Your Army in the Pacific: Defined by the quality of its people

SFC Patrie R. Standley, operations NCO for an explosive ordnance disposal control team, double-checked the connections on his blasting machine and then cranked off the last of over 9,000 pounds of munitions, transforming the enemy ordnance into a huge fireball of orange and yellow heat, smoke and dust. A hundred miles to the west, Capt. Steven Janko would later destroy additional caches of enemy ordnance and conduct analysis that would lead to the neutralization of rocket attacks at Bagram Air Base. Both men were in Afghanistan. Both men are assigned to U.S. Army Pacific (USARPAC) and are stationed in Hawaii.

USARPAC exists to fulfill its primary missionto provide trained and ready forces to the combatant commander, U.S. Pacific Command (USPACOM)7 and, as the world situation dictates, to other supported combatant commanders. Duty in USARPAC offers the opportunity to live and work in some of the most beautiful spots in the world. In Hawaii, the weather varies only slightly from month to month, and warm tropical winds-trades-blow almost invariably from the east. In Alaska, truly the last frontier, soldiers and family members are able to enjoy a wide variety of outdoor activities. In Japan, soldiers are exposed to the fascinating culture of Asia. Our Army's presence in the Pacific, from Hawaii to Alaska, Japan, Guam, American Samoa and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI), is relatively small-about 37,000 soldiers and Department of the Army civilians, but our impact is enormous.

While the Pacific area of responsibility (AOR) is often characterized as a maritime theater, the region is dominated by armies: seven of the world's 10 largest armiesmade up of more than 6.4 million soldiers-stand in China, India, Russia, the Korean Peninsula, Vietnam and Taiwan. The Pacific region is extremely dynamic, and on any given day, USARPAC faces transnational threats ranging from weapons of mass destruction, terrorism and border conflicts to drug trafficking. We depend on our professional sister services-the Air Force and Navy-to get us across the Pacific Ocean, but once on the ground, we are keenly aware that the Army then takes the prominent role in deterring and responding to this wide spectrum of threats.

We have crafted five priorities in USARPAC to serve as our azimuth as we support the combatant commander and ensure that Army forces are always trained and ready to fight and win. SFC Standley and many others like him have stepped forward to support USPACOM's efforts in the global war on terrorism. Closer to home, in Hawaii, Alaska, Guam, CNMI and American Samoa, National Guard and Army Reserve soldiers performed airport security duty and forged new and stronger alliances with our civil law enforcement and intelligence community partners. Many, like Capt. Janko, an attorney in Honolulu specializing in international law assigned to the 368th Military Intelligence Company, 9th Regional Support Command, deployed overseas. Each day, the USARPAC crisis action center tracks the deployment of thousands of troops to dozens of locations throughout the world. From the Philippines to Afghanistan and Iraq, or on the home front executing our joint rear area coordination mission to help protect the state of Hawaii, USARPAC soldiers and civilians are fully engaged in the global war on terrorism.

A major subordinate command of USARPAC, the U.S. Army, Japan, or USARJ, makes its home in the land of the rising sun. In 1960, the United States and Japan signed a mutual cooperation and security treaty, one of five such mutual defense treaties in the Pacific AOR, cementing Japan's status as a key strategic partner in the region. USARJ recently deployed Spc. Timothy J. Norris, a military affiliate radio station (MARS) high frequency radio operator, stationed with the 58th Signal Battalion, to Tagaytay City, located on Luzon Island in the Philippines, for Exercise Balikatan 2003. Spc. Norris provided vital communications support for civil and military operations during the exercise. His service in the Philippines underscores our second priority-improve force provision warfighting readiness.

As a key member of the joint team in the Pacific, USARPAC must synchronize its support to the combatant commander with its Navy, Air Force and Marine partners. We look for ways to strengthen joint exercises and joint training and improve dialogue, communication and relationships. Exercise Balikatan in the Philippines, which means "shoulder to shoulder," is a great example of our joint efforts. Hosted this year by the U.S. Marines, Pacific (MARFORPAC), Exercise Balikatan provided us an opportunity to train and rehearse with our sister components and other regional partners of our combined team. While there is intrinsic value to exercises on foreign soil, it is the grass roots training and experience that we give our soldiers, like Spc. Norris, that makes a huge difference in force provision warfighting readiness.

USARPAC will be at the heart of our Army's Transformation efforts for the next five years, as Stryker brigade combat teams (SBCTs) planned for Alaska in May 2005 and Hawaii in May 2007 complement the first two SBCTs at Fort Lewis, Wash., in a continued expansion of the Army capability immediately available to the Pacific theater.

The U.S. Army Alaska (USARAK) will be the home of the Army's third SBCT. Spc. Jeffrey Carman, Alaska's Soldier of the Year, is assigned to Company B, 1st Battalion, 501st Parachute Infantry Regiment in Alaska, and it is his parent brigade, the 172nd Separate Infantry Brigade, that will become the SBCT. Spc. Carman's unit will undergo its own transformation to become USARPAC's only separate airborne task force, thus providing the USPACOM commander with a forcible entry capability to work side-by-side with the SBCT in Alaska. Spc. Carman is among those keenly focused on USARPAC's third priority: support USPACOM and U.S. Army Transformation objectives.

