Joint work environment offer training venue for new transportation specialist.

What are vessel operations?--Seems like an easy enough question for the seasoned Military Surface Deployment and Distribution Command member.

But, as a new member, vessel operations are much more--they're a vital part of on-the-job training and an essential look into the SDDC mission.

During the redistribution of the III Marine Expeditionary Force Jan. 31 at Ford Island, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, Mr. Edwin Ancheta got his first hands-on experience with vessel operations since joining the 599th Transportation Group two months ago.

While Ancheta is no newbie to the transportation world--he has more than 25 years of experience with the Air Force--one day on a Deployment and Distribution Support Team proved to be very educational.

"What I experienced was a larger magnitude of operations compared to what I've done in the past," Ancheta said. "This was my first time as a traffic management specialist to interface with other agencies to do terminal operations in a joint environment. Working with other experienced terminal operators has given me the opportunity to further my knowledge."

And, according to Mr. David Bertao, the DDST team leader, providing Ancheta with guidance during the operation was crucial in developing his skills. "This was his first DDST mission, so there was a for him to see."

According to Ancheta, the offload of more than 160 pieces of equipment and cargo was a great experience.

"I learned how to operate the Worldwide Port System hand-held scanner, including how to obtain cargo Transportation Control Number which contains the vehicle nomenclature, length, width, height and total weight," he said. "Additionally, Fleet and Industrial Supply Center, Pearl Harbor, personnel showed me how to download data from the scanner to the WPS system to create data to be used for 100 percent in-transit visibility."

Other aspects of the training included: administering and ensuring proper receipt, offloading, and documentation processing for all of the Department of Defense shipment like rolling stock and containers; inspections of each off-loaded container: visual checks for possible damage; and, verification that all the rolling stock matched the model and serial number in the TCN data.

Ancheta said, overall the vessel operations allowed him a chance for application.

"I enjoyed working together as a team to do the mission," the transportation specialist said. "It allowed me to familiarize myself with and train with Military Ocean Terminal pier operators and staff, as well as other agencies for an end result toward becoming a world class port operator and traffic manager."

The 599th DDST in cooperation with FISC, Pearl Harbor, conducted the vessel discharge and staging operations for the MV Green Point. The III MEF's equipment was redistributed from Okinawa, Japan to Marine Corps units at Marine Base Kaneohe, Hawaii.

Robyn Mack, Public Affairs Specialist

599th Transportation Group