Staff Sgt. Joseph Bigelow, a crew chief for the Kentucky Air National Guard’s 123rd Contingency Response Group, marshals a Kentucky Air National Guard C-130 Hercules during Capstone '14, a homeland earthquake-response exercise at Fort Campbell, Ky., on June 17, 2014. The 123rd CRG is joining with the U.S. Army’s 688th Rapid Port Opening Element to operate a Joint Task Force-Port Opening here from June 16 to 19, 2014. (U.S. Air National Guard photo by Master Sgt. Phil Speck)

(Award accepted by SGM Bentura Fernandez) MSGT Williams, 409th contracting support brigade, ECC, provided exceptional service as the noncommissioned officer in charge of the Regional Contracting Center-Tallil. She flawlessly managed multiple contracting processes and programs that resulted in the execution of nearly 1,000 contracting actions valued at more than $1 million.

CONTINGENCY OPERATING SITE WARRIOR, Iraq – The Kirkuk Emergency Services Unit Raid Platoon, assisted by Company B, 2nd Battalion, 12th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Advise and Assist Task Force, 1st Infantry Division, scans a Kirkuk resident into the Handheld Interagency Identity Detection Equipment after finding suspicious items in the resident’s home, May 4, 2011. The HIIDE is a biometric identification system that allows the user to accurately verify a person’s identity after being enrolled in a database.

(U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Robert DeDeaux, 1st AATF PAO, 1st Inf. Div., USD-N)

Airmen from the Kentucky Air National Guard’s 123rd Contingency Response Group, augmented by troops from the active-duty Air Force and Air National Guard units in multiple states, dowload relief supplies from aircraft around the clock at Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport in San Juan, Puerto Rico, in the wake of Hurricane Maria Oct. 5, 2017. The unit’s Airmen established an aerial port of debarkation upon arrival here Sept. 23, and have processed more than 7.2 million pounds of cargo and humanitarian aid for distribution in the first three weeks of the operation. (U.S. Air National Guard photo by Lt. Col. Dale Greer)

ORLANDO, Fla. - In today’s complex and high tempo operational environment, America’s Army Reserve to rapidly deploy highly trained units to any corner of the world with the personnel and equipment they have on hand. With multiple contingencies and numerous potential threats capable of employing cutting-edge tactics with modern military equipment, the Army Reserve looks to its premiere sustainers such the 143d Sustainment Command (Expeditionary) to lead, train and equip its 10,000-Soldier command.

In taking the first, major step toward achieving this vital mission, the 143d ESC conducted a Mission Training Brief Feb. 2-3, 2018, at the command’s headquarters in Orlando, Fla.

“An MTB promotes cohesion through collaboration,” said U.S. Army Lt. Col. Walter L. Flinn, commander, 332nd Transportation Terminal Battalion. “It offers a forum for commanders to share their successes and shortcomings while seeking and offering guidance among their fellow leaders.”

Led by U.S. Army Brig. Gen. Deborah L. Kotulich, commanding general, 143d ESC, the MTB featured dozens of senior leaders from the company to the ESC level whose wealth of knowledge and experience offered solutions to a myriad of logistical challenges.

“The expectation of having several months to bring your Soldiers up to speed at a pre-mobilization station is coming to an end,” Kotulich announced to dozens of battalion and brigade commanders and command sergeants majors huddled in the conference room. “We must assume that we will mobilize at a moment’s notice, and it’s our responsibility that we physically and mentally prepare every Soldier for the rigors of combat through realistic training.”

Kotulich expects every downtrace unit to spend less time in classrooms and more time in the field. This focus on individual and collective readiness stems from the U.S. Army Reserve Command’s Ready Force X initiative.

“Ready Force X is the Army Reserve’s answer to the [U.S.] Army’s demand for properly equipped and highly trained Soldiers who can rapidly deploy into combat,” said U.S. Army Col. Wanda Williams, commander, 641st Regional Sustainment Group. “Almost half of the 143d ESC’s downtrace units must meet the strict criteria established by Ready Force X’s “Fight Fast” mentality. This MTB offers precious time for commanders to obtain timely information needed to properly execute the numerous requirements to maintain a constantly high state of readiness.”

