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Maj. Kelley Smith, a contracting officer with the 903rd Contingency Contracting Battalion, operates the M2-.50-caliber machine gun during the virtual convoy training session at the 903rd Contingency Contracting Battalion’s field training exercise March 19.
GRAFENWÖHR, Germany — The 903rd Contingency Contracting Battalion of the 409th Contracting Support Brigade assembled its teams for a field training exercise in late March to analyze and discuss tactical procedures used to support expeditionary and contingency environments.
With a geographic footprint that spans across 104 countries, the 409th CSB is the Expeditionary Contracting Command’s support link on the European and African continents and an indispensable partner of the 21st Theater Sustainment Command.
“It’s critical for us to ensure our battalion is ready to deploy at a moment’s notice. This exercise gives us an opportunity to train and learn in a controlled environment,” said Lt. Col. Lynda Royse, 903rd CCB commander.
The weeklong exercise included contracting scenarios, warrior tasks and battle drills. Royse said the training led to increased camaraderie and cohesion between the 903rd’s Grafenwöhr and Kaisers-lautern teams.
“Our Grafenwöhr teams got to see how others work within the 903rd’s Theater Contracting Center and our Kaiserslautern teams got to learn about the 903rd’s regional contracting offices’ best practices,” said Maj. Armando Corral, team leader for the 642nd Contingency Contracting Team.
“One of my favorite parts of this experience was the overall team building and unit cohesion. I loved getting out there and doing Solider stuff and getting back to basics,” said Master Sgt. Albert Lee, 903rd CCB operations NCOIC.
Part of the exercise included working specific contracting scenarios such as post-award orientation, delivery issues, termination for cause and protests. The FTX was a new experience for many of the service members.
“I’m pretty new to contracting, and Major Corral took the time to share knowledge and mentor me on aspects of a contract I was working,” said Staff Sgt. Philip Bouffard, contracting specialist with the 644th CCT. “I can’t tell you how valuable this was for me.”
