MTMC moves first Apache Longbows to Europe.

As the aviators of the 6th Squadron, 6th Cavalry Regiment returned to Europe there was a big reception.

At dockside in Antwerp, Belgium, aviators, contractors and members of the Belgium media watched transporters from the Military Traffic Management Command discharge 22 Apache AH-64D helicopters. As the aircraft rolled off the ramp of the Scan Bothnia, the 6th Squadron, 6th Cavalry Regiment, of Illesheim, Germany, became the first unit to receive the upgraded helicopters within U.S. Army Europe.

The Longbow is an enhanced version of the Apache. Upgrades on the AH-64D include the Longbow millimeter wave fire control radar and the Longbow Hellfire missile.

Aviators with the regiment had been out of Europe for a year. The unit cased its colors at the Stork Barracks in June 2001 in order to travel to Fort Rucker, Ala., and Fort Hood, Texas, to train on the Longbow-upgraded Apache helicopters.

Now, two MTMC deployment support teams brought the new aircraft back to Europe. The Apaches were loaded on the Scan Bothnia, in Corpus Christi, Texas, led by a deployment support team of the 841st Transportation Battalion, Beaumont.

The vessel sailed July 1, and arrived for unloading in Antwerp on July 17.

The Scan Bothnia was discharged by a deployment support team from the 838th Transportation Battalion, Rotterdam, the Netherlands.

Upon arrival, soldiers with the 2-502nd Aviation Intermediate Maintenance Co., Mannheim, Germany, helped prepare the aircraft for flights directly to Illesheim.

The commander of the helicopter unit, Lt. Col. Michael Barbee, Commander, 6th Squadron, 6th Cavalry Regiment, was on hand to watch his new equipment arrive."

"It's a nice diverse number of agencies--military and civilian--here in Antwerp," said Barbee. "Due to the cooperative effort, we had a safe successful discharge."

The 6th Squadron, 6th Cavalry Regiment, a unit of the 11th Aviation Regiment, is a high-priority aviation unit for U.S. Army Europe. The regiment's aviators were the first members of the NATO alliance to enter Kosovo in the implementation of peace accords as part of Operation Joint Guardian. Earlier, the unit had been deployed to Tirana, Albania. In both 1996 and 1998, the unit was deployed on a peacekeeping mission to Bosnia in support of 1st Armored Division soldiers.

This move had an unexpected benefit for the 842nd team that loaded the vessel. Normally, the battalion uses Cargo Dock 8 on the South Terminal, with its large open staging area, when using the Strategic Seaport of Corpus Christi.

Because the Scan Bothnia has a straight, non-slewing stern ramp, the uploading was moved to Cargo Dock 9, a roll-on/roll-off ramp berth on the North Terminal.

The facility worked fine and allowed the team to validate the dock's utility in the Port Planning Order.

The deployment support team from the 842nd included: Jim Heldreth, Rodney White and Ricardo Roach. The trio was backed up by six Army Reservists from the 1192nd Transportation Terminal Brigade, New Orleans. The Reservists included: Master Sgt. Swane Blackmore, Sgt. 1st Class James Hogan, Staff Sgt. Ronda George, Staff Sgt. Vernell Wilson, Staff Sgt. Emile Druhet and Spc. Lounika Littleton.

The mission's 180 pieces of cargo began arriving June 24 at Corpus Christi. For the next six days, team members prepared the helicopters for shipment and covered them with protective shrink-wrap. Marine Terminals Corp served as the stevedore contractor, and DynCorp oversaw helicopter operations.

Vessel loading was conducted in one day--starting at 7 a.m. and ending at 5:40 p.m.

Jim Heldreth
Marine Cargo Specialist
841st Transportation Battalion