Fort Bliss Monitor

Maintenance battalion provides critical support to Dagger Brigade

Staff Sgt. Catherine Pauley
2nd Bde., 91st Div. Public Affairs

Responsible for maintaining 230-plus vehicles for the 2nd Brigade, 91st Division (Training Support), 2-356 “Redball” Logistics Support Battalion headquartered out of Salt Lake City provides critical support to 2nd Bde.
“2-356 Bn.’s dedicated mechanics provide the necessary maintenance for the military vehicles that get a lot of abuse due to the extreme conditions they are driven in, such as rough terrain, heat and dust. These Redball Soldiers really are the unseen heroes of the brigade,” said Chief Warrant Officer John Cantrell, 1-362 Air Defense Artillery, 2nd Bde., 91st Div.

The unit derived its namesake from the Red Ball Express – created during World War II to bring ordnance and gas to the units. “Red ball” is a railroad phrase that means “to ship it express.” Lt. Col. Craig Odekirk, commander, 2-356th, said that he is proud to have his battalion take that nickname.

The main maintenance facility located at Doña Ana Base Camp supports the battalion vehicles at Orogrande, White Sands Missile Range and the Doña Ana ranges. The satellite maintenance shop at McGregor Base Camp supports that base camp and Fort Bliss main post. The McGregor site previously also worked on equipment at Biggs Army Airfield, but a change of plans moved the two battalions located at Biggs during the 116th Brigade Combat Team training to McGregor and Doña Ana prior to the 29th BCT’s training.

Sgt. Roberto Gonzalez, a mechanic at Doña Ana, said they work on 1 1/4 ton tactical trucks, Humvees, 2 1/2 ton and 5-ton cargo trucks. “The easiest vehicles to work on are the Blazers and pickups; the hardest are the Humvees,” Gonzalez said. The mechanics do annual and biannual services on all the vehicles. He said the turnaround time is about two days if there are no significant problems to be repaired.

Sgt. Larry Jaramillo, a mechanic at McGregor, said the service team has two mechanics – one works the top half of the vehicle and the other one works the bottom half. “One will check the batteries and coolants and stuff such as that, while the other mechanic checks the wheels, brakes and exhaust system.” When the vehicle needs service, Jaramillo said, “We call the team with the vehicle and say, ‘Your Humvee needs service. Bring it in and we’ll replace it with another Humvee so the training isn’t interrupted and you can continue your mission.’”

Gonzalez and Jaramillo understand the importance of the 2-356th mission. “Our priority as mechanics is to make sure we do everything to specs so that the vehicles will be available every day for training,” Gonzalez said.

“The Logistics Support Bn. is very important to the brigade’s mission,” echoed Jaramillo. “If we don’t do our job correctly, the training battalions won’t have vehicles to support their mission. If the vehicle is broke down, the brigade is not going to be able to support the training for the units coming through.”

The “Redball” battalion also has civilian contractors from Maryland-based Lear Seigler Services Inc. Two of them are on temporary duty at the Doña Ana facility.

Steven Taylor, a retired Army Soldier-turned civilian contractor, maintains all the equipment, dispatching, records maintenance and parts ordering for the Fort Carson, Colo., 2nd Bde., 91st Div. reserve units, on a day-to-day basis. He is currently at the Doña Ana facility overseeing the service and contact teams. “It’s a privilege to support Operation Iraqi Freedom,” Taylor said. “The battalion knows that we enjoy working here and we support the mission. While at Fort Bliss, we can show, teach and guide the Reservist and National Guard mechanics how to maintain the vehicles and equipment.”

Frank Hill, a former Marine, has been working for LSI for three years in the Salt Lake City division. He was a mechanic for 27 years prior to coming to work for LSI. Hill said being a mechanic was easy but “the hardest part was learning the Army acronyms.” Hill and Taylor find themselves away from home like the Reserve and National Guard Soldiers because the equipment goes with the mobilized unit. Hill’s wife asks him, “When are you coming home? You’re not in the Army. You just work for them.”

Maj. Thomas Lewis, 2-356th operations officer, said that all the parts required for services and maintenance are supported through Fort Bliss. A daily trip is made to drop off orders and pick up parts.

“We have an agreement with the National Guard Mobilization and Training Equipment Site facility at Doña Ana to work on high-priority vehicles such as a wrecker. We take routine vehicles such as Blazers to the Fort Bliss Department of Public Works and Logistics facility which is a contracted depot maintenance facility.” Depot maintenance is for major overhauls or a complete rebuilding of parts, assemblies or subassemblies.

Although the Soldiers from the battalion are largely unseen, Lewis said, “In reality, the 2-356th provides all the vehicles for the 2nd Bde., 91st Div. training battalions to get out and train the 116th and 29th BCT. If we didn’t provide and maintain the equipment, the trainers couldn’t do their jobs.”

The 91st Div. (Training Support) is organized and staffed to plan, conduct and evaluate training exercises for the Army National Guard, Army Reserve Combat Support and Combat Service Support units. During its mobilization, the 91st Div. assists in the validation of Army Reserve and Army National Guard units in the preparation for deployment.

