Tag Archives: Sustainment

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Parapacks over Holland

Operation Market Garden's Lessons in the Fight for Supply from the Sky

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Since the release of the hit miniseries Band of Brothers and Hollywood-classic Saving Private Ryan, the story of American paratroopers in the Second World War has become cauterized in the minds of history connoisseurs and students. The story has all the elements of a homeric epic: young, fit men strapping on a parachute and leaping from planes to land amongst the enemy. They were a live military experiment in an entirely new form of warfare. The two Hollywood productions were followed by almost two decades of literature from historians and popular authors alike analyzing and dissecting the fire and brimstone shooting matches fought by these men. But little analytics have been devoted to the factors that made these battles possible.

U.S. Army photo retrieved from U.S. Army W.T.F! moments Facebook page.
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Ambulance Exchange Point (AXP) Ops in LSCO

Keys to Success at the CTCs and in Combat

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Ambulance Exchange Points (AXPs) are quintessential to the successful, expeditious evacuation of casualties from Point of Injury (POI) throughout the continuum of care during Large Scale Combat Operations (LSCO) and Multi-Domain Operations (MDO). With our near-peer/peer competitors possessing anti-air assets, air medical evacuation (MEDEVAC) may not always be available to the maneuver unit, especially between the Forward Line of Troops (FLOT) to the nearest Role of Care. Commanders must understand how to best utilize their ambulance squads, how to move AXPs throughout operations, and what tactical considerations to take when selecting AXP.

U.S. Soldiers assigned to the 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team and 3rd Combat Aviation Brigade, both 3rd Infantry Division, participate in medical evacuation training near Ziemsko, Poland, June 6, 2020. Exercise Allied Spirit, a DEFENDER-Europe 20 linked exercise, originally scheduled for May, takes place at Drawsko Pomorskie Training Area, Poland, June 15-19, 2020.
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A Training Relationship

How Sustainment Leaders and Units are Developed

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While combat arms battalion commanders and company commanders maneuver their units to accomplish battalion level objectives, the Brigade Support Battalion (BSB) Commander and his or her company commanders must maneuver their units to enable the breadth and depth of the entire Brigade Combat Team’s (BCT) operation.  The BCT’s maneuver battalions fight to achieve BCT tactical objectives, and the Fires Battalion and Engineer Battalion shape for the maneuver battalions. Only the BSB, however, continually supports all seven organic battalions within a BCT.

U.S. Army Photo by Sgt. Nathan Franco
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Cavalry Squadron Maintenance

NTC Lessons on Maintaining at Pace

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One of the biggest challenges facing a cavalry squadron at NTC is demand of maintaining their equipment in a tactical environment. Units often provide maintenance support from their motor pool while training at home-station, lending themselves to brick and mortar infrastructure and easy access to their brigade supply support activity (SSA) and other SSAs on the same installation. These unrealistic work conditions create complacency in our ability to conduct maintenance in a tactical environment. Under this construct, units do not stress their equipment, develop analog systems of record, test the strength of their shop stock listing (SSL), practice their 5988-E flow, or fine-tune hasty maintenance meetings at Logistical Release Points (LRPs).

A Soldier from 2nd Battalion, 3rd Infantry Regiment, 3rd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, unloads his Stryker armored fighting vehicle after a long day of conducting fire missions at the National Training Center Aug. 12. Photo by Army Spc. Ryan Hallock.
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Combined Arms Battalion Maintenance

NTC Lessons on Maintaining at Pace

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Operations in a Decisive Action environment against a near-peer threat stress maintenance systems at all levels. The units that go through the NTC carry in training level and competency. The following discussion is based on combined arms battalion maintenance observations over the last eight rotations.

An M1A2SEP Abrams Tank from Company C, 1st Battalion, 64th Armor Regiment ‘Desert Rogues’, 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, sits ready while others complete the night portion of the Gunnery Table VI in the background at Red Cloud Range, Dec. 12. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Richard Wrigley, 2nd ABCT, 3rd ID, Public Affairs NCO).
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Sustaining Aviation Combat Power

NTC Lessons on Maintaining at Pace

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The Aviation Task Force (AVTF) provides a lethal mixture of firepower and maneuverability. Depending on task force configuration, the AVTF consists of a varying quantity of AH-64, CH-47, UH-60, RQ-7B’s and MQ-1C. They all enable the ground force commander to find, fix, and destroy the enemy though fires and maneuver. However, this also presents the AVTF Commander with many unique maintenance challenges not typically found in any other unit. Here are some best practices to help with sustaining aviation combat power in the decisive action environment.

