SDDC.

SDDC

The perfect salute to National Transportation Week--a joint effort that employs all modes to accomplish the Strategic Seaport mission in South Carolina

The strategic seaport of Charleston's continuous military deployments and redeployments since 9/11 are managed and operated by a true "joint" team of soldiers, sailors, marines, mariners, civil servants, contractors, and commercial transportation partners.

The overall command and control of each military seaport mission is managed by the SDDC's Army 841st Transportation Battalion. However, the 841st Transportation Battalion, also known as SDDC Charleston, is made up of a mix of army officer, non-commissioned officers, army civilians, and contractors.

Military deployments in Charleston over the last two years have supported numerous missions to include Operation Iraqi Freedom, Operation Enduring Freedom, Kosovo Forces, humanitarian deployments, mine resistant vehicle deployments, and unit sustainment.

One mission of SDDC Charleston is to supervise and manage the contracted labor provided by Marine Terminals Corporation East (MTC). MTC is made up of experienced civilian longshoremen that work both commercial cargo and military cargo missions in Charleston.

SDDC Charleston also manages the transport of cargo to and from the seaport This commercial transport mainly comes in the form of the commercial trucking industry. During certain missions, cargo is transported by rail to and from the seaport. Both Norfolk Southern and CSX operate trains for military missions to Charleston.

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Cargo that is transported by commercial truck is controlled and operated by the cargo documentation and freight sections of the 84lst. These sections arrange for receipt and pickup of cargo by commercial truck. The operation must verify which cargo is sent to which location and at what time.

The cargo ships that transport military cargo are either military chartered cargo ships or MSC Navy cargo ships. Both types of ships are operated by merchant mariners. These mariners operate and maintain these cargo ships that transport high priority military cargo.

Although the bulk of the labor is completed by civilian longshoremen, the 841st often utilized a port support activity team of personnel to supervise the labor, direct cargo, provide security and force protection, and movement control. This port support activity team includes DA civilian marine cargo specialists and military personnel.

The military personnel that compose the port support activity are usually army reservists or Marine Corps reservists. The "Savannah Marines," a port operating unit based in Savannah, GA, has provided continuous port support activity support to Charleston operations since early 2007.

Several information technology specialists work at the 841st as contractors. Their job entails the proper maintenance of all technology programs to include computers, intranet, tracking technology, radios, phones, and video-teleconferencing as needed.

Although SDDC Charleston works mostly with the Coast Guard, merchant mariners, Marines, and deploying unit liaison officers, there is interface with the Navy and Air Force. Several of the cargo piers used by SDDC Charleston are on a Navy installation. Each operation involves coordination with the Navy.

The Charleston AFB conducts cargo airlift in the same manner as SDDC Charleston conducts sealift. If cargo requires a quicker transit overseas, it can be bumped to airlift. If transit time is not an issue, the cargo will usually shift to sea-lift. The close location of the Charleston airport and seaports allows for this interchange.

The military sealift mission of SDDC Charleston requires a true "joint" effort of multiple DOD partners. Every type of transportation service and industry to include commercial and military is involved in the Charleston mission at one time or another.

*Same articles have been condensed due to limitations in space.

By Capt. Chris LeCron

Army 841st Trans BN Public Affairs Charleston, SC