USTRANSCOM’s chief of staff thanks 257th Movement Control Battalion for their role in support of Operation Noble Eagle
In late October 2001, 200 members of the 257th Movement Control Battalion were called up to support Operation Noble Eagle at the Operations Center, Military Traffic Management Command, Fort Eustis, Va. It was given a critical mission: Form a task force to augment the management and movement of the command's Department of Defense cargo.
The 257th out of Gainesville, Fla., assumed command and control of the operation four days after mobilization, and then executed the first of over 3,000 missions on the fifth day. In all the battalion managed a task force of 400 soldiers. Additional reservists came from the 206th Transportation Co., Opelika, Ala.; 250th Transportation Co., El Monte, Calif.; 647th Transportation Co., Laurel, Miss.; 300th Transportation Detachment, Tacoma, Wash.; and 871st and 958th Transportation Detachments, Belleville, Ill.
Under the command of Military Traffic Management Command’s Operations Center, the 257th had to establishing procedures, commutations, and life support, traveling more than 3.6 million incident free miles without loss of man-hours. A grand total of 8 million miles was traveled that included pre-positioning, missions and return to base camps.
The reserves had to develop a movements control and security system from factory to user, working with commercial carriers, law enforcement, officials and numerous installation transportation officers around the country, providing flawless scheduling, coordination, handoffs and positive security and movement control cargo.
Using three regional operations centers in Kentucky, Oklahoma and Utah, the battalion managed reservist teams in 20 different locations in 17 states.
“The battalion ensured security of critical Military Traffic Management Command Shipments throughout the United States,” said Brig. Gen. Barbara Doornink, deputy commanding general, and director of Operations, MTMC. “They guaranteed success in American's War on Terrorism.”
“Good organizations are adaptive, cohesive, and resilient - the 257th and its down trace demonstrated all these characteristics,” Pair said. “That’s why this mission was an overwhelming success. The 257th demobilizes in September and will be conducting a right seat check out with their replacement unit, the 719th Transportation Battalion (Movement Control), from Boston.”
USTRANSCOM is a unified command designated as the single manager of the United States' global defense transportation system. Its mission is to provide air, land and sea transportation, in both times of peace and war to the Department of Defense. To accomplish this, USTRANSCOM coordinates the movement of people, equipment and supplies worldwide, allowing America to project and sustain military forces whenever, wherever and for as long as they are needed.
Follow Us On:
