Story by PS2 Kitara Byerly, 7th Naval Construction Regiment Public Affairs
BOLESWALIEC, Poland The 7th Naval Construction Regiment (NCR) completed its four-week rotation as the command and control element of exercise Resolute Castle 19, June 8.
Resolute Castle 19 is an exercise that supports Operation Atlantic Resolve. Its mission is to reinforce regional partnerships and promote interoperability with host nation forces.
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From the right: U.S. Army Major Steven Thompson (left) speaks with Capt. Milton Washington, (right) Commodore of 7th Naval Construction Regiment. U.S. Army Soldiers, and the U.S. Navy Seabees are collaborating on building training sites with the Polish Army, May 31. (Photo by PS2 Kitara Byerly)
The 7th NCR assisted in leading 29 missions assigned to Resolute Castle 19. Along with the 22nd NCR and U.S. Army Reserve staff, 7 NCR actively managed 18 projects, completing four of those projects during the regiment s few weeks in Europe.
The Seabee work ethic impressed the commander of the Mission Command Element in Poznan, Poland, Col. Patrick Michaelis, who called the Seabees legendary.
Major Robert Mikyska, the officer in charge of the 372nd Army Reserve Engineer Brigade, echoed the sentiments, You live up to the legend.
The Navy returned command and control over to the Army June 8. The Seabees had originally relieved the 372nd Army Reserve Engineer Brigade so they could brief their redeployment plans to a headquarters in Germany. The 372nd will continue the mission until September of this year.
Capt. Milton Washington, commodore of 7th NCR, spoke about the necessity of the mission.
Resolute Castle 19 is a prime example of and an opportunity to accomplish many of the strategic objectives, including partnering with internal services and external countries, he said.
Since 2014, The U.S. Department of Defense has been sending military personnel to Europe in support of Operation Atlantic Resolve. The United States is demonstrating to NATO allies and the world its continued commitment to peace, security and stability in Europe.
Exercise Resolute Castle 19 accomplishes this goal by providing improvements to existing infrastructure, such as Polish and Romanian military bases and weapon ranges.
The success of the mission defines the ability to work together as one professional force. The 7th NCR was able to command construction projects across allied forces effectively.
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Capt. Milton Washington, Commodore of 7th Naval Construction Regiment (Center) and Command Master Chief Edward Schoen (fourth from left) performed a site inspection and met with U.S. Army Soldiers that had completed a concrete pad construction, May 28. (Photo by PS2 Kitara Byerly)
All departments were gainfully employed and gained valuable hands-on experience to include operations, supply, training, embark, and communications, Washington said. The regiment created tracking systems that augmented supply chains. Through improved communication lines and quality assessment programs, the regiment was able to coordinate deadlines with host nations and subordinate units.
Washington said that Seabees make up a vital part of that engineering and construction force. The experience 7th NCR brought to Resolute Castle 19 was valuable.
The real-time oversight of construction evolutions allowed 7th NCR to make improvements and demonstrated that the 7th NCR can be counted on when needed, said Washington. We thoroughly enjoyed working with the U.S. Army units, the Royal Engineers from England, the Polish Engineers, and the Romanians.
Resolute Castle is an ongoing exercise with projects planned for 2020 in Eastern Europe at the invitation of those host nations.
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