JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska- What seemed to be a normal week at the 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 25th Infantry Division, turned out to be a little different as a green, beige and black camouflaged uniform made a distinguishing contrast to the Army Combat Uniform normally seen around the Spartan Brigade.
The man in the contrasting uniform was Master Gunnery Sgt. Jon Lines, an intelligence chief from the G-2 intelligence section of the 3rd Marine Division out of Okinawa, Japan.
Army Master Sgt. Jason Roach with Headquarters Company, 4/25 was Lines' main liaison to the Spartan Brigade.
"He's here basically conducting a site survey to see how we operate as a unit," said Roach. "We here want to afford him every opportunity to experience everything our unit has to offer and what all types of operations we conduct on a day-to-day basis."
Roach and Lines spent countless hours together going through Roach's daily schedule and also mentored younger Soldiers during a noncommissioned officer development program briefing March 4, 2015.
The reason for Lines' visit is to provide insight, experience and knowledge as part of an ongoing professional exchange between intelligence professionals from the two military branches.
"This week he's been here trying to establish an exchange for his analysts to come here and work at our brigade," said Roach.
Roach said the Spartans will also be sending intelligence personnel to the 3rd Marine Division.
"We're trying to formalize the relationship and keep contact," said Lines. "We do the analyst exchange, then, we will always have a foot in each other's camp to better support each other and understand how each service operates, that's what we are building."
A unique event happened when Lines participated in a jump with Roach March 5, 2015. Lines hadn't jumped since 1986, but with the Army's Basic Airborne Refresher training at the Airborne Sustainment Training Area at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, he was ready to jump again.
"My first jump in 29 years!" said Lines. "My last jump was with the 82nd Airborne Division with the 3rd Battalion, 73rd Armor."
The refresher training helped Lines make a successful, injury-free jump out of a CH-47 Chinook helicopter.
"People have to be well trained and rely on muscle memory to get through it, so that refresher training we go through basically brings back that muscle memory that we all develop in Airborne School no matter if it was 10 years ago, 20 years ago." Roach added.
"I went back through the Basic Airborne Refresher and did sustainment training," said Lines. "It brought back a lot of memories. I was amazed about what I did remember and watching some of the new kids fresh out of Airborne School kind of boosted my confidence."
Lines added that if more elements of his division got on board with the exchange program that it would further benefit both services.
"When the units work together it will build a bigger understanding of all operations," Lines said.
Following up on the joint exchange, Roach will soon be leaving for Okinawa to conduct his site survey of the Marines and their operations.
Social Sharing