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3rd ID units are set for exercises on 2 continents
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Soldiers from two brigades of the 3rd Infantry Division will participate in large multinational exercises this month — one in Europe, the other in Africa.

A Coastal Courier reporter will be embedded with 3rd ID soldiers from 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team and 2nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team as they work with militaries from other nations in several exercises.

Anakonda 16 is a massive multinational exercise organized by the Polish military that takes place every two years. The 1st ABCT and other American forces will participate with militaries from more than 20 NATO and partner countries in the exercise, which takes place across Poland before the NATO Summit in Warsaw in July.

More than 30,000 participants, thousands of vehicles, 12 naval vessels and more than 100 aircraft will be involved in the exercise, according to the Anakonda 16 website.

Col. Phil Brooks, the commander of 1ABCT, talked about the upcoming exercise Wednesday in a phone interview from the Drawsko Pomorskie Training Area in Poland.

“It demonstrates how we’re rapidly — we the participants — are able to come together under one unified command here and train in a hybrid or real complex scenario,” he said of the exercise.

“It also reassures our allies and partners that we’ll remain committed to our collective defense if required here,” Brooks added. “So we can rapidly deploy to a country in Europe anywhere, mass people and equipment, and then be able to sustain that combat power…” with a variety of equipment and personnel.

Before coming to Poland, 1ABCT soldiers participated in several other exercises across the region to prepare.

Brooks said his soldiers were still training before the exercise, and then units will continue with more training in other countries after the Polish exercise. The 1st ABCT’s current mission is as U.S. Army Europe’s regionally allocated force.

During Anakonda 16, 1ABCT will work with several countries, including Poland, Albania, Bulgaria, Croatia, Georgia, Lithuania, Macedonia, Romania and Sweden, according to Brooks.

Some of the events that Anakonda 16 will have for participants include airborne jumps, air assault operations and a massive-causality exercise.

One of Brooks’ training objectives is “to focus on interoperability.”

Interoperability means sharing best practices, techniques and procedures “from all the participating nations so that we really can work together if need be in the future,” he said.

“And by that, I mean being able to work with different countries because we all have different standards in how we operate,” he said.

“We’re excited to be here,” Brooks said. “It’s going to be great fun, and it will be a great training event.”

“I appreciate the continued support of our families back there because we couldn’t do what we do now without the support from the community.”

Central Accord 2016 will be hosted by Gabon to prepare participants for regional security issues and the ability to conduct joint United Nations peacekeeping operations. The 2nd IBCT will send soldiers from its headquarters and 3rd Battalion, 7th Infantry Regiment to participate in the exercise.

The brigade is currently U.S. Army Africa’s regionally allocated force under United States Africa Command. Soldiers from the brigade recently participated in Western Accord in Burkina Faso.

The exercise will have more than 900 participants from 14 countries, including from Central African Multinational Force member nations Belgium, France, Germany and Netherlands, along with the United Nations, according to a 2IBCT fact sheet.

Lt. Col. Brian Ducote, the commander of 3-7 Infantry, said the exercise will provide his soldiers with readiness, interoperability between militaries and capacity building.

Training from the exercise will allow participants to expand their current skills and capabilities, Ducote said, “and a lot of these individuals who are training are going to fight violent extremist organizations or conduct peacekeeping operations, and they face all these different threats in their home nations.”

“So really, they’re going back with this awesome, unique skill set that you can’t get anywhere else other than from kind of working with the United States Army and the 3rd Infantry Division,” he added.

Exercises during Central Accord include jungle warfare school, live-fire training and multinational airborne jumps.

Having training like this in a peace-time environment allows participants to gain skills to protect their people, according to Ducote.

“What a great opportunity to be able to provide someone a skill set to then apply to protect their own people,” he said. “That’s awesome. So it’s actually the phase zero that we always talk about before major combat operations are even required. So it’s just a good feeling.

“So it’s not always about fighting the war — we do that when called upon when we have to, absolutely — but this is about helping people before a major conflict breaks out to shape the environment and to honestly promote regional stability,” he added.

Overall, both commanders emphasized the readiness component that the exercises will provide for their soldiers and the interoperability that comes with working with other nations.

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Exchange Service salutes Vietnam vets with custom truck design
Army and Air Force Exchange Service redesigned logo 2011

To thank Vietnam veterans for their sacrifices, the Army and Air Force Exchange Service is debuting a new truck design, part of the Department of Defense retailer’s efforts alongside the United States of America Vietnam War Commemoration to honor veterans during the 50th anniversary of the war.

“The Exchange is privileged to have the opportunity to recognize Vietnam veterans through our fleet,” said Exchange Director/CEO Tom Shull, who served in the Army during the Vietnam era. “These trucks will serve as rolling billboards, expressing gratitude for all who served during this era.”

The truck design features the silhouette of a lone service member set against the background of a faded horizon with a call to “thank a Vietnam veteran for service to our nation.” The single military member represents the warfighters who served during this time.

Three trucks in the fleet feature the commemorative design and will deliver merchandise to Exchange stores from the organization’s distribution centers in the continental United States.

The West Coast Distribution Center at Sharpe Army Depot in California; Dan Daniel Distribution Center in Newport News, Va.; and the Waco Distribution Center in Texas will each have a truck in service on their standard delivery routes, serving the whole country.

Air Force veteran Pat Thompson served in Vietnam before coming to the Exchange as a truck driver and mechanic. In his 18 years with the Exchange, he has deployed four times to support the troops. The new design means a lot to him.

“They remember,” said Thompson, who is based at the Exchange’s Waco Distribution Center. “We want to be remembered.”

The trucks also highlight the veteran online shopping benefit, which launched in November. The lifelong online military exchange benefit authorizes all who served honorably to enjoy tax-free shopping and exclusive military pricing at ShopMyExchange.com.

The United States of America Vietnam War Commemoration is a program administered by the Office of the Secretary of Defense to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Vietnam War. The U.S. began commemoration of the Vietnam War’s 50th anniversary in 2012 and will continue through Veterans Day 2025.

The Exchange is a 50th Anniversary Vietnam War Commemorative Partner, planning and conducting events and activities that recognize Vietnam veterans and their families for service, valor and sacrifice in conjunction with the commemoration.

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