KAISERSLAUTERN, Germany – In 2024, the 405th Army Field Support Brigade and its mission to operationalize U.S. Army Materiel Command’s capabilities and deliver anticipatory readiness to U.S. European Command and U.S. Africa Command at the tactical point of need during real-world operations were put to the test.
Consisting of four Army Field Support Battalions, eight Logistics Readiness Centers, an extensive Logistics Assistance Program, and a wide-reaching Logistics Civil Augmentation Program, as well as Base Support Operations transportation and maintenance, the 405th AFSB successfully executed all mission requirements in 2024 like never before, providing critical support to joint and combined forces in the U.S. Army Europe and Africa Theater of Operations.
2024 Brigade Operations by Month
- January
In January at the request of the 405th AFSB, subject matter experts on the new Integrated Personnel and Pay System-Army from U.S. Army Sustainment Command traveled to Europe and provided IPPS-A training to the brigade (read more). Representatives from the brigade’s four battalions as well as the brigade headquarters took part in the IPPS-A training presented by ASC’s directorate of personnel and administration (G-1).
- February
In February the team at the Coleman Army Prepositioned Stocks-2 worksite in Mannheim tested a new Enhanced Heavy Equipment Transporter trailer tie-down and scale system that will help the Army in Europe operate more efficiently while also improving safety. Personnel from Coleman tested the new tie-down system (read more) using M1A2 SEP V2 and V3 Abrams main battle tanks and M88 armored recovery vehicles from APS-2 stocks.
- March
In March the Coleman APS-2 worksite team hosted Mannheim Lord Mayor Christian Specht at the site to help foster relationships and provide the local mayor with a clear understanding of APS-2 operations there as well as critical insight into the upcoming infrastructure upgrades and the associated economic, environmental and social impacts on the area. Senior leaders from the 405th AFSB and U.S. Army Garrison Rheinland-Pfalz met with the Lord Mayor (read more) and provided him with a windshield and walking tour of the site and the facilities.
- April
In April the first equipment from the Eygelshoven APS-2 worksite were prepared by Army Field Support Battalion-Benelux before heading to Romania to be issued to a gaining tactical unit at an Equipment Configuration and Hand-off Area during the Resolute Castle 24 (read more). A company’s worth of horizontal engineer construction equipment from the APS-2 Eygelshoven – over 150 major end items like bulldozers, scrapers and backhoes – was issued to an Army engineer company from the U.S. participating in the exercise.
- May
In May an APS-2 staging grid was set in Czechia, and an entire cavalry APS-2 equipment set was issued to the 1st Squadron, 150th Cavalry Regiment from the West Virginia Army National Guard for DEFENDER 24 (read more). Army Field Support Battalion-Africa established an Equipment Configuration and Hand-off Area in Libava, and the battalion from Italy conducted technical inspections of all the tactical vehicles, basic issue items and support equipment with Soldiers from the gaining tactical unit before issuing them the gear.
Also in May, and for the first time in Army medicine history, an APS 32-bed field hospital was activated and issued. And also for the first time in APS history, an Equipment Configuration and Hand-off Area was established at the APS-2 worksite in Dülmen, Germany, to support this mission (read more). The team from Army Field Support Battalion-Germany and members from U.S. Army Medical Materiel Agency pulled an APS-2 field hospital from an 80,000 square-foot medical warehouse, as well as several containerized systems stored outside. From there, with the help of the gaining tactical unit from the U.S. and the 30th Medical Brigade and 16th Sustainment Brigade, they transported the APS-2 field hospital to Baumholder, Germany, for DEFENDER 24.
- June
In early June nearly 100 Bradley fighting vehicles, which were drawn from the Coleman APS-2 worksite in Mannheim, Germany, were issued to Soldiers from 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division at two locations in Poland and one in Lithuania (read more). The Bradleys were a combination of M2A3 Infantry Fighting Vehicles and M3A3 Cavalry Fighting Vehicles, which are nearly identical except that instead of holding six infantrymen in the payload compartment, the cavalry variant is designed to seat two scouts and carry more ammunition and communications equipment.
