7th US Army Reserve Command

On 25 October 2009, in a ceremony at the Parade Field on Daenner Kaserne, the 7th US Army Reserve Command was inactivated and reflagged as the 7th Civil Support Command, which was assigned to the 21st Theater Sustainment Command, US Army Europe.

The European-based 7th US Army Reserve Command (ARCOM) provided U. Army Europe (USAREUR) with trained and ready units, "All Ready, Already Here," to support USAREUR's operations, deployments, and major training events.

The 7th ARCOM was the only forward-stationed Reserve command in the US Army. Headquartered at Tompkins Barracks, Schwetzingen, Germany, the command consisted of 22 units and almost 900 citizen-soldiers in Germany and Vicenza, Italy. Supporting these drilling reservists and units was a cadre of active-guard reserve soldiers (AGR), active duty soldiers, military technicians, and civilians who provided the full-time support needed for unit and individual training and readiness.

Assigned under USAREUR, the 7th ARCOM's units were directly aligned with their respective active-Army parent organization from USAREUR's major subordinate commands. This was a unique relationship, one of the most integrated in the US Army between the active and reserve component, which fostered close teamwork and partnership. Reflecting this close integration, command soldiers wore their parent active component unit's patch. The 7th ARCOM's units were based on US Army Europe installations as tenant organizations, with close ties to their host communities and supporting base support battalions.

In Germany, 7th ARCOM's units were aligned under Headquarters, USAREUR; V Corps (including the 1st Infantry Division, 1st Armored divisions), 21st Theater Support Command, 1st Personnel Command, the Europe Regional Medical Command, the 7th Army Training Command. In Italy, units fell under the Southern European Task Force (SETAF).

The 7th ARCOM enabled soldiers separating overseas, Americans living and working in Europe, and Reservists transferring there, to continue their military careers in the Army Reserve. Consistent with the Chief of Army Reserve's (CAR) vision, the Army Reserve was the essential support provider for the Army engaged in worldwide operations. The CAR recognized the strategic importance of capitalizing on forward stationing of units and personnel of the 7th Army Reserve Command (ARCOM) in Germany, for carrying out selective USAR missions in support of US Army, Europe.

The 7th ARCOM understood the criticality of the overall support mission and, in response, developed an ESS-X concept that had significant potential to alleviate pressing problems of maintenance and storage of multi-component unit equipment in Europe. The ESS-X was located at Spinelli Barracks in Mannheim, Germany. It was the point where the wholesale logistics system for virtually all classes of supply arrived in Europe from the continental United States. The location was a true logistics hub with its own rail spur, access by road and autobahn, proximity to inland waterway for barge traffic and near major US Air Force Bases at Ramstein and Rhein Main. The location facilitated reception, staging, onward movement and integration operations.

The ESS-X concept provided continuous maintenance, repair and storage of equipment. The operation of the ESS-X was based on effective and proven business practices, automation and modern maintenance processes. The ESS-X concept was a unique operational model that was flexible and responsive to changing demands and external missions. It operated on a Government-managed contractor-operated concept complete with financial management, logistics automation, and established business processes. These were designed to accommodate fluctuating workloads and storage, and employ management resources that meet strict demands for accountability and efficiency. At the completion of Phase I testing, the ESS-X demonstrated its value and cost-effectiveness in achieving a validated readiness rate of 98 percent.

The capacity of the ESS-X went far beyond servicing the ARCOM's equipment. Full utilization of both the work and storage capabilities of the ESS-X optimized integrated logistical support and further reduced costs per item. To optimize efficiencies, the ESS-X operations could be available to new customers such as CONUS-based USAR or multi-component early-deploying units requiring pre-positioning of equipment in Europe, or US Army, Europe, units requiring maintenance and storage.

During the Gulf War, five 7th ARCOM units were mobilized and deployed. In 1998, the command won the Army Communities of Excellence competition (Army Reserve category) and was Runner-Up in 1999. In support of Operations Joint Endeavor and Guard, 19 of the 7th ARCOM's then 22 units, were mobilized and deployed, serving in Germany, Hungary, Croatia, and Bosnia, the largest percentage of any reserve component command. Five 7th ARCOM units and Headquarters, 7th ARCOM received the Army Superior Unit Award from the Secretary of the Army for their exceptional contributions to the OJE/G mission.

Three European-based US Army Reserve units of the 7th Army Reserve Command won honors for supply excellence in Army-wide competition (Reserve Category). The units received awards from the Chief of Staff, Army, General Eric K. Shinseki, at a ceremony in Washington, DC on 7 September 2001. The Southern European Task Force (Augmentation) Unit, Vicenza, Italy, won the TDA (Table of Distribution and Allowances) Small Category. This marked the second consecutive year the unit won their category and the first ever back-to-back win in the Reserve Category of competition. The 317th Rear Area Operations Center, Wiesbaden, Germany, was the Runner-Up in the Medium MTOE (Modified Table of Organization and Equipment) Unit, without Property Book Category. Headquarters, 7th ARCOM, Schwetzingen, Germany, was selected as the Runner-Up in the TDA Large Category. The 7th ARCOM's units won or placed in the Chief of Staff, Army's Supply Excellence awards program for the preceding 3 years. The program was created in 1986 to enhance logistical readiness, enhance command supply discipline, and recognize group and individual supply initiatives. The recognized units were 3 of 22 European-based units of the 7th ARCOM, located throughout Germany and in Vicenza, Italy, which were aligned with and supported US Army Europe, and its major subordinate commands.

The 280th Rear Operations Center's (ROC) rear operations community participated in a series of challenging V Corps exercises that led up to the Victory Corps' Warfighter exercise. These included training on the new command and control systems in a Victory ROX exercise, V Corps Victory Start exercise, and BCTP seminar, along with Victory Focus and Urgent Resolve exercises. This followed the realignment of the 7th ARCOM's Rear Area Operations Centers (ROAC) under the 280th's command and control in peacetime.

The 313th ROC played leading roles in the concept development and planning for the Rescuer 01 exercise in Sofia, Bulgaria, which was unfortunately cancelled due to real world events. Despite this, the 313th ROC demonstrated its capabilities to the 21st Theater Support Command, in coordinating their staff activities. As a training mission for the 313th ROC's METL, the unit completed a full force protection assessment in preparation for the event.

The 330th ROC was also heavily engaged in support of the 29th Area Support Group's demanding real world missions, including the Kosovo Force (KFOR) 3A/B rotation mission in Bulgaria. There 330th soldiers provided continuous support in the areas of force protection, serving as battle captains, the Tactical Operation Center's NCOIC, intelligence, safety, and host nation liaison support. This was the second time 330th soldiers deployed with the 29th Area Support Group in support of the KFOR mission, and each time, the unit continued to set new standards of excellence in support of their AC parent organization.