Joint Engineer Culture Clash: Lessons Learned from a Marine Expeditionary Force
Abstract
The 46th Engineer Battalion (Combat) (under the administrative control of the 130th Engineer Brigade) recently served in one of the most unique command structures and diverse task organizations an engineer unit has encountered joint and multicomponent representing almost every facet of our nation's military. During this time, the Soldiers and leaders of the 46th learned many hard, valuable lessons and had many outside the box construction and combat engineering experiences. Such diverse units and organizational structures, with joint and multicomponent characteristics, are likely to be the rule rather than the exception in the future. This article shares some of the lessons learned and experiences from the unit's year in-theater. In October 2005, the 46th deployed to Multinational Force West (MNF W) in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. The MNF W area of operations was under the command of a Marine expeditionary force (MEF), rather than an Army division or corps headquarters, so all Army units fell under a Marine Corps general officer. Since the 46th is combat heavy, the MEF further assigned the unit to the 30th Naval Construction Regiment (NCR) an Active Navy headquarters commanded and staffed by United States Navy Reserve and a few Active Navy officers. The regiment changed several times during its deployment and sometimes included naval mobile construction battalions (NMCBs) (commonly known as Seabees), Marine Corps engineer support battalions, and Army combat engineer battalions. Soldiers, Sailors, and Marines engaged in the full spectrum of construction, combat engineering, and assured mobility missions which included wood frame construction, route repair, bridge repair, route clearance, security escort patrols, direct support to maneuver units in kinetic operations, and most important of all, support to Iraqi military and security forces.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Sep 01, 2006
- Accession Number
- ADA596626
Entities
People
- Carol L. Anderson
- R. D. Payne
Organizations
- United States Army Engineer School