Also in June, the newest, most modern prepositioned stocks worksite in the world began receiving the first batch of APS-2 armored vehicles by rail (read more). Now, with all the APS-2 vehicles and gear fully in place, the Powidz APS-2 worksite in Poland can outfit an entire modernized armored brigade combat team. The new worksite, a NATO-funded project and the most significant single infrastructure endeavor by NATO in the past 30 years, is expected to be fully mission capable sometime in 2025.
- July
In July AFSBn-Germany assumed mission command of the Coleman APS-2 worksite in Mannheim in the final step of the 405th AFSB’s multi-year regional alignment and transformation initiative (read more). The plan was set in motion in 2021 when U.S. Army Europe and Africa announced the Army would retain the Coleman worksite, which was previously slated to be returned to the German government.
Also in July, AFSBn-Benelux started receiving a horizontal engineer construction company’s worth of APS-2 equipment back from the 104th Engineer Company (Construction) following the unit’s nearly 3-month deployment to Europe in support of Resolute Castle 24 (read more). The APS-2 equipment – which included about 150 major end items like bulldozers, scrapers and backhoes, plus tools, basic issue items and more – were used by the Fort Cavazos, Texas, based engineer company during the exercise for horizontal construction projects like roads and staging areas.
- August
In August, when the U.S. Paralympics Swimming Team visited the U.S. Army Garrison Stuttgart community before departing for Paris to compete in the 2024 Paralympics Games, the 405th AFSB’s Logistics Readiness Center Stuttgart was charged with transporting the Paralympic team from one location to another each day during their visit (read more).
- September
In September Army Field Support Battalion-Poland officially uncased its unit colors during a ceremony at the Powidz APS-2 worksite in Poland. The event doubled as a distinguished visitors’ day to showcase AFSBn-Poland and the newest, most modern APS worksite in the world (read more). In attendance were dozens of military and civic leaders, both Polish and U.S., to include the U.S. ambassador to Poland.
Also in September, during his first site visit to Europe, the ASC commanding general’s first stop was the 405th AFSB’s Logistics Readiness Center Poland in Poznan and the Powidz APS-2 worksite (read more). Army Brig. Gen. John “Brad” Hinson, who took command of ASC two months earlier, traveled to Poland with his senior enlisted advisor, Command Sgt. Maj. Jorge Escobedo, to conduct a site visit of the two key locations and speak to leaders from LRC Poland, AFSBn-Poland and the 405th AFSB headquarters.
Also highlighted in September was the 405th AFSB’s Logistics Civil Augmentation Program and one of its many supported areas. Nearly 100 forward sites across 26 countries and five continents are supported by LOGCAP, which provides vital life support to Soldiers and Army civilians in places like Northern Africa and Eastern Europe. One of the places the 405th AFSB provides LOGCAP services to is the Black Sea area (read more). There, three sites are supported. They are the Mihail Kogălniceanu Air Base in Romania, the Novo Selo Training Area in Bulgaria, and the Kürecik Radar Station in Türkiye.
- October
In October, after nine weeks of intensive maintenance training on the M1A2 SEPV3 Abrams main battle tank, the first group of Polish servicemembers from Poland Provided Logistic Support were recognized and presented graduation certificates at the Powidz APS-2 worksite (read more). Under the watchful eye and expert instruction of several training facilitators from U.S. Army Tank-automotive and Armaments Command, the pass rate for the group of PPLS trainees was 96 percent.
Also in October, the 405th AFSB began the arduous task of inventorying over 1,500 pieces of rolling stock, 120 containers and a total of about 12,000 pieces of equipment at the Powidz APS-2 worksite (read more). With operations fully underway at the newest, most modern APS worksite in the world, inventorying hundreds of Abrams tanks and Bradley fighting vehicles as well as dozens of 20-foot storage and shipping containers full of equipment stock, supplies, shop parts, tools and more, was a major task for the brigade and AFSBn-Poland.
