SKOPJE, Macedonia - Four Soldiers from the 317th SMC 'Wolfpack' worked side by side with 12 Macedonian Soldiers, June 4-17, conducting both classroom and hands-on training ranging from troubleshooting procedures to understanding the electrical diagrams on military vehicles.
The Macedonian government acquired numerous military vehicles designed by American companies to outfit its military under the United States Code Title 22. Just as any privately owned vehicle requires regular maintenance, so do High-Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicles and the Family of Medium Tactical Vehicles, which are two of the vehicle types Macedonia acquired.
Although the Macedonian military had an advanced level of competency at maintaining the mechanical aspects of the vehicles, they did not have the depth of training required to properly diagnose and fix the vehicles' electrical and software systems. The majority of vehicles were parked once a fault was identified -- and in some instances -- vehicles were parked for several years.
Taking steps to bridge the gap in electrical and software maintenance proficiency, the Macedonian government requested military-to-military training and technical assistance from the U.S. Embassy, who in turn resourced the 317th Support Maintenance Company through European Command channels.
"The training was very useful," said Staff Sgt. Aleksandar Mitkovski, a Macedonian service member. "Most importantly, we fixed some vehicles and we were shown how to diagnose and troubleshoot problems. It was very helpful to see where to start and how to finish."
The 'Wolfpack' and Macedonians were joined by two Bosnian military civilians during the execution phase of the training when the group traveled to various locations in Skopje to troubleshoot and fix non-mission capable military vehicles.
For more intensive questions and troubleshooting errors on software systems, the group leveraged the knowledge of the Tank and Automotive Command's Logistics Assistance Representatives to take the training to the next level.
"Our mechanics are quite knowledgeable, but they don't have experience in software diagnostics," said 2nd Lt. Jankovi�, a Macedonian service member. "I'm pleased with the training, the only downside is that it was too short"
Although the training was on an abbreviated timeline, the Macedonian Soldiers and Bosnian military civilians now have a greater ability to identify and fix most electrical and software system issues. Multinational logistics is a team sport, and it takes a strong team of Allies and partners to sustain a Strong Europe.
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