MTMC transporters work 'round-the-clock missions.

When the USNS Fisher berthed at the Molle Vehiculo Terminal, Tarragona, Spain, members of an 839th Transportation Battalion deployment support team were ready--with a winning game plan.

The discharge of equipment of the II Marine Expeditionary Brigade and Navy Seabees some 40 days earlier from the USNS Pililaau had been difficult. The Large, Medium-Speed, Roll-on/Roll-off ship brought 1,200 pieces of equipment bound for a NATO joint logistics exercise in Zaragosa, Spain.

Then, the work was slowed because of documentation problems within the Worldwide Port System.

While most of the scanning equipment used by the Army and Marine Corps was identical--the software was different. Worse, we found that the cargo documentation during loading had an accuracy rate of 20 percent. We found solutions to the challenges.

Now, on June 20, we fielded a beefed-up documentation process. We had more people for the 24-hour shift work, and correct package codes, making it easier to identify equipment to be loaded.

Further, we had a rental van with a satellite Internet connectivity capability.

"Only $39 for a rental vehicle and a mobile satellite system gave the battalion a highly effective mobile port operations center," said Sgt. Maj. Ronald Jackson. "This mobile center allowed us to place out Worldwide Port System as close as possible to the ramp and no worries about hard Internet connections. This capability made it much easier to do on-the-spot corrections or modifications of equipment."

We had an added challenge for the redeployment. Not only were we loading 1,200 pieces of cargo for II Marine Expeditionary Brigade, we also had to load another 600 pieces of equipment from Marine Preposition Fleet vessels, USNS Obregon and USNS Martin, was collocated in the staging area with the LMSR equipment.

Our documentation team was enhanced with marine cargo specialists Sgt. 1st Class Delenor Wilson and Sgt. 1st Class Kelvin Middleton. Antonio Demarco, day shift documentation chief, and Staff Sgt. Rafael Renteria, night shift documentation chief, worked side by side inputting all equipment information into the Worldwide Port System. In the first 48 hours, over 800 pieces of Marine and Navy equipment were loaded. The only pause was the time allocated for changing the shifts of drivers.

"MTMC people were very professional, and were crucial to getting vessel papers for USNS Fisher," said Lt. Cdr. Thomas McKenna, Commander, Amphibious II. "Looking forward to working with them in the future.

"The mission was highly successful, which exceeded expectations, and an exceptional operation by the Navy and Marines."

After nearly 72 hours of around-the-clock movement of equipment, the Fisher was completed late in the evening of June 22--48 hours ahead of schedule.

Fisher departed Tarragona on June 24.

The missions will be long remembered for our battalion's newest member, Blythe Slinkard, a transportation specialist.

Slinkard worked shifts during both missions in Spain. To discharge the Pililaau, she was one of five deployment support team members working 12-hour shifts in unseasonably cold May weather.

"I definitely was not expecting such an exhausting experience," said Slinkard.

We had worked around the clock discharging the Pililaau.

When the last piece of cargo rolled out, we found we had been working for 43 continuous hours.

By Staff Sgt. Rafael Renteria
839th Transportation Battalion