Soldiers with the 68th Combat Sustainment Support Battalion, 4th Sustainment Brigade, 4th Infantry Division, provide fuel to vehicles from 3rd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 4th Inf. Div., during rail-load operations at Fort Carson Dec. 2. The 68th CSSB has provided logistical support since 3rd ABCT began loading its entire set of equipment onto trains Nov. 5, 2016. (Photo by Capt. Scott Walters)
By Capt. Scott Walters
3rd Armored Brigade Combat Team Public Affairs Office, 4th Infantry Division
With the temperature dipping below freezing and snow starting to fall, a typical Colorado December day didn’t hamper 3rd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, Soldiers from wrapping up a week’s worth of work to load trains with equipment ultimately bound for Europe.
A Soldier from 64th Brigade Support Battalion, 3rd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, prepares to tie down an M88A2 recovery vehicle to a train car at Fort Carson Dec. 2, 2016. The train is the last of 12 hauling more than 2,000 pieces of rolling stock ultimately destined for Bremerhaven, Germany, where the Brigade will receive its full set of equipment before movement to Poland for its deployment in support of Atlantic Resolve. The arrival of the heavy brigade will mark the beginning of a continuous presence of an armored brigade combat team in central and eastern Europe, strengthening NATO deterrence and defense efforts. (Photo by Staff Sgt. Ange Desinor)
The rail-load operations concluded Dec. 2, 2016, nearly a week ahead of schedule, in what is the first transportation step toward re-establishing a continuous presence of U.S. Army armored brigade combat teams in Europe. The “Iron” Brigade is deploying 4,000 Soldiers and its full set of equipment for a nine-month rotation to bolster the collective defensive capability of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization in support of Atlantic Resolve.
On this particular Friday morning at the Fort Carson railhead, as gray clouds loomed low and the breaths of Soldiers exhaled like thought balloons overhead, one particular thought pervaded: load this last train.
“If anything, this weather motivates our Soldiers to get the job done,” said Capt. Kenneth Kloeppel, rail operations officer in charge, 1st Battalion, 66th Armor Regiment. “Everyone is really pulling together today so we can finish before the first snowflake hits. Being a Colorado unit, snow brings out the best in us — the ‘harder’ times bring us closer together.”
Just as with the first train loaded Nov. 5, 2016, Soldiers secured a mix of tracked vehicles, fuelers, Humvees, engineer equipment and more to the last train without incident.
“Our Soldiers have been extremely dedicated, regardless of conditions, to upload the more than 2,000 pieces of equipment we have onto rails. The result is we’re wrapping things up about a week ahead of schedule,” said Kloeppel.
A Soldier from the 64th Brigade Support Battalion, 3rd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, guides an M88A2 recovery vehicle onto a train car at Fort Carson Dec. 2, 2016. (Photo by Staff Sgt. Ange Desinor)
“There’s still a good bit of work to be done, but this phase of the operation has been very successful; and we’re looking to carry that success onto the next stage,” he added.
That next stage will focus on loading Abrams tanks, Bradley fighting vehicles, Paladin self-propelled artillery and the rest of the brigade’s equipment set onto sea vessels at Beaumont, Texas. Those ships are scheduled to arrive at the port of Bremerhaven, Germany. The equipment will then be loaded onto trains or travel by convoys to sites in Poland where 3rd ABCT Soldiers will aggregate prior to further disbursing to Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Bulgaria, Hungary and southern Germany for partner training with NATO allies.
Supporting the movement is the 4th Sustainment Brigade, 4th Inf. Div., and 597th Transportation Brigade out of Fort Eustis, Virginia. The 21st Theater Sustainment Command and its 16th Sustainment Brigade are spearheading the logistics of moving the brigade across Europe.
“This is a monumental push, and it’s a total team effort to move this much equipment to and across central and eastern Europe,” Kloeppel said.
A Soldier from 64th Brigade Support Battalion, 3rd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, and a civilian railhead operator guide an M88A2 recovery vehicle onto a train car at Fort Carson Dec. 2, 2016. (Photo by Staff Sgt. Ange Desinor)