- November
In November the 405th AFSB’s LOGCAP mission was highlighted again. This time in Kosovo (read more). LOGCAP provides vital life support to Soldiers and Army civilians at nearly 100 forward sites across 26 countries and five continents. One southeastern European country the 405th AFSB provides LOGCAP services to is Kosovo. There, four sites are supported. They are Camp Bondsteel and Camp Film City in Pristina, plus Camp Nothing Hill in northern Kosovo and Camp Marechal de Lattre de Tassigny, or CMLT.
- December
In December, with just a few months in the seat, the top operations officer from U.S. Army Europe and Africa conducted a site visit to the Coleman APS-2 worksite to examine readiness requirements for the armored brigade combat team’s worth of APS-2 stored and maintained at the site (read more). Along with the commanding general of the 21st Theater Sustainment Command, Brig. Gen. Andrew Saslav walked the site and was briefed by leaders from AFSBn-Germany and the 405th AFSB.
2024 New Key Leadership
Many key leaders across the 405th AFSB’s footprint transitioned out and others into their new roles and responsibilities at the APS-2 sites, LRCs, BASOPS Divisions and more in 2024. The 405th AFSB welcomed its new commander, Col. Ernest Lane II, during a ceremony April 24 on Daenner Kaserne in Kaiserslautern, Germany (read more).
In addition, the 405th AFSB conducted a change of responsibility ceremony Oct. 30 in Kaiserslautern where Command Sgt. Maj. Patrick Marrill assumed responsibility of the brigade from Command Sgt. Maj. Terrell Brisentine, who is scheduled to retire in 2025 (read more).
In 2024, the 405th AFSB also farewelled its deputy to the commander and welcomed a new one. Previously a battalion DCO at Fort Carson, Colorado, with the 407th Army Field Support Brigade, James “Mac” McGinnis took over as the 405th AFSB DCO in September after Joseph Scheff left to attend an international security studies program at the George C. Marshall Center in Garmisch, Germany.
At the battalion-level, AFSBn-Benelux welcomed its new commander, Lt. Col. George Horne, June 10 (read more); AFSBn-Germany welcomed its new commander, Lt. Col. Jonathan Neal, June 12 (read more); and AFSBn-Africa welcomed its new commander, Lt. Col. Ross Hertlein, June 21 (read more).
At the LRC-level, several leaders were newly assigned or moved from one LRC to another within the brigade. LRC Benelux received a new director, Diana Ioane, when the former director of LRC Benelux, DJ Jackson, took the director slot at LRC Stuttgart. And prior to this, the former LRC Stuttgart director, Chanteen Violette, moved to Poznan, Poland, to become the director of LRC Poland.
In addition to these LRC leaders, John Johnson was named the new director of LRC Italy, and Joseph Balum was named the new director of LRC Bavaria. Danny Griffith assumed the director position at LRC Ansbach after James Charette moved from there to LRC Rheinland-Pfalz. And when Larry Chorvas’ time in Europe ended and he returned to the U.S., Hanni Marchuk, the LRC Wiesbaden operations officer, assumed the acting director position.
Another acting director within the 405th AFSB during 2024 is with BASOPS Transportation. Reginald King, who is normally assigned to the brigade headquarters in the support operations directorate, is currently serving as the acting director at BASOPS Transportation.
In 2024, the brigade headquarters welcomed its new operations director, Shane Barnes, and its new director of personnel and administration (S-1), Benjamin Weeks, among several other key and essential personnel and positions within the brigade headquarters.
2024 Operational Summary
The 405th AFSB’s accomplishments and successes during 2024 were only possible due to its people – its Soldiers, civilians, local national employees and contractors – and the 405th AFSB’s mission as the Army enters 2025 will remain the same – to Support the Warrior!
The 405th AFSB is assigned to ASC and headquartered in Kaiserslautern, Germany. The brigade provides materiel enterprise support to U.S. forces throughout Europe and Africa – providing theater sustainment logistics; synchronizing acquisition, logistics and technology; and leveraging the AMC materiel enterprise to support joint forces. For more information on the 405th AFSB, visit the official website and the official Facebook site.
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