Photo By Sgt. 1st Class Christopher Davis | Alabama National Guardsmen and Romanian Land Forces Soldiers pose for a group photo at...... read more read more
Cincu, Romania. –Archimedes of Syracuse said if he was given a lever long enough and a fulcrum on which to place it, he shall move the world.
As leaders of engineering units in the Alabama National Guard, lieutenants have the burden to take the state adjutant general’s vision for the State Partnership Program (SPP) and shape it into the successful program it has become.
They are the leaders on the ground leading Soldiers with training missions and exercises that foster the strengthening of the SPP. As the ancient proverb goes that iron sharpens iron, no one person can improve their own capabilities without having someone else to work with.
“It gives me a different perspective as to the capabilities of our partners, as well as opening my eyes to different areas of the world,” said 1st Lt. Jason Lawing, the horizontal site officer-in-charge with the 186th Engineer Company, Alabama National Guard. “I compare it to what we do at home to become not only better officers and leaders, but also better engineers overall.”
Alabama and Romania are part of the National Guard’s State Partnership Program that was instituted in 1993 after the fall of the Soviet Union. Its ongoing mission is part of the Department of Defense and National Guard Bureau efforts to support allied nations around the world.
There have been over 200 events, missions and exercises since the beginning of the SPP between Alabama and Romania. Events included state visits, training exercises and subject-matter-expert exchanges, whereas both militaries share ideas and conduct training that amplify their capabilities for future operations.
Multiple engineer units of the Alabama National Guard are currently supporting Resolute Castle 16 throughout the summer during multiple rotations at Cincu Training Range, Romania. They are working side-by-side with their Romanian engineering counterparts.
“It gives probably the best experience we can provide to the Soldiers other than a full deployment,” said 1st Lt. Jeffery Powell, logistics and planning officer for horizontal site operations with the 1151st Engineer Company. “They have a variety of things that makes them a better Soldier, compare to just doing training stateside in the armory or at Fort McClellan.”
Engineers from the Alabama National Guard and Romanian Land Forces are working together during Resolute Castle 16 to expand the infrastructure projects from the previous year at Cincu Training Range, including a range access road and multiple buildings that support live fire exercises for multinational joint force operations.
After Resolute Castle 15 ended, Cincu Training Range was one of the selected locations for Histria 2015, a multinational training exercise that involved over 7,000 Soldiers. The projects completed by the Alabama and Romanian engineers helped the range to facilitate the exercise.
“We definitely want to keep coming back,” said 1st Lt. Powell. “Any time we can help them, we would be glad to because it helps us too.”
According to Lawing, engineers from both sides see techniques and methods from both nations. They learn to adapt them as needed to make the mission successful and develop comradery.
For some of the leadership of Resolute Castle 16, it was their first time to work overseas or in a SPP project.
Second Lt. Dan Aron, 1652 Engineer Battalion, Romanian Land Forces, was a student last year at the Land Force Academy and sent to Cincu Training Range last June for only one week for leadership training at the horizontal construction site. He is the vertical construction site officer-in-charge for the Romanian Land Forces engineers this year.
“It was the first time for me doing this,” said 2nd Lt. Aron. “I really enjoyed it a lot and cannot wait until next year to come again.”
For 1st Lt. Joseph Prinzinger, vertical construction site officer-in-charge with the 1151st Engineer Company, it was his first time to work in Romania as part of Resolute Castle.
“I was very excited about coming to Romania, and I really wanted to experience this,” said 1st Lt. Prinzinger. “It really lived up to everything I was looking forward to.”
First Lt. Prinzinger stated working with Aron has helped him develop in becoming a better officer, because Aron was “top shelf quality material.” The men and women, whom 1st Lt. Prinzinger led at the vertical site, share a similar view that the Romanians brought a lot enthusiasm and new tools for the toolbox.
These engineer lieutenants in the Alabama National Guard have learned to operate in a joint environment with active duty and other National Guard elements as well.
First Lt. Dustin Bowers, logistics and planning officer for vertical construction site operations, said it was important to be coordinated and synced with the higher echelon, the 194th Engineer Brigade, Tennessee National Guard. They were the lead element for Resolute Castle 16 that covered multiple countries in Eastern Europe, including Romania, Bulgaria, Estonia and Hungary.
During the course of the third rotation for Resolute Castle 16, Bowers had to also coordinate range access and worksites to accommodate the Regimental Engineer Squadron 2nd Cavalry Regiment and Romanian mechanized infantry units, as they conducted live fire exercises.
“This was a huge learning opportunity because it was the first time I was placed in a staff position,” said 1st Lt. Bowers. “I learned how to be a middle man from the top of our leadership hierarchy all the way to the bottom, where the Soldiers are actually out there at the jobsites doing the work.”
The SPP provides opportunities for Romanian Land Forces and the Alabama National Guard to develop a level of interoperability not just for their current mission but all future operations.
As Resolute Castle develops in years to come to potentially more complex missions and projects, each lieutenant during the third rotation expressed in no uncertain terms they are willing and wanting to come back to work alongside their counterparts again.
“It is an ongoing partnership that we will be able to keep on going in the future,” said 1st Lt. Bowers. “Hopefully, we will continue to plan our annual trainings to be in Romania so we get that training opportunity to continue to develop that partnership.”
As Archimedes needed a level and a fulcrum to move the world, these lieutenants took Major General Perry Smith’s intent and purpose of the Alabama and Romania State Partnership Program and worked to complete the projects together at Cincu Training Range. These projects will benefit all nations who will use that area for years to come.
“We shook the earth and moved the world,” said Prinzinger. “We got out there; we went at it hard and got a lot done.”
| Date Taken: | 06.30.2016 |
| Date Posted: | 07.05.2016 07:54 |
| Story ID: | 203099 |
| Location: | CINCU, RO |
| Web Views: | 259 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Junior Alabama Army National Guard Officers Ensure Success of Partnership with Romania, by SFC Christopher Davis, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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