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MCC-K supports OIF through strategic mobility

Marine Corps News

Story Identification #: 2005424102324
Story by Staff Sgt. Michael Reed

CAMP ARIFJAN, Kuwait (April 24, 2005) -- Strategic Mobility, the capability to manage and administer the system of providing equipment, personnel, and logistical know-how for moving Marine Corps equipment and forces in and out of theater, lies at the heart of the Marines assigned to Multi-National Force – West Coordination Center – Kuwait.

Strategic mobility is the capability to move forces and their associated logistic support quickly and effectively over long distances.

The Marines from MCC-K, are responsible for the rotation of forces and equipment covering the Anbar Province, the largest of 18 provinces in Iraq. They coordinate the inter-theater airlift and sealift along with intra-theater airlift and over-land movement through Kuwait to accomplish a deliberate, sequenced rotation of forces between Iraq, Kuwait, and the Continental United States while maintaining a continuous combat capability in Iraq by using the joint deployment process.

The entire process is executed by applying Force Deployment Planning and Execution, and Reception, Staging, and On-ward movement techniques in conjunction with the use of Time-phased Force and Deployment Data embedded in the Joint Operation Planning and Execution System.

“The JOPES provides vital information for managing force movements,” said Capt. Mark Windham, air embarkation officer, MCC-K.

Time-phased Force and Deployment Data development is based on force planning, support planning, and transportation planning. The resulting TPFDD is both a force requirements document and a prioritized transportation movement document defining the supported Combatant Commanders time-phased lift requirements for personnel, supplies, and equipment. Planners must continuously refine throughout the deployment process to reflect current deployment information and monitor the status of objective achievement.

According to Lt. Col. John Germain, strategic mobility officer, and officer in charge, MCC-K the TPFDD provides visibility of a unit’s personnel, equipment, and their respective movement detail. The JOPES feeds this information to various In Transit Visibility systems, via the Global Transportation Network, in order to give visibility to appropriate command nodes.

TPFDD provides answers to the following questions: Which forces are committed to the operation? What troops and equipment will be moved? From where will forces and equipment depart, and to what location will they be moved? Will they move by air or by sea? When will the movements take place?

Working closely with Marine Air Ground Task Force planners, G-4, II Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Lejeune, N.C., MCC-K has facilitated the airlift deployment of more than 23,000 personnel on 152 inter-theater aircraft, and 500 C-130 flights from Kuwait to Iraq, along with the sealift deployment of the MV Cape Hudson, where 967 pieces, or 115,622 square feet was offloaded.

The 10 member unit, consisting of five embarkation Marines, two MAGTF planners, a logistics officer, and a transportation management officer, also coordinated the airlift redeployment of 559 C-130 flights from Iraq to Kuwait, and 28,500 personnel on 173 inter-theater aircraft returning to CONUS. With the rotation of personnel and equipment between I MEF and II MEF, MCC-K was responsible for the sealift redeployment of over 1,800 pieces, or 340,000 square feet onto five ships.

According to Capt. Austine L. Rawlins, logistics officer, MCC-K the embarkation field poses a challenge to the Gainesville, Fla., native. “Logistics involves moving assets from one place to another, embarkation entails the loading of the assets for transportation.”

“I have been a motor transport officer, maintenance management officer, and even assigned to a communications battalion, I’ve seen it, touched it, so I’m familiar with everything here,” said Rawlins.

A big challenge upon arriving was learning embarkation from the ground up, said Rawlins.

One of MCC-K’s biggest accomplishments is the processing of personnel in and out of the theater of operation. By applying FDP&E, and RSO movement techniques in conjunction with the use of TPFDD embedded in the JOPES, the dwell time for deployers in Kuwait is less than 36 hours, while redeployment from Iraq works in reverse with a dwell time goal for of less than 48 hours.

The Marines here are on a 12 month rotation, and are deployed from II MEF, Camp Lejeune, NC.

“I want to ensure everything that happens down here, is transparent … we provide them (warfighter) with the means to execute their warfighter capability,” said Germain.

“If it is going thru Kuwait, or happens in Kuwait we have something to do with it.”
The system of equipment, personnel, and logistical know-how for moving Marine Corps forces over intercontinental distances--is more important than ever before, with the Marine Corps’ expeditionary nature, strategic mobility operations will continue to provide the means to getting the warfighter to the fight.