FORT DETRICK, Md. — The U.S. Army Medical Logistics Command (AMLC) has played a crucial role in enhancing warfighter readiness during DEFENDER 25, the Army’s largest annual training exercise.
This exercise brought together approximately 12,000 U.S. service members alongside 13,000 troops from 29 allied and partner nations, focusing on the strategic deployment of U.S.-based forces.
Led by U.S. Army Europe and Africa, DEFENDER 25 emphasizes the effective use of Army Prepositioned Stocks (APS) and showcases follow-on exercises that enhance lethality and interoperability among allied and partner nations.
“As the Army becomes more lethal, agile, and efficient, we are always looking to improve our processes to better support the warfighter,” said AMLC Commander Col. Marc Welde.
Col. Welde continued, “Large-scale exercises like DEFENDER allow us to evaluate and demonstrate how AMLC enables readiness for the force.”
Beginning in April, AMLC teams from the U.S. Army Medical Materiel Agency assisted units as they drew medical materiel from the APS-2 site in Dulmen, Germany.
These teams worked in collaboration with the 7384th Medical Detachment Blood Support, a reserve unit from Columbia, Missouri, and the 86th Infantry Brigade Combat Team (Mountain), a National Guard unit based in Vermont.
Their efforts were aimed at preparing, issuing, and resetting post-exercise medical materiel for improved operational readiness.
Capt. Justine Juan, an operations officer at USAMMA, highlighted the goal of reducing deployment time through the validation, preparation, and packing of equipment for immediate use.
“This exercise helped greatly in validating our processes and procedures,” Juan stated.
“Participating in these large-scale global exercises is just as important as it is for every Soldier to practice their individual and mission-essential tasks.”
Support continued in Lithuania, where personnel from AMLC’s Logistics Assistance Program assisted with equipment maintenance and troubleshooting during the hospital exercise (HOSPEX) segment of DEFENDER.
This part of the event was led by the 512th Field Hospital, based in Kaiserslautern, Germany, which is part of the 519th Hospital Center.
Logistics assistance representatives Vladimir Sequera and Jessy Moore were deployed in support of their respective Army Field Support Brigade units participating in the HOSPEX.
Sequera explained that the LAP team’s role was multifaceted, focusing on evaluating shelter configurations, identifying refrigeration vulnerabilities, and addressing issues related to the supply chain of dry ice limited by hazardous material transport regulations in a forward-deployed medical environment.
“The team’s agility in troubleshooting refrigeration systems, securing alternate resources, and planning future medical devices training truly illustrates their adaptability under pressure,” he noted.
Alongside the 512th FH, extensive equipment checks and infrastructure assessments were conducted to swiftly resolve minor issues encountered during the setup, ensuring continuity of care.
Additionally, the team conducted field training sessions on crucial medical devices, such as the CT scanner and medical oxygen generator.
This training ensures that field personnel are well-equipped with the knowledge necessary to optimize equipment use and prevent future complications.
As the exercise concluded, AMLC also carried out retrograde operations, which involves the turn-in and reset of equipment for future use.
This phase supported the 86th IBCT at a forward equipment hand-off site in Greece and coordinated the return of equipment to APS-2 in Germany.
Sequera mentioned that the AMLC team not only met its mission objectives but gained valuable insights for further process improvements, increasing both effectiveness and resilience for future retrograde operations.
“Medical logistics is more than just a support function — it’s the backbone of readiness,” he stated.
“We don’t just ship equipment. We ensure that life-saving devices are always available where and when they are needed, and that they function correctly. I am proud to have supported this mission and even prouder of the team I worked alongside.”
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