502nd Engineer Company
(AFB) Assault Float Bridge
Soldiers of the 502nd Engineer Company (Assault Float Bridge) and the 4th Engineer Company (German army) participated in a combined U.S./German ribbon bridge crossing of the Rhine River two kilometers west of Ketsch, Germany 07 October 1999. The partnership Rhine crossing marks the first time American and German armies have combined to construct a bridge since crossing the Elbe River in June 1998. One-hundred-ten American soldiers and 80 German soldiers participated in this event.
Full closure of the Rhine River was accomplished at 5 p.m. to allow the vehicles to cross the river. Partial closure started at 3 p.m. when construction began. The Germans started construction on the southern shore as the Americans took the northern shore. The Americans and Germans combined, because neither had enough ramp to cover the 230 meter Rhine River. The Americans have 215 meters of ramp, and the Germans have 120 meters.
There are two different ways to cross a river. One way is full closure, which is happening today. The second is partial closure. Partial closure is when a space is left in the middle of the bridge and vehicles are ferried across from one side to the other. With partial closure, it takes seven minutes to ferry the vehicles between the two sides. Full closure takes as long as it takes to drive across the river. During the Rhine crossing, the Americans and the Germans completed the length of bridge estimated to add the final interior ramp. The two pieces of the bridge were maneuvered towards the center of the river, and the interior ramp was ferried to the center to complete the bridge. Finally, the Germans took responsibility for securing the final interior ramp and inspection of the bridge.
Soldiers of the 502nd Engineer Company (Assault Float Bridge), Hanau, Germany, constructed a 120-meter AFB across the Main River in Grossauheim, Germany, 17 August 2000. Spectators from the area watched as the AFB crew feverously constructed the floating bridge during the hot summer morning and witnessed its completion in the late morning hours. Construction began on the shore of the Main River. The first interior ramp was launched into the river with an impressive splash. By the time the AFB was completed, 18 ramps had been floated into the Main River. The ramps are maneuvered into position with a squad of MK2 bridge erection boats. The boats can either push or pull the ramps into the position the crew on the ramp needs to secure them together.
Ramps are placed into the river and than pieced together on each side of the river. Each side of the bridge is placed diagonally on the opposing banks of the river until they are ready to be moved towards the center and connected in the middle. Once the bridge has been connected in the middle, both sides of the bridge are secured to the shore. A ratchet is secured to the bridge and stakes are driven into the shore about 20 meters away from the river. The ratchet is than tightened until enough tension is applied to the cables to secure the bridge.
Upon completion of the AFB across the Main River, spectators of the event were allowed to cross the newly erected bridge to the other side of the shoreline. Soldiers, family members and local nationals crossed the bridge in celebration of the engineers' hard work.
The mettle and muscle of soldiers of the 1st Armored Division, the 130th Engineer Brigade's 502nd Engineer Company and the 12th Aviation Brigade came together Nov. 17, 2001 to quickly bridge and cross the Main River here. River crossing operations are a major mission in the real world, especially in Europe where there are so many rivers. The training included a two-hour classroom session on river-crossing operations, followed by a live demonstration of building an actual bridge across the Main.
This was an opportunity to integrate (echelons above division) units with training. The 502nd is the same outstanding unit that bridged the Sava River (in Bosnia) when Task Force Eagle deployed to Joint Endeavor in December 1995. Unit leaders learned that river-crossing is a multi-phased event. Before building a bridge, engineers first construct rafts to ferry equipment across the river -- equipment that may be needed to fight an enemy on the far shore.
The most critical part of a bridging operation is the rafting phase. "That's the phase where you're rafting your combat power across to secure the far side. Once that's accomplished, then the area is secure enough to begin actual bridging operations. Teamwork and synchronization are vital to success. It's important to get the proper equipment at the right time. You have to get the ramp bays and the interior bays in the correct sequence for it to work.