While Army Transformation tends to focus on hardware like the Stryker vehicle, the high-speed theater support vessel or the necessary infrastructure components to support the SBCT and the Future Combat System, we also maintain focus on the fundamental ingredient of Army Transformation: the individual soldier.

Soldiers remain the centerpiece of our formations, and we are committed to training soldiers and growing leaders with future force skill sets. Long after our SBCT hardware is replaced by our Future Combat System, it is our soldiers and junior leaders-young privates, specialists, lieutenants and captains-who will remain. They are our legacy, and we prioritize their development through tough training, mentorship, counseling and leader commitment. Spc. Jeffrey Carman, who says, "I want to stay in 30 years and be a command sergeant major," is representative of the legacy we must leave USARPAC and our Army.

Adm. Thomas Fargo, commander, USPACOM, develops the PACOM theater security cooperation plan (TSCP). USARPAC designs and executes a full range of TSCP events from an eight-tiered concept of progressively complex and higher payoff events, from high-level visits to humanitarian assistance to joint and multilateral exercises, all focused on our fourth priority: supporting the USPACOM theater security cooperation plan.

Our TSCP mission is professionally rewarding. We understand that we are strengthening old partnerships in the region and forging new ones; improving the readiness of our sister armies from the individual to the collective level; building relationships, trust and access to unprecedented levels; and genuinely making a difference in the lives of those with whom we interact. When I visit soldiers participating in TSCP events, whether in India, Thailand or the Philippines, they tell me their experience matches exactly the reason they came in the Army-to train to do their job, to be part of something special and to represent their country. We weigh every TSCP event against forces available, and design every meeting, exercise or assistance visit to improve the combat readiness of U.S. Army participants and our coalition partners.

First Lt. John G. Mooney can speak firsthand of these goals. he and his 13-soldier detachment deployed to the Pacific island of Kosrae, located in the Federated States of Micronesia, for a six-month civic action team mission. Assigned to the 84th Engineer Combat Battalion (Heavy), Schofield Barracks, Hawaii, 1st Lt. Mooney superbly lead his team in mission areas including community construction, community relations and medical civic action. The team's efforts resulted in 4,000 linear feet of new water line serving 50 families, a new parking lot and sidewalk for the local Peace Corps office, 20 medical visits which treated 450 people and numerous other civic action projects and events. USARPAC is indeed supporting USPACOM's theater security cooperation plan, one challenging mission at a time.

USARPAC's final priority is to improve the quality of service for our people. Quality of service is more than improved living conditions, recreation opportunities and support infrastructure. It is a holistic approach to providing the best possible living and working environment for our team-active and reserve component soldiers, Department of the Army civilians, contractors and family members.

We are fortunate to have a great partner in this endeavor: the Pacific Region Office (PARO) of the newly formed Installation Management Agency. PARC's mission footprint coincides with USARPAC's, and it was formed with professionals who understand the Pacific region. Through PARO, much of Army housing in Hawaii will soon undergo transition to the residential communities initiative, where our soldiers and families will see the privatization of some 7,700 housing units. Together with our partners in the Tripler Army Medical Center and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, USARPAC is truly making strides to improve the quality of service of our people.

SFC Standley, Capt. Janko, Spc. Norris, Spc. Carman, 1st Lt. Mooney-these soldiers and leaders are representative of the thousands of professional and dedicated men and women, both uniformed and civilian, who serve the Army and the nation in the Pacific. We live and serve in a region that seems to grow in importance each day-a maritime theater dominated by armies, one that is replete with numerous threats to peace. We clearly understand the importance of our mission to provide trained arid ready Army forces to USPACOM. Blessed with quality soldiers, leaders and civilians who serve proudly in USARPAC today, we stand ready to answer our nation's call.

By Lt. Gen. James L. Campbell

Commanding General, U.S. Army Pacific

LT. GEN. JAMES E. CAMPBEEE assumed command of U.S. Army Pacific in November 2002 after serving as the commanding general, 10th Mountain Division (Eight Infantry), Fort Drum, N.Y. Upon completion of the ROTC Program at the University of Missouri, he was commissioned as a second lieutenant of Infantry. He commanded companies in the 1st Battalion, 32nd Infantry, 2nd Infantry Division, Camp Casey Korea, and 15th Battalion, 4th Combat Support Training Brigade, Fort Jackson, S.C. He also served as the commander, 4th Battalion, 27th Infantry, 25th Infantry Division (Light), Schofield Barracks, Hawaii; 1st Brigade, 10th Mountain Division (Light Infantry); and Joint Task-Force Full Accounting, Camp Smith, Hawaii. Additional assignments included assistant division commander (support) and assistant division commander (operations) for the 25th Infantry Division (Light) and U.S. Army, Hawaii; executive officer to the Chief of Staff, Army; deputy chief of staff for I Corps, Fort Lewis, Wash.; and G-3, 9th Infantry Division (Motorized), Fort Lewis, Wash. Gen. Campbell has a master's degree in physical education from the University of Illinois and a master's degree in national security and strategic studies from the Naval War College. His military education includes the Infantry officer basic and advanced courses; Airborne, Jumpmaster and Air Assault schools; the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College; and the Naval War College.

Copyright Association of the United States Army Oct 2003
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