also builds our camaraderie with our Allies in Norway, it’s not an exercise we get to do very often,” said Cpl. Icelynn Holden, a motor transportation mechanic with II Marine Supply Battalion.
Approximately 70 vehicles were transported and staged at the Port of Wilmington in order to facilitate the loading of the ship prior to being transported to Norway.
The vehicles which were used in the convoy consist of Medium Tactical Vehicle Replacements (MTVR), Logistic Vehicle System Replacements (LSVR), and High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicles (HMMWV).
These vehicles carried cargo such as lumber and barbwire that will be used for the production of exercise bases in Norway.
“We have to prepare our trucks, we have to send them through maintenance, wash them and then we actually have to make sure everything gets loaded, we have to make sure it’s secure and we take the trip down here with our convoy making sure everything is well organized and it runs smooth,” said Lance Cpl. Kirsten Lucas, a motor transportation operator with II MSB. “We have to have a backup plan in case anything goes down and when we make it here that’s when we start to rely more on the people that are here to make sure we get staged properly to get everything loaded.”
The convoy provided the Marines a chance to further prepare themselves for what’s to come during their time in Norway.
“The Marines have trained for months for this exercise and this was the first major movement leading up to Trident Juncture,” said Gunnery Sgt. Rickey Moore, a maintenance chief with motor transportation, II MSB. “Our Marines jumped at the opportunity to apply their skills in a real world situation. Unfamiliar roads, long distances, and heavy loads are challenges that the Marines had to deal with and will have to deal with in Norway. When situations are difficult, the confidence needed to succeed comes from discipline and training. In that regard, the training was invaluable and the Marines performed phenomenally.”
The convoy was led by base military police and off-base law enforcement to ensure a smooth journey to the port.
“The on-base police and off-base law enforcement- without them we would’ve been stuck at intersections, traffic light and there was a lot of civilians present on the roads,” said Lucas. “And that’s incredibly dangerous especially since we’re in bigger vehicles and we have loads on the back of our trucks that could endanger not only our drivers, the assistant drivers, but also the civilians that are around. A huge thank you goes to the law enforcement that helped us out.”