While Kotulich entrusts her fellow officers to formulate plans and carry out the Army Reserve’s “Fight Fast” initiative, she relies on her command sergeants major to refine the tasks required to carry out their commanding general’s intent.

“There are 43 individual training requirements that every unit must complete before reporting to a pre-mobilization site,” said U.S. Army Command Sgt. Maj. Carlos O. Lopes, command sergeant major, 143d ESC. “As NCOs, we are responsible for providing effective training that ensures every Soldier has mastered these fundamental skills that directly determine one’s survivability on the battlefield.”

“NCOs can only do this if they understand their commanders’ intent,” added Command Sgt. Maj. Kenyatta S. Stamps, command sergeant major, 787th Combat Support and Sustainment Battalion. “The MTB allows us to hear those intentions firsthand and develop effective techniques and tactics to achieve them.”

These techniques and tactics encompass a variety of tasks that enhance speed, agility and sustained readiness at the individual, team and unit level. From warrior drills to medical readiness, commanders must meticulously manage finite time and resources to crystallize the Army Reserve’s strategic vision and implement the 143d ESC’s operational mission.

“Ready Force X is about leadership, energy and execution,” said Flinn. “Commanders must own the responsibility for readiness. Establishing an open dialog among senior leaders remains paramount to understanding not only what we do but how we do it.”

With more than half of the 143d ESC falls under the Ready Force X umbrella, every unit and Soldier must face the challenges if they are to reap the awards of transforming America’s Army Reserve into the most lethal and capable federal reserve force in U.S. history.

“America demands highly trained and proficient Soldiers, and the Army Reserve is blessed to have motivated men and women ready to endure the hardships inherent in armed conflict,” said Williams. “That’s why I tell my Soldiers, ‘Don’t worry about the names. Just be ready. Be ready now!”

U.S. Army photo by Sgt. John L. Carkeet IV, 143d ESC

Family members, friends, fellow Soldiers and Virginia Guard senior leaders bid a formal farewell to the Soldiers of the Virginia Beach-based 1945th Contingency Contracting Team, 529th Combat Sustainment Support Battalion, 329th Regional Support Group Feb. 8, 2014, at Camp Pendleton in Virginia Beach. Virginia Sen. Jeffrey L. McWaters of the 8th District, Maj. Gen. Daniel E. Long Jr., the Adjutant General of Virginia, Command Sgt. Maj. Dennis A. Green, the Virginia National Guard Senior Enlisted Leader, Col. Michelle Rose, commander of the 329th RSG, Lt. Col. Michael Waterman, commander of the 529th CSSB, Lt. Col. Brent Carey, team leader of the 1944th CCT, and Capt. Bert Hankins, commander of the 1945th CCT, were among the speakers at the ceremony. The four-Soldier team will now head to Camp Shelby, Miss., for premobilization training before they head to Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. (Photo by Master Sgt. A.J. Coyne, Virginia Guard Public Affairs)

Soldier tries to outmaneuver military working dog.

CONTINGENCY OPERATING BASE WARHORSE, Iraq – Specialist David Collett, a Douglasville, Ga., native, and military working dog handler with the 91st Military Police Detachment out of Fort Polk, La., attached to 2nd Advise and Assist Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division, attempts to flee from Bbentley, a military working dog, during training at Contingency Operating Base Warhorse, Iraq, July 7, 2011.

(U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Justin Naylor, 2nd AAB PAO, 1st Cav. Div., USD-N)

U.S. Air Force logistics personnel, assigned to the 621st Contingency Response Wing from Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, New Jersey, load support equipment and rolling stock cargo onto a contracted Boeing 747 airliner at McEntire Joint National Guard Base, South Carolina, July 9, 2018. The South Carolina Air National Guard’s 169th Fighter Wing is deploying nearly 300 Airmen and approximately a dozen F-16 Block 52 Fighting Falcon fighter jets to the 407th Air Expeditionary Group in Southwest Asia in support of an Air Expeditionary Force rotation. (U.S. Air National Guard photo by Senior Airman Megan Floyd)

