Photo By Master Sgt. Thomas Bixler | CAMP ATTERBURY, Ind. - Lieutenant Colonel Alicia Partin, Operations Officer, 213th...... read more read more
213th performs dual, mutli-function mission at annual training
by Staff Sergeant Thomas Bixler
213th Regional Support Group
Public Affairs Operations NCO
CAMP ATTERBURY, Ind. — The 213th Regional Support Group, Pennsylvania Army National Guard had two tasks placed before them for this year’s annual training: run a mobilization operations center for a mobilizing unit, the 236th Inland Cargo Transfer Company, U.S. Army Reserve, and man a tactical operations center as part of a training scenario.
The MOC mission was, itself, two-fold. On one hand, the 213th needed to be the communications-brain behind a real mobilizing unit’s training. They needed to ensure solutions to obstacles and logistical needs were properly relayed between the mobilizing unit, the 157th Infantry Brigade, First Army, who was the certifying unit for their training, and Camp Atterbury to minimize duplication of effort. On the other hand, this was a proof-of-principle mission to determine Camp Atterbury’s efficacy as a mobilization force generation installation – a contingency mobilization location – and Group’s ability to support that mission. Bottom line: if Camp Atterbury ever needed to mobilize large fighting forces for a sustained period, could the 213th RSG handle it?
Colonel [promotable] James McCormack, Assistant Adjutant General, PAARNG, and former Group commander, explained how important this AT was in answering that question, “I think that time spent at CAIN is valuable on a couple different fronts. First, it is engaging with our partners if an MFGI would become a full mission for the RSG…understanding capabilities and resources and assets that come from the other partners in a timeframe when you are not one-hundred percent executing that mission is of great value.”
“We were effectively able to bring together all the forces of the [mobilization support force] to ensure the 236th ICTC is fully prepared for its mobilization in support of contingency operations,” said Lieutenant Colonel Angelo Catalano, Commander, 213th RSG.
Meanwhile, over at the TOC, more of the RSG’s staff was busy fighting off the evil Arianian forces, bent on invading Atropia, again. Don’t bother looking for either of those on a map – they don’t exist. The battle between Atropia and Ariana is a fictional scenario the Army has been using to train units on every phase of an operation like those in Iraq and Afghanistan. The 213th is using it to exercise the unique logistical mission of an RSG.
“The TOC mission allowed the RSG staff to improve upon their military decision making process and TOC operations skills. The staff conducted MDMP, step by step, on a fictional scenario designed to stretch their knowledge base,” explained Lieutenant Colonel Alicia Partin, 213th RSG Operations Officer and TOC Officer-In-Charge.
Both missions required the RSG to apply the MDMP to develop a plan that effectively communicates logistical or training needs between multiple commands toward a successful mission completion.
Catalano stated, “We were actually doing very similar training, just on two different fronts. The MOC was doing a lot more current operations of tracking, which we would normally do in any AT period and the TOC was doing planning on MDMP, which is one of the main functions of the staff.”
Every drill, every AT, and every mission is another opportunity for the 213th RSG to keep itself and its Soldiers at the very top of their game. Consider that while all the above was going on the Headquarters and Headquarters Company of the 213th was placing their own training on the Soldier’s schedules.
“Meanwhile the normal Soldier operations, we were doing [individual weapons qualification], we were doing some lanes training which, again, is a lot of our basic Soldier skills that we continue to do throughout the training year”
Catalano went on to say that he believes this AT is leaving the staff and Soldiers fully prepared to answer the call whether it’s a state or federal mission and the 213th RSG has a complimentary staff that is fully trained and ready for any scenario.
| Date Taken: | 03.13.2020 |
| Date Posted: | 03.16.2020 12:28 |
| Story ID: | 365293 |
| Location: | INDIANA, US |
| Web Views: | 207 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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