USTRANSCOM tackles rotations

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SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, Ill. (AFPN) --  The U.S. Transportation Command's basic mission is moving the nation's military wherever and whenever required.

The current task is to redeploy the forces who defeated the Iraqi military and liberated that country and replace them with fresh troops. At the same time, forces must be redeployed from the Afghanistan area of operations and replaced.

The rotation of forces for operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom began recently with the redeployment of the 101st Airborne Division to Ft. Campbell, Ky. By early summer, USTRANSCOM will complete the movement of more than 300,000 servicemembers and 1 million tons of cargo.

Gen. Richard Myers, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, called the force rotation "a logistics feat that will rival any in history."

Since Sept. 11, 2001, USTRANSCOM officials have steadfastly directed worldwide mobility requirements supporting the war on terrorism. People of every military service, both active and reserve components, civilians, contractors and commercial partners have conducted more than 27,000 airlift missions and 290 sealift missions. They have transported almost 1.2 million troops and 3 million tons of equipment and supplies.

Even though the accomplishments -- representing 27 months of transporting forces mainly in one direction, mostly to one area of operations in a given time period -- are Herculean, the current force rotation is even more complex, officials said.

"We must manage the throughput of troops and commodities more closely than ever," said Col. David Hudson, chief of USTRANSCOM's operations division. "We are focused on getting the soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines back home while ensuring that we use every possible resource to deliver replacement troops and equipment.”

Warfighting commands submit their requirements and USTRANSCOM directs transportation support through its component commands: Air Mobility Command at Scott AFB, Ill.; Military Sealift Command in Washington; and the Surface Deployment Distribution Command in Alexandria, Va. (Courtesy of USTRANSCOM News Service)