RELEASE NUMBER: 140627-01
DATE POSTED: JUNE 27, 2014
National Guard Soldiers train with the 528th STB
by Jerry Green
528th Sustainment Brigade PAO
FORT BRAGG, N.C. (USASOC News Service, June 27, 2014) - The Memorial Day holiday was but a faint memory by the time the two National Guard units from Texas and Nebraska arrived in North Carolina.
As usual in early June the temperatures in central Carolina march into the 90s almost every day with the usual afternoon showers forming every afternoon. For the 135 Guardsmen that travel across the country to Fort Bragg, this was not just a visit; it was to complete their two week annual training.
For many of the Soldiers, this tour of duty was their first time to Fort Bragg, and for all of them, it was the opportunity to train with the Soldiers of the 528th Sustainment Brigade (STB).
“The planning for “Sentinel Rendezvous” started last September,” said Maj. James R. Hewitt, commander of the 195th Forward Support Company (FSB), Nebraska Army National Guard (ANG), Omaha, Neb. “The planning relied on direct support from the 528th STB. This was a coordinated effort with the 197th Special Troops Command (STC) to come to Fort Bragg to train together, network with each other and build on our relationship with the 528th STB.”
The ambitious training schedule had the NG Soldiers moving from one type of training to another, including airborne missions from several different airframes, firing exercises, water purification and treatment training and vehicle maintenance on special operations type vehicles.
The 195th and 197th are attached to the 528th STB for training at Fort Bragg and it was a logical fit to come to Fort Bragg. The 528th mission includes planning, coordinating and integrating logistical, medical and signal support for Army Special Operations Forces (ARSOF) in order to enable Special Operations Force (SOF) operations worldwide.
“For the Guard members, the coordinated airborne training from different airframes highlighted their perspective of airborne operations,” said Capt. Willie J. Hill, one of the 528th exercise planners. “The UH-60 airframe was an integral part of the airborne training out on Sicily DZ. (drop zone)”
The two units set up base camp several kilometers from main post on Training Base Latham. Their first action was to set up the remote feeding site and included the use of the Deployable Rapid Assembly Shelter (DRASH).
The Combined Training Exercise (CTX) focused on convoy handling including emergency recovery measures and situational awareness training during convoy missions.
The water purification training had the team taking water directly from Mott Lake, producing pure water from an open water source in a remote area.
By the end of the two weeks, the 195th and 197th leadership was well aware of the value of this training.
“This was a great opportunity that needs to be repeated in the future,” said Capt. Jackson A. Jameyson, commander, 197th STC. “We have over 40 different Military Occupational Specialty (MOS) in the 197th, and this type of training was valuable to every one of those MOSs.”
“We wanted to do a CTX with an independent overview, and we got it here,” said Hewitt. “Bragg has more resources than I even imaged, and this CTX let us “stick our toe in the water” and find our capabilities. We need to do it again.”