A prolonged exposure shows streaks of light from the headlamps of a 10th Combat Aviation Brigade UH-60M Black Hawk helicopter crew while performing a preflight inspection on an aircraft prior to launching on a personnel movement mission Dec. 8, at Forward Operating Base Fenty, Afghanistan. (U.S. Army Photo by Capt. Peter Smedberg/Released)
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Field Artillery Battalion & Below Maintenance

NTC Lessons on Maintaining at Pace

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In the decisive action training environment (DATE), field artillery (FA) units must conduct maintenance at a faster pace. Fires must enable the maneuver commander to have readily available combat power. This is challenged by the reality of conducting operations during prolonged periods in harsh environmental conditions. Moreover, units must conduct maintenance actions themselves in these demanding conditions. They rarely have the luxury of utilizing hardened bays or paved motor pools. Field artillery leaders must operationalize all maintenance actions. This will ensure proper utilization of manpower and resources to consistently provide maximum available indirect firepower to the maneuver commander.

Spartans from 1st Platoon, Alpha Battery, 4th Battalion, 25th Field Artillery Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division fire their M777 howitzer to calibrate on Forward Operating Base Lightning, Afghanistan, Jan. 15, 2014. The 4th Battalion, 25th Artillery Regiment are currently deployed to Regional Command East in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. (Photo courtesy of Regional Command-East)

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Maintenance in the Brigade Engineer Battalion

NTC Lessons on Maintaining at Pace

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Success throughout any National Training Center (NTC) rotation often directly reflects the rotational units’ emphasis placed on maintenance operations prior to and during the training event. Maintenance operations are often the primary shortcoming of Armored Brigade Combat Teams (ABCTs) at Fort Irwin. The following article provides observations, best practices, and potential solutions for Echo Forward Support Company (FSC) maintenance operations, Engineer specific problem sets, and Chemical Biological Radiological Nuclear (CBRN) Reconnaissance Platoons’ challenges within the Brigade Engineer Battalions (BEB) of ABCTs during Force on Force operations in a Decisive Action Training Environment against a near-peer threat.

These pioneers provide expert surveillance and reconnaissance putting in over 130 flight hours. These Soldiers have an incredibly important mission for the 299th Brigade Engineer Battalion and the 1st Stryker Brigade Combat Team.
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NTC Update (NOV 19)

BSB Disto Company Observations & Best Practices

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The role of the BSB distribution company is to plan, direct, and supervise supply distribution to the brigade. It conducts daily receipt, storage, and issue of supply classes I, II, III, IV, V and IX and transports cargo for the brigade. This unit is employed in the brigade support area and operates throughout the supported brigade area. 

An M2A3 Bradley assigned to 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Armored Division, prepares to move during Decisive Action Rotation 20-01 at the National Training Center in Fort Irwin, California, Oct. 09, 2019. Decisive Action Rotations at the National Training Center ensure Army Brigade Combat Teams remain versatile, responsive, and consistently available for current and future contingencies. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Angel Sanchez, Operations Group, National Training Center.)
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NTC Update (NOV 19)

Forward Support Company Observations & Best Practices

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The Forward Support Companies (FSC) provide direct logistic support to each maneuver battalion in a Brigade Combat Team (BCT). The FSC Commander is responsible for assisting the battalion S4 and, executing logistics support according to both the BSB and supported maneuver commander’s guidance, and serving as the link between organizations (FM 3-96, 9-7). To accomplish these tasks, the FSC echelons assets across the battlefield throughout the company trains, combat trains, and field trains. Synchronizing these elements requires unfettered communication between the key nodes at each echelon including the supported battalion Tactical Operations Center (TOC), Combat Trains Command Post (CTCP), and Field Trains Command Post (FTCP). Manning and equipping the CTCP and FTCP is an implied task for the FSC but, it should be well defined. A symptom of BCTs tendency to perform collective training at the battalion level and of FSC culture which prides itself on not requiring support from the BSB is that Forward Support Companies struggle to provide adequate support during large scale combat operations (LSCO). 

Crew members and mechanics from Golf Forward Support Company, 101st Brigade Support Battalion, 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division, reinstall an engine during National Training Center Rotation 16-08 in August 2016. (Photo Credit: Capt. Jonathan Camire)