An official website of the United States government
Here's how you know
A .mil website belongs to an official U.S. Department of Defense organization in the United States.
A lock (lock ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .mil website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Home : Media : News : News Article View
NEWS | April 4, 2023

Augmentees Support 403rd AFSB during Freedom Shield 23 Exercise

By Galen Putnam 403rd AFSB Public Affairs

CAMP HENRY, South Korea -- After a hiatus of more than three years, Army Reserve augmentees supplemented the 403rd Army Field Support Brigade during a joint training exercise March 13-24.

The augmentees were on hand for Exercise Freedom Shield 23, a defense-oriented field training exercise which integrated live exercises with constructive simulations. The purpose of the exercise is to strengthen the United States and Republic of Korea Ironclad Alliance, enhance our combined defense posture, and strengthen security and stability on the Korean Peninsula.

“In order to ‘train as we fight,’ it is imperative that the 403rd AFSB gets augmented to execute its mission during contingency and/or disaster relief,” said Neftali Santiago, training & exercise chief, S-3 (Operations). “The integration of augmentees is one of the key tasks ensuring the brigade can operate on a 24-hour basis. Augmentees provide the additional support enabling the brigade to operate more efficiently.”

Exercises on the Korean Peninsula have been scaled back over the past couple of years due to the COVID pandemic. With COVID on the wane, joint Republic of Korea and United States exercises are back on the uptick.

“The exercise was a great experience and went really well. It is always beneficial when Reservists are afforded the opportunity to participate in real-world training exercises with our active-duty counterparts,” said Lt. Col. Jack Eagly, G4 logistics officer, Army Reserve Sustainment Command, Birmingham, Ala., who served as S3 chief of operations during the exercise. “It was an eye-opening experience that we can all share with our parent organization and fellow Soldiers in hopes to continue fostering relationships and increase the Reserves’ readiness posture and ability to plug and play in the event we are called upon to execute any mission set. We learned the importance sharing institutional knowledge, teamwork, and that relying on each other to execute as one in the absence of others to fill all knowledge gaps are essential keys to success.”

The 26 augmentees came from several U.S.-based units, including Headquarters & Headquarters Company, Army Reserve Sustainment Command; Army Sustainment Command – Army Reserve Element; Defense Contract Management Agency – ARE; Army Materiel Command – ARE; LOGCAP (Logistics Civil Augmentation Program) Support Brigade; and the 412th Theater Engineer Command.

“Things went very well. I enjoyed my time here immensely. I was immediately welcomed and felt like part of the team,” said Staff Sgt. Adeline Prince from the 2nd LOGCAP Support Battalion, who served as an S-4 Logistics augmentee. “I learned a lot about the logistics field, especially how uniquely those systems apply here on the peninsula. The main thing was being able to see firsthand our support to the [Republic of Korea] and to the Korean people.”

In addition to the exercise, augmentees had the opportunity to participate in a hike with 403rd AFSB leaders and staff to Hill 303 near Waegwan, where 41 Soldiers from the 1st Cavalry Division were captured, and subsequently murdered, in an atrocity known as the Hill 303 Massacre in the early days of the Korean War. The group also visited the Chilgok Patriots & Peace Memorial Museum that highlights the ferocious fighting that took place in the region during the early phase of the Korean War and pays tribute to the victims of the Hill 303 massacre.

The exercise concluded with an awards ceremony in which augmentees were recognized for their performance.

“The exercise was a resounding success for the 403rd AFSB. Our Army Reserve partners significantly enhanced our operations during Freedom Shield 2023,” said Edgar Tuttle, chief, S-3 Operations, 403rd AFSB. “The Army Reserve augmentees brought a level of professionalism, depth and breadth of logistics operations knowledge and skills, and enthusiasm to perform optimally throughout the Freedom Shield 2023 exercise, which paid immeasurable dividends to the 403rd AFSB and our enterprise partners.”