U.S. Air Force Tech. Sgt. Jarrod Blanford, an aerial porter from the Kentucky Air National Guard’s 123rd Contingency Response Group (left), reviews a cargo manifest with U.S. Air Force Airman 1st Class Evan Kuehl, a loadmaster from the 86th Airlift Wing, prior to the departure of a C-130 Hercules from Léopold Sédar Senghor International Airport in Dakar, Senegal, Oct. 22, 2014. The flight is bound for Liberia, carrying whole blood and U.S. Army Soldiers supporting Operation United Assistance, the U.S. Agency for International Development-led, whole-of-government effort to respond to the Ebola outbreak in West Africa. (U.S. Air National Guard photo by Maj. Dale Greer)

NAVAL SUPPORT ACTIVITY BAHRAIN (Aug. 8, 2013) -

Commander, Task Force 51/59, Rear Adm. William Lescher speaks to the crowd at Naval Support Activity Bahrain on Aug. 8, 2013. Lescher was relieved of command by Commander, U.S. Marine Corps Central Command, Brig. Gen. Gregg Olson. CTF-51 provides command and control over amphibious forces deployed in the U.S. 5th Fleet area of responsibility. CTF-59 is a standing contingency response task force. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Sgt. James A. Hall/Released)

A contingency New Flyer seen staged just north of Rose Quarter Transit Center (on Wheeler, Soutbound next to the Moda Center). It was sent there to assist with the steel bridge closure MAX Shuttles, but they ended up not being needed on the day when this photo was taken.

This was also the last day that 2540 was ever used in a public setting. It is also one of the very few times that a 2500 was seen in public with replaced windows (some of the windows on this bus were swapped out with ones on LFRs).

There is also an older Gillig BRT to the right of the photo

CONTINGENCY OPERATING BASE WARHORSE, Iraq – Major Bryan Price, a Sea Girt, N.J., native, and a key leader engagement manager for 2nd Advise and Assist Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division, U.S. Division – North, wears a tie his daughter gave him while recording himself reading a book at Contingency Operating Base Warhorse, Iraq, June 3, 2011. Price recorded the reading session as part of a program that allows Soldiers to send the videos to their children.

(U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Justin Naylor, 2nd AAB PAO, 1st Cav. Div., USD-N)

CONTINGENCY OPERATING LOCATION K1, Iraq – Staff Sgt. Thomas Harrelson, a communication specialist from Brigham, Utah, assigned to Company B, 1st Brigade Special Troops Battalion, 1st Advise and Assist Task Force, 1st Infantry Division, from Fort Riley, Kan., explains how to operate a telephone operation switchboard during a lecture, March 10, 2011, at Contingency Operating Location K1, Kirkuk. The class reviewed the operation of the radio system and provided the students the opportunity to use the radio in order to develop their understanding of the communications system.

(U.S. Army photo by Spc. Kandi Huggins 1st AATF PAO, 1st Inf. Div., USD-N)

This is a soccer stadium at Contingency Operating Base Speicher near Tikrit, Iraq. It used to be Al Sahra Airfield under Saddam Hussein until the US took it over in 2003.

Full house.

CONTINGENCY OPERATING BASE SPEICHER, Iraq – Terry Ellis and Maxine Jones, founding members of En Vogue, sing fan favorites and R&B classics for troops and civilians during a concert at Contingency Operating Base Speicher, Iraq, Jan. 20, 2011. Jones and Ellis belted out a medley of R&B classics bringing excitement and cheer to the U.S. Division-North troops stationed at COB Speicher in support of Operation New Dawn. “This trip has been nothing less than phenomenal,” Ellis told the crowd as the show came to a close. “We have gained so much more respect for and understanding of the sacrifices all of you make, and we want you to tell your Families that we appreciate the sacrifices they have made. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts.”