The 2nd Bde., 91st Div. “Dagger” Bde. is comprised of active component, Reserve and National Guard Soldiers mobilized since January 2003, training National Guard and Reserve units for Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom. The brigade is currently at Fort Bliss training the 116th BCT prior to their deployment to Iraq.



www.bliss.army.mil	Published for the Fort Bliss/El Paso, Texas Community	October 14, 2004

<map name="boxmap-b4"> <area shape="rect" coords="0, 589, 120, 600" href="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm/privacy-policy.html?o=1" > <area coords="0,0,10000,10000" href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/redirect?tag=&creative=92501&camp=8117&link_code=dl1&path=subst/misc/amazon-cobrand-cc/v3/marketing-from-associates-step1.html/ref%3Db1_assoc_29" > </map>	Maintenance battalion provides critical support to Dagger Brigade Staff Sgt. Catherine Pauley 2nd Bde., 91st Div. Public Affairs Responsible for maintaining 230-plus vehicles for the 2nd Brigade, 91st Division (Training Support), 2-356 “Redball” Logistics Support Battalion headquartered out of Salt Lake City provides critical support to 2nd Bde. “2-356 Bn.’s dedicated mechanics provide the necessary maintenance for the military vehicles that get a lot of abuse due to the extreme conditions they are driven in, such as rough terrain, heat and dust. These Redball Soldiers really are the unseen heroes of the brigade,” said Chief Warrant Officer John Cantrell, 1-362 Air Defense Artillery, 2nd Bde., 91st Div. The unit derived its namesake from the Red Ball Express – created during World War II to bring ordnance and gas to the units. “Red ball” is a railroad phrase that means “to ship it express.” Lt. Col. Craig Odekirk, commander, 2-356th, said that he is proud to have his battalion take that nickname. The main maintenance facility located at Doña Ana Base Camp supports the battalion vehicles at Orogrande, White Sands Missile Range and the Doña Ana ranges. The satellite maintenance shop at McGregor Base Camp supports that base camp and Fort Bliss main post. The McGregor site previously also worked on equipment at Biggs Army Airfield, but a change of plans moved the two battalions located at Biggs during the 116th Brigade Combat Team training to McGregor and Doña Ana prior to the 29th BCT’s training. Sgt. Roberto Gonzalez, a mechanic at Doña Ana, said they work on 1 1/4 ton tactical trucks, Humvees, 2 1/2 ton and 5-ton cargo trucks. “The easiest vehicles to work on are the Blazers and pickups; the hardest are the Humvees,” Gonzalez said. The mechanics do annual and biannual services on all the vehicles. He said the turnaround time is about two days if there are no significant problems to be repaired. Sgt. Larry Jaramillo, a mechanic at McGregor, said the service team has two mechanics – one works the top half of the vehicle and the other one works the bottom half. “One will check the batteries and coolants and stuff such as that, while the other mechanic checks the wheels, brakes and exhaust system.” When the vehicle needs service, Jaramillo said, “We call the team with the vehicle and say, ‘Your Humvee needs service. Bring it in and we’ll replace it with another Humvee so the training isn’t interrupted and you can continue your mission.’” Gonzalez and Jaramillo understand the importance of the 2-356th mission. “Our priority as mechanics is to make sure we do everything to specs so that the vehicles will be available every day for training,” Gonzalez said. “The Logistics Support Bn. is very important to the brigade’s mission,” echoed Jaramillo. “If we don’t do our job correctly, the training battalions won’t have vehicles to support their mission. If the vehicle is broke down, the brigade is not going to be able to support the training for the units coming through.” The “Redball” battalion also has civilian contractors from Maryland-based Lear Seigler Services Inc. Two of them are on temporary duty at the Doña Ana facility. Steven Taylor, a retired Army Soldier-turned civilian contractor, maintains all the equipment, dispatching, records maintenance and parts ordering for the Fort Carson, Colo., 2nd Bde., 91st Div. reserve units, on a day-to-day basis. He is currently at the Doña Ana facility overseeing the service and contact teams. “It’s a privilege to support Operation Iraqi Freedom,” Taylor said. “The battalion knows that we enjoy working here and we support the mission. While at Fort Bliss, we can show, teach and guide the Reservist and National Guard mechanics how to maintain the vehicles and equipment.” Frank Hill, a former Marine, has been working for LSI for three years in the Salt Lake City division. He was a mechanic for 27 years prior to coming to work for LSI. Hill said being a mechanic was easy but “the hardest part was learning the Army acronyms.” Hill and Taylor find themselves away from home like the Reserve and National Guard Soldiers because the equipment goes with the mobilized unit. Hill’s wife asks him, “When are you coming home? You’re not in the Army. You just work for them.” Maj. Thomas Lewis, 2-356th operations officer, said that all the parts required for services and maintenance are supported through Fort Bliss. A daily trip is made to drop off orders and pick up parts. “We have an agreement with the National Guard Mobilization and Training Equipment Site facility at Doña Ana to work on high-priority vehicles such as a wrecker. We take routine vehicles such as Blazers to the Fort Bliss Department of Public Works and Logistics facility which is a contracted depot maintenance facility.” Depot maintenance is for major overhauls or a complete rebuilding of parts, assemblies or subassemblies. Although the Soldiers from the battalion are largely unseen, Lewis said, “In reality, the 2-356th provides all the vehicles for the 2nd Bde., 91st Div. training battalions to get out and train the 116th and 29th BCT. If we didn’t provide and maintain the equipment, the trainers couldn’t do their jobs.” The 91st Div. (Training Support) is organized and staffed to plan, conduct and evaluate training exercises for the Army National Guard, Army Reserve Combat Support and Combat Service Support units. During its mobilization, the 91st Div. assists in the validation of Army Reserve and Army National Guard units in the preparation for deployment. The 2nd Bde., 91st Div. “Dagger” Bde. is comprised of active component, Reserve and National Guard Soldiers mobilized since January 2003, training National Guard and Reserve units for Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom. The brigade is currently at Fort Bliss training the 116th BCT prior to their deployment to Iraq.