KMC Army bases say goodbye to Bundeswehr

German Bundeswehr guards gave their last salutes Monday to drivers entering KMC Army installations.

“Since they have arrived, we have completed numerous force protection upgrades to our installation gates and have hired additional contract security guards to each installation,” said Jeffrey C. Crisp, the 415th Base Support Battalion’s plans and operations officer. “This allows us to free up some Bundeswehr assets in the KMC.”

For almost two years, Bundeswehr Soldiers and Sailors provided force protection measures to U.S. Army installations in support of the Global War on Terrorism. They guarded five KMC Army installations: Landstuhl Regional Medical Center, General Support Center-Europe, Rhine Ordnance Barracks, Pulaski Barracks and Landstuhl Satellite Command.

“The biggest point I think is that we had no big incidents or problems with security during the nearly two years that we have provided security for the U.S. facilities,” said Oberstleutnant (Lt. Col.) Andreas M. Meunier, the German Forces Liaison Command 461 commander and the barracks commander for the Bundeswehr Soldiers and Sailors, who guarded LRMC and SATCOM. “This, to me, is a success of the effort of the guards,” he said. “If someone wants to do something very ugly in a U.S. facility and sees that there are a lot of guards well-trained with good weapons and ammunition, perhaps he will think about what he plans to do.”

Bundeswehr guards have stood 2,400 guard-duty shifts, consisting of more than five million guard-hours. About 6,800 German Soldiers and Sailors in 37 separate units participated in the security of KMC Army communities.

They have always been very professional and thorough,” said Maj. Margery Hanfelt, Land-stuhl Veterinary Lab Europe’s veterinarian. “They never get people saying ‘Thank you’ for stopping me and searching my car, but I’ve truly been grateful for the extra measure of protection they provided us.”

Oberstleutnant Meunier said that the Bundeswehr guards from the Panzer Battalion 64 returned to Wolfhagen, Germany, and those from the Panzer Grenadier 212 returned to Augustdorf, Germany.