(U.S. Army photo by Spc. Andrew Ingram, USD-N PAO)

U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Joshua Orme, a special vehicle mechanic for the Kentucky Air National Guard’s 123rd Contingency Response Group, reads the electrical schematics for a 25,000-pound Halvorsen Loader while performing maintenance on the cargo-handling vehicle outside the Joint Operations Center at Léopold Sédar Senghor International Airport in Dakar, Senegal, Oct. 27, 2014. More than 70 Kentucky Air Guardsmen are operating an Aerial Port of Debarkation in Senegal to funnel humanitarian supplies and military support into West Africa as part of Operation United Assistance, the U.S. Agency for International Development-led, whole-of-government effort to contain the Ebola virus outbreak. (U.S. Air National Guard photo by Maj. Dale Greer)

Members from the 5th Quartermaster Theater Aerial Delivery Company, 435th Air Ground Operations Wing's Contingency Response Group and 21st Theater Sustainment Command march toward the grave of Pvt. Richard Vargas during a wreath laying ceremony at Lorraine American National Cemetery and Memorial, St. Avold, France, June 2, 2014. Vargas saved the life of Leslie Cruise, a World War II veteran. Cruise went to France several times prior to this visit looking for his friend’s grave in order to say thank you. (U.S. Air Force photo/Senior Airman Hailey Haux)

Spc. Nathan Miller with Alpha Battery, 2nd Battalion, 146th Field Artillery, 81st Brigade Combat Team, Washington Army National Guard, listens as Col. Ronald Kapral, the commander of the 81st BCT, and Command Sgt. Maj. Robert Sweeney, the command sergeant major of the 81st BCT, speak to their Soldiers during a visit Feb. 7 at Contingency Operating Base Marez, Iraq. About 2,400 Washington National Guardsmen and 900 California National Guardsmen deployed with the 81st BCT based out of Seattle in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom in October. They are scheduled to return home this summer.

Olivia Arrington brings laughs.

CONTINGENCY OPERATING BASE SPEICHER, Iraq – Olivia Arrington, a comedian on the Lone Wolf Entertainment Comedy Tour 2011, brings laughs to a small crowd of service members at the U.S. Division-North Comprehensive Soldier Fitness Center at Contingency Operating Base Speicher, Iraq, Feb. 11, 2011. Arrington joined two other comics as they helped to bring a bit of relaxation and laughter to the troops serving in support of Operation New Dawn.

(U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Shawn Miller, 109th MPAD, USD-N PAO)

CONTINGENCY OPERATING STATION GARRY OWEN, Iraq- Soldiers from the mortar platoon, 3rd Battalion, 8th Cavalry Regiment, 3rd Advise and Assist Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division, fire a 120mm mortar out of an armored mortar carrier at Camp Sparrowhawk, Iraq, Aug. 25. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Mathew Lee, 3rd Bn., 8th Cav. Regt., 3rd AAB, 1st Cav. Div.)

CONTINGENCY OPERATING SITE MAREZ, Iraq – U.S. forces prepare Joint Security Station Whiskey 4 for a transfer to Iraqi responsibility at the base in Ninewa province, Iraq, July 30, 2011. Approximately 200 Soldiers and civilian contractors inhabited the base during Operation New Dawn to support Iraqi Security Forces in western Ninewa.

(U.S. Army photo by Capt. Philip Crabtree, 4th AAB PAO, 1st Cav. Div., USD – N)

Speaking with the locals.

CONTINGENCY OPERATING SITE WARRIOR, Iraq – Private 1st Class Anthony Richardson, an infantryman serving with Company A, 2nd Battalion, 12th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Advise and Assist Task Force, 1st Infantry Division, speaks with a Kurdish boy while on a combined security forces patrol in Kirkuk City, Iraq, March 8, 2011. Richardson, along with the rest of Company A, conduct combined operations with the Kirkuk expanded Combined Security Force, an Iraqi Security Forces unit comprised of Iraqi Army soldiers, Kurdish Regional Guard and Iraqi Policemen.

(U.S. Army photo by 1st Sgt. Steven Sierras, Company A, 2nd Bn., 12th Cav. Regt., 1st AATF, 1st Inf. Div.)

