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Hundreds of aircraft loaded with equipment and personnel from around the world arrive and depart Ramstein each year, but none as unique as a few of Ramstein’s most recent arrivals.
Seven Russian-made Antonov AN-124 cargo planes loaded with the U.S. Army’s newest, most advanced and highly-lethal Stryker Infantry Carrier Vehicles arrived at Ramstein Aug. 31 to Sept. 4, and the Soldiers from the 21st Theater Sustainment Command were there to conduct reception, staging, onward movement and integration.
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The 25 Stryker vehicles and their support crews and equipment from the 3rd Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division were flown from Fort Lewis, Wash., to Ramstein in the world’s largest cargo transport planes. Each AN-124 can hold a maximum of four Stryker vehicles and two ISU-90 cargo containers. The 21st TSC is responsible for
getting the Stryker vehicles, their crews and their support equipment into the U.S. Army Europe theater of operation and over to the Joint Multinational Training Center in Hohenfels, Germany, to participate in Cooperative Spirit 2008 – an American, British, Canadian, Australian and New Zealand joint multi-national forces exercise.
“Anything we needed – any requests at all – the 21st TSC has been there to assist,” said Warrant Officer Deborah D. Love, the 3rd Bde., 2nd ID transportation officer. “When we needed pallets, dunnage or forklift support, they were on it. They also provided us with transportation, lodging at the Deployment Processing Center and meals. They’ve been absolutely fantastic and extremely supportive.”
“This is the first time I’ve seen Strykers flown into Ramstein,” said Staff Sgt. Jeremiah Wolf, the port Movement Control Team NCOIC at Ramstein’s purple ramp.
Sergeant Wolf, who is assigned to the 21st TSC’s 39th Transportation Battalion, said his unit is responsible for receiving and staging the Stryker vehicles and for arranging onward movement with a line-haul contractor, which delivered the fighting vehicles to Hohenfels.
“It’s pretty much the same as any other training mission we support, except the equipment is being flown in on AN-124s, which are manufactured in Russia, and the vehicles being off-loaded are the Army’s premier fighting vehicles,” Sergeant Wolf said.
In the Air Force’s C-5 Galaxy, a maximum of three Stryker vehicles and, depending on the weight, one ISU-90 container can be loaded into a single aircraft, said Warrant Officer Love. But with the AN-124, four Stryker vehicles and two ISU-90s, regardless of their weight, can be loaded into a single AN-124, which has a 25 percent larger payload than a C-5 Galaxy. AN-124s have been known to carry locomotives, yachts and a variety of oversized cargoes.
Spc. Larry Clark, a Stryker vehicle commander in A Company, 5th Battalion, 20th Infantry Regiment, was a part of the brigade’s torch party, and he assisted with off-loading the Strykers from the AN-124s at Ramstein. Specialist Clark said the Cooperative Spirit 2008 joint training exercise is something new for him because all the training he’s done prior to this has been in the United States and in preparation for operations in Iraq.
“It should be interesting working with these allied nations. I’ve never had the opportunity to train with other armies from other countries. I’m looking forward to
seeing how they do things,” Specialist Clark said.
The 3rd Bde., 2nd ID has about 450 Soldiers on the ground in Germany, which includes the brigade headquarters, one battalion headquarters and one Stryker company as well as augmentation from a mobile public affairs detachment and a civil affairs unit, said Maj. Lance Cangelosi, the 3rd Bde., 2nd ID logistics officer.
Exercise Cooperative Spirit 2008 is a unique opportunity to increase the brigade’s ability to work with its coalition partners, Major Cangelosi added.
