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| 'Tow the Line' Soldiers of 73rd Transportation Company, 10th Transportation Battalion, 7th Sustainment Brigade, Joint Base Langley-Eustis, depart Yorktown Coast Guard Station, Yorktown, Va., March 24 on board the Large Tug-805 with two Landing Craft Utility vessels in tow. U.S. Army photo by Sgt. 1st Class Kelly Jo Bridgwater, 7th Sustainment Brigade Public Affairs. VIEW PHOTOS FROM JOINT LOGISTICS OVER THE WATER 2011 | |||
Army mariners set sail for Morocco to join Joint Logistics Over The Shore
30 March 2011 — By Sgt. 1st Class Kelly Jo Bridgwater, 7th Sustainment Brigade Public Affairs
YORKTOWN, Va. — Twenty-five U.S. Army sailors are on their way to Morocco in support of Transportation Command’s annual Joint Logistics Over The Shore, or JLOTS, training exercise.
“We’ve got a 14-day, open water sail from San Juan (Puerto Rico) to Morocco,” said Chief Warrant Officer Tom Hall, vessel master, Large Tug-805, 73rd Transportation Company, 10th Transportation Battalion, 7th Sustainment Brigade, Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Va.
Hall and his crew aboard the LT-805 will be towing two Army Landing Craft Utility watercraft; the LCUs play a vital role in the Roll-On/Roll-Off, Discharge Facility portion of JLOTS. The crew will first sail to San Juan for refueling and from there sail across the Atlantic to the coast of West Africa.
“That’s a long sail under any conditions,” said Hall, “but with two LCUs in tow it becomes even more taxing because of the constant watch on the tow. We’ve trained and practiced for this and I’ve got confidence that we’re ready to pull it off.”
Capt. Adam Araujo, the 73rd TC’s Company commander, couldn’t agree more.
“I’m confident this will be a successful mission,” said Araujo, standing on the dock at Yorktown, watching as the vessel made its way out to sea. “Our crews are well trained; we’ve got the right people working in the right positions.”
JLOTS tests the Soldiers’ ability to discharge a vessel without benefit of a pier in support of a tactical or humanitarian situation. Several of the brigade’s watercraft deployed to Haiti in January 2010 in support of Operation Unified Response. The vessels were critical in moving vital supplies such as food, shelter and cooking utensils to displaced people of Haiti who were affected by the Jan. 12, 2010 earthquake.
A training exercise such as JLOTS contributes significantly to the brigade’s ability to perform this type of mission anywhere in the world, said Araujo. At times a ship may have to be downloaded farther away from a port or berth based on the location or due to an austere environment.
The 7th Sustainment Brigade provides logistical support anywhere, at any time, in any environment. Elements of the brigade’s six battalions and their companies are deployed at any given time supporting a number of global missions to include Kuwait, U.S. Army South, Iraq and Afghanistan.
VIEW PHOTOS FROM JOINT LOGISTICS OVER THE WATER 2011