Actor Anthony Anderson speaks with wounded warriors at the Contingency Aeromedical Staging Facility April 20 during the USO spring troop visit led by Navy Adm. James A. Winnefeld, Jr., vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. The team of celebrities are performing and taking photos with fans in four different countries for eight performances, to include one aboard the U.S.S. Enterprise. Other celebrities on the tour include actor/performer Jason "Wee-Man" Acuna; actor Dennis Haysbert; Major League Baseball pitching star Randy "The Big Unit" Johnson; singer/songwriter/actress Diana DeGarmo; singer/songwriter/actor Ace Young, and Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders Kelsi Reich, Brittany Evans and Allyson Traylor. DoD photo by Air Force Master Sgt. Chuck Marsh, Joint Staff.

Staff Sgt. Amanda Galdo of Spearfish is welcomed home by her husband, David Galdo at Rapid City Regional Airport on Tuesday, August 13, 2013 after spending 8 months deployed to Afghanistan. Galdo is a part of the 1978th Contingency Contracting Team, which is responsible for assisting with the development and administration of contracting support plans, policy and appendices in support of operational, contingency and deliberate plans. Three members of her unit are presently completing their assignments in Afghanistan. (SDNG photo by Staff Sgt. Michael Beck) (RELEASED)

Soldiers fire Paladins.

CONTINGENCY OPERATING SITE MAREZ, Iraq – “Black Dragons,” 5th Battalion, 82nd Field Artillery Regiment, 4th Advise and Assist Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division, fire M109A6 Paladins during a certification exercise, March 16, 2011. The “Red Leg” Soldiers of 5th Bn., 82nd FA Regt., “Black Dragons,” fired M109A6 Paladins, launching 155 mm high-explosive rounds from a firing point at Destiny Range. The firing teams renewed certification on the indirect-fire support weapon prior to the combined arms live fire exercise conducted with Iraqi Security Forces the following day.

(U.S. Army photo by Spc. Terence Ewings, 4th AAB PAO, 1st Cav. Div., USD-N)

A U.S. Marine Corps CH-53E Super Stallion from Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 772 conducts slingload operations with U.S. Air Force Airmen from the 621st Contingency Response Wing at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, N.J., May 10. Both units were preparing for a Marine airpower demonstration at the 2012 JB MDL Open House and & Air Show, scheduled for May 12 and 13. (U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Parker Gyokeres)

Proper salute.

CONTINGENCY OPERATING BASE WARHORSE, Iraq – Spc. Jonathan Noriega, infantryman, Company C, 1st Battalion, 21st Infantry Regiment, 2nd Advise and Assist Brigade, 25th Infantry Division, renders a salute to Brig. Gen. Paul LaCamera, deputy division commander of Task Force Lightning, before receiving the Purple Heart medal during an award ceremony at the Salie Gym on Contingency Operating Base Warhorse, Diyala province, Iraq, March 26, 2011. Noriega, from Queen Creek, Ariz., received the Purple Heart medal for injuries he sustained during an enemy attack while on a patrol on Jan. 3, 2011.

(U.S. Army photo by Cpl. Robert England, 2nd AAB PAO, 25th Inf. Div., USD-N)

U.S. Air Force Tech. Sgt. Brian Leach, an aerial porter from the Kentucky Air National Guard’s 123rd Contingency Response Group, directs the offloading of humanitarian cargo from a U.S. Air Force KC-10 aircraft at Léopold Sédar Senghor International Airport in Dakar, Senegal, Nov. 12, 2014. The cargo will be staged in Senegal before being transloaded to U.S. Air Force C-130J aircraft for delivery into Monrovia, Liberia, in support of Operation United Assistance, the U.S. Agency for International Development-led, whole-of-government effort to contain the Ebola virus outbreak in West Africa. (U.S. Air National Guard photo by Maj. Dale Greer)

Airmen from the 621st Contingency Response Wing (CRW) based at Travis Air Force Base, CA, deploy to Central African Republic (CAR) for humanitarian support, on December 14, 2013. AFRICOM is beginning to transport African troops from Burundi to CAR using US Air Force C-17 aircraft operating out of Entebbe as part of a larger effort of African nations supporting the African crisis in CAR. C-17s will to fly about a dozen missions from Entebbe over a week time frame, transporting a Burundian light infantry battalion of about 850 men and equipment from Bujumbura to Bangui in CAR. The C-17âs are staged at Entebbe airport as a convenient mid-way point with the proper facilities to service the aircraft and support aircrews. SSgt Brian Harmon, 571 Global Moblity Readiness Squadron, holds his daughter while waiting in the PAX Terminal, Travis AFB before boarding a C-17 bound to Central Africa. (Released - U.S. Air Force Photograph/Heide Couch)