To view and download more photos of the awards ceremony and hike (as well as other brigade events), go to the 403rd AFSB Flickr page at:

CONNECT WITH USINDOPACOM
Facebook

Like Us
Twitter
342,728
Follow Us

ENGAGE & CONNECT MORE WITH PACOM

                                                 

IN THE USINDOPACOM NEWS
Multilateral Naval Exercise Komodo Returns
Vice Adm. Karl Thomas, Commander of U.S. Seventh Fleet (right), coins Laksamana Tni Yudo Margon, Panglima Tentara Nasional Indonesia, during the opening ceremony of Multination Naval Exercise Komodo 2023 (MNEK 2023). MNEK 2023 is a military exercise held by the Indonesian to establish cooperation in regional area, especially in carrying out disaster management and humanitarian assistance operations. Under Commander, U.S. Pacific Fleet, 7th Fleet is the U.S. Navy's largest forward-deployed numbered fleet, and routinely interacts and operates with maritime nations in preserving a free and open Indo-Pacific region. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Christopher Thomas)
June 9, 2023 - MAKASSAR, Indonesia -- The United States Navy joined 20 navies from around the globe in the return of the Multilateral Naval Exercise Komodo (MNEK) in and around Makassar, South Sulawesi, Indonesia June 4-8.The exercise...

Pentagon Spokesman Addresses Indo-Pacific, Ukraine and Race
Pentagon Press Secretary Air Force Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder address members of the press during a press conference at the Pentagon, Washington, D.C., June 8, 2023. (DoD photo by U.S. Air Force Tech. Sgt. Jack Sanders)
June 9, 2023 - WASHINGTON -- Pentagon Press Secretary Air Force Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder resumed briefing today after a grueling around-the-world trip with Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III.Ryder addressed the trip, the release of a...

US Army Mobile Laboratory Forges Enduring Partnership with South Korean Command
Maj. Andrew A. Clack and Spc. Jasmine A. Crewell from the U.S. Army's 1st Area Medical Laboratory Occupational and Environmental Health Section observe in-field analysis at a sample receiving table-lab. Soldiers from the 1st Area Medical Laboratory trained with South Korean troops from the Republic of Korea Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear (CBRN) Defense Command at their headquarters outside of the South Korean capital of Seoul. (Photo Credit: Courtesy photo)
June 9, 2023 - SEOUL, Republic of Korea -- American Soldiers from the U.S. Army’s only mobile medical laboratory trained with their South Korean Armed Forces counterparts to strengthen alliance interoperability for counter Weapons of Mass...

Came to Train, Stayed to Help: 3rd MAW Marines Assist in Typhoon Recovery Efforts
U.S. Marines with Marine Aviation Logistics Squadron 16 from Miramar, Calif., move a tree blocking the road on Marine Corps Base Camp Blaz, Guam, June 2, 2023. A Combined Joint Task Force led by U.S. Army Pacific and Task Force West are the DOD representatives supporting FEMA and the governments of Guam and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands as we continue recovery efforts in the wake of Typhoon Mawar. Commander Task Force West Rear Adm. Benjamin Nicholson, and all military installation commanding officers in Guam are diligently working to restore steady state to the bases, and dedicate resources to all FEMA mission assignments. Typhoon Mawar moved through the area as a Category 4 storm on May 24, bringing hurricane-force winds, heavy rain and high seas marking the strongest storm to affect the island since Typhoon Pongsona in 2002. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Garrett Gillespie)
June 9, 2023 - Pacific Ocean -- Marines and Sailors of Marine Aviation Logistics Squadron (MALS) 16 embarked aboard Wright-class Aviation Logistics Support Ship, SS Curtiss (T-AVB 4) partnered with the U.S. Coast Guard and 30th Naval...

AFJROTC Cadets Experience 176th Wing Mission during JBER Visit
Air Force Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps cadets Cole Smith (left) and Theron Sullivan (right), both students at Eagle River High School, pose for a photo while wearing combat helmets equipped with night vision goggles belonging to the 176th Wing during a tour of the wing’s facilities at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska, June 6, 2023. Nearly a hundred cadets from surrounding high schools came to JBER for their Cadet Leadership Course, a program that aims to prepare cadets for leadership roles in their units, schools, and local communities. Thanks to the 176th Wing, the cadets were given hands-on experience with some of the tools, land vehicles, and aircraft used during the wing’s missions. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class J. Michael Peña)
June 9, 2023 - JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska -- As part of a week-long camp, Air Force Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps cadets from three local high schools toured multiple aircraft and Alaska Air National Guard facilities,...