Army Instructor assists airmen.CONTINGENCY OPERATING SITE MAREZ, Iraq – Sgt. Brenda Goode, a combat medic assigned to Company C, 27th Brigade Support Battalion, 4th Advise and Assist Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division, teaches an airman, assigned to the Air Force Financial Management Detachment from Ohio and stationed at COS Marez, to perform a chest needle decompression to treat a sucking chest wound injury on a medical “manikin” during a tactical field care exercise, July 7. Goode, a native of Comanche, Texas, was one of the primary instructors for the five-day combat lifesaver course conducted at the battalion’s aid station on COS Marez. In addition to teaching the refresher CLS course, Goode is also a team leader assigned to the battalion’s Medical Evacuation Platoon. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Terence Ewings, 4th AAB PAO, 1st Cav. Div., USD-N)

Family members, friends, fellow Soldiers and Virginia Guard senior leaders bid a formal farewell to the Soldiers of the Virginia Beach-based 1945th Contingency Contracting Team, 529th Combat Sustainment Support Battalion, 329th Regional Support Group Feb. 8, 2014, at Camp Pendleton in Virginia Beach. Virginia Sen. Jeffrey L. McWaters of the 8th District, Maj. Gen. Daniel E. Long Jr., the Adjutant General of Virginia, Command Sgt. Maj. Dennis A. Green, the Virginia National Guard Senior Enlisted Leader, Col. Michelle Rose, commander of the 329th RSG, Lt. Col. Michael Waterman, commander of the 529th CSSB, Lt. Col. Brent Carey, team leader of the 1944th CCT, and Capt. Bert Hankins, commander of the 1945th CCT, were among the speakers at the ceremony. The four-Soldier team will now head to Camp Shelby, Miss., for premobilization training before they head to Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. (Photo by Master Sgt. A.J. Coyne, Virginia Guard Public Affairs)

LIBAVA, Czech Republic -- An A-10 Thunderbolt II pilot from the 81st Fighter Squadron shoots training rounds Sept. 14, during a close air support mission a part of Ramstein Rover 2012 at a training range here. RARO 12 is a NATO exercise focused on preparing forward air controllers for contingency operations. Sixteen NATO member nations are participating in the exercise to establish and build upon common techniques, tactics and practices. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Natasha Stannard/ Released)

U.S. Army Africa Commander Maj. Gen. Patrick J. Donahue II awards the Army Commendation Medal to Navy Lt. Cmdr. Thomas Gilmore, Monday, May 13.

Donahue recognized a group of military personal who supported U.S. Army Africa operations from Feb. 19 to May 10. According to the citiation, their exceptional leadership, planning ability and expertise was invaluable to the successes of USARAF. In doing so, the command met or exceeded all requirements in sychonizing Department of Defense efforts in Mali. (U.S. Army Africa photo by Sgt. 1st Class Wil Patterson)

To learn more about U.S. Army Africa visit our official website at www.usaraf.army.mil

Join the U.S. Army Africa conversation on Facebook: www.facebook.com/ArmyAfrica

Virginia National Guard Soldiers from the Virginia Beach-based 1940th and 1945th Contingency Contracting Teams participate in a six-day, joint, multi-state, contracting exercise Nov. 15, 2013, at Camp Pendleton, Va. The exercise, Vital Pledge, also includes Air and Army Guard personnel in Maine, Minnesota and South Dakota, as well as civilians from the Defense Logistics Agency. In addition to improving the Soldiers’ and Airmen’s familiarity with contracting systems and equipment, the exercise served to help prepare the four Soldiers of the 1945 CCT for their upcoming deployment to Afghanistan in early 2014. (Photo by Master Sgt. A.J. Coyne, Virginia Guard Public Affairs)

A military vehicle speeds past Col. Ronald Kapral, the 81st Brigade Combat Team commander, Lt. Col. Kenneth Garrison, the commander of the 81st Brigade Special Troops Battalion, 81st BCT, Lt. Col. Alan Dorow, the commander of the 181st Brigade Support Battalion, 81st BCT, and Capt. Forrest Horan, the commander of Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 81st BSTB, 81st BCT, during training Feb. 6, 2009 at Contingency Operating Base Q-West, Iraq. About 2,400 Washington National Guardsmen and 900 California National Guardsmen deployed with the 81st BCT based out of Seattle in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom in October. They are scheduled to return home this summer.

CONTINGENCY OPERATING BASE SPEICHER, Iraq –BMX rider Drew Bezanson vaults over Maj. Gen. David G. Perkins, commanding general, U.S. Division-North, during the “Bikes Over Baghdad 3” Tour at Contingency Operating Base Speicher, Iraq, Dec. 6. Several professional BMX riders from the “X-Games” headlined the tour, providing entertainment to Soldiers deployed across Iraq and Kuwait.

A paratrooper assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 325th Airborne Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, prepares to move while conducting live fire training on Fort Bragg, Sept. 9, 2013. The White Falcons, currently part of the Global Response Force, conducted a two-week intensive training cycle designed to reinforce combat skills for the nation’s airborne assault-capable, contingency unit.

(U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Jason Hull)

A U.S. Air Force C-17 Globemaster III offloads an M2A1 Bradley Infantry Fighting Vehicle at Holland Landing Zone, Fort Bragg, N.C., during Joint Operations Access Exercise 12-02, June 7, 2012. JOAX is a two-week forcible entry and ground combat exercise to prepare Air Force and Army service members to respond to worldwide crises and contingencies.

Following a 401st Army Field Support Brigade command brief and a tour of the AFSBn-Bagram, Logistics Task Force Bagram redistribution property assistance team area, Maj. Gen. Robert S. Ferrell, Communications-Electronics Command commanding general and Brig. Gen. Kevin J. O’Connell, Joint Munitions and Lethality Command and Joint Munitions Command commanding general got a chance to meet some of their employees assigned to the 401st who support the Warfighter across the Combined Joint Operations Area-Afghanistan Mar. 19.

About the 401st:

The 401st Army field Support Brigade provides Soldiers, Sailors, Airman, and Marines, the tools and resources necessary to complete the mission. If they shoot it, drive it, fly it, wear it, eat it or communicate with it, the 401st helps provide it. The brigade assists coalition partners with many of their logistical and sustainment needs. The brigade also handles the responsible disposition of equipment in Afghanistan to support evolving missions. We are the single link between Warfighters in the field, and working through Army Sustainment Command, we leverage Army Materiel Command’s worldwide Materiel Enterprise to develop, deliver, and sustain materiel to ensure a dominant joint force for the U.S. and our Allies.

For More information please visit us online:

401st AFSB Facebook

Army Sustainment Command

Army Materiel Command

Pink Scarf.CONTINGENCY OPERATING BASE SPEICHER, Iraq – Spc. Michael Raneo, an infantryman with Company B, 1st Battalion, 5th Calvary Regiment, 2nd Advise and Assist Brigade, 1st Calvary Division, hands out a bag of school supplies to a girl at an orphanage in Tikrit, Iraq, Sept. 12, 2011. The infantrymen gave out school supplies, personal care items and clothing to the children. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Crystal Hudson, 29th MPAD, USD – N PAO)

A U.S. Marine Corps CH-53E Super Stallion from Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 772 conducts slingload operations with U.S. Air Force Airmen from the 621st Contingency Response Wing at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, N.J., May 10. Both units were preparing for a Marine airpower demonstration at the 2012 JB MDL Open House and & Air Show, scheduled for May 12 and 13. (U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Parker Gyokeres)

Aerial porters from the Kentucky Air National Guard’s 123rd Contingency Response Group push a pallet of cargo onto a C-130 aircraft from Dyess Air Force Base, Texas, at Léopold Sédar Senghor International Airport in Dakar, Senegal, Nov. 4, 2014. The Kentucky Airmen are operating an Aerial Port of Debarkation to funnel humanitarian aid to Liberia in support of Operation United Assistance, the U.S. Agency for International Development-led, whole-of-government effort to contain the Ebola virus outbreak in West Africa. (U.S. Air National Guard photo by Maj. Dale Greer)

Aerial porters from the Kentucky Air National Guard’s 123rd Contingency Response Group offload pallets of humanitarian aid from a U.S. Air Force KC-10 aircraft onto a Halverson cargo-handling vehicle at Léopold Sédar Senghor International Airport in Dakar, Senegal, Nov. 12, 2014. The Kentucky Airmen will stage the cargo in Senegal before transloading it to U.S. Air Force C-130J aircraft for delivery into Monrovia, Liberia, in support of Operation United Assistance, the U.S. Agency for International Development-led, whole-of-government effort to contain the Ebola virus outbreak in West Africa. (U.S. Air National Guard photo by Maj. Dale Greer)

SOUTH CHINA SEA (April 26, 2016) - Culinary Specialist 3rd Class Alex P. Christie, a native of Chico, Calif., swims out to retrieve Oscar, the training mannequin, during a man-overboard drill aboard guided-missile destroyer USS Chung-Hoon (DDG 93). Providing a ready force supporting security and stability in the Indo-Asia-Pacific, USS Chung-Hoon is operating as part of the John C. Stennis Strike Group and Great Green Fleet on a regularly scheduled 7th Fleet deployment. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Marcus L. Stanley/Released) 160426-N-MJ645-011

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Aerial porters from the Kentucky Air National Guard’s 123rd Contingency Response Group offload humanitarian cargo from a U.S. Air Force KC-10 aircraft at Léopold Sédar Senghor International Airport in Dakar, Senegal, Nov. 12, 2014. The Kentucky Airmen will stage the cargo in Senegal before transloading it to U.S. Air Force C-130J aircraft for delivery into Monrovia, Liberia, in support of Operation United Assistance, the U.S. Agency for International Development-led, whole-of-government effort to contain the Ebola virus outbreak in West Africa. (U.S. Air National Guard photo by Maj. Dale Greer)

Soldiers in the U.S. Army Africa Contingency Command Post work together to help raise the large tent internal framework into place. (U.S. Army Africa photo by Sgt. 1st Class Will Patterson)

To learn more about U.S. Army Africa visit our official website at www.usaraf.army.mil

Join the U.S. Army Africa conversation on Facebook: www.facebook.com/ArmyAfrica

Lt. Gen. Helmick awards Soldier with coin

CONTINGENCY OPERATING SITE MAREZ, Iraq – Lt. Gen. Frank Helmick, Deputy Commanding General of Operations for U.S. Forces-Iraq, presents a U.S. Forces-Iraq coin for excellence to Spc. Brian Carter during a ceremony at Contingency Operating Site Marez, May 24, 2011. Carter serves as a military policeman assigned to 214th Military Police Company, attached to 4th Advise and Assist Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division. Primarily working as a radio telephone operator, Carter, a native of Opelika, Ala., earned the coin for his work in supporting 4th AAB’s mission while working in the military police company’s tactical operating center.

(U.S. Army photo by Spc. Terence Ewings, 4th AAB PAO, 1st Cav. Div., USD-N)

(Top to bottom) Pfc. Jeremy Rivera, 29th Combat Aviation Brigade, and Sgt. Tomes Weekes, 8th Ordinance Battalion, practice combatives drills on Contingency Operating Base Adder, Sept. 1.

Kentucky Guard member Tech. Sgt. Phil Seif with the 123rd Contingency Response Element installs a speaker system on top of the Hard sided Expandable Light Air Mobile Shelter in Springfield, Mo on May 16, 2011 during the National Level Exercise. The NLE is comprised of the Department of Defense forces and Human Services such as the Mobile Aeromedical Staging Facility and the Federal Emergency Management Agency. The NLE itself is a scenario of a 6.0 or higher earthquake on the New Madrid fault line. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Maxwell Rechel)