GRAFENWOEHR, Germany – Soldiers from the 10th Engineer Battalion, 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division joined Soldiers from 11 NATO countries and one Partner for Peace country for an International Bridge Assessment Course at Ingolstadt, Germany July 11.
Staff Sgt. Craig Pruden, a combat engineer with 10th Engineer Battalion, 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, listens as German Soldiers talk about different equipment they use to assess bridges during a an International Bridge Assessment Course at Ingolstadt, Germany July 12. The course, a bilateral project from the Belgian and German engineer schools, supported by the Military Engineering Centre of Excellence, aims to inform Soldiers on the different existing bridge assessment methods.
U.S. Army 1st Lt. Graham Hill, an engineer with the 10th Engineer Battalion, 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, works with a German Soldier to assess a bridge near Ingolstadt, Germany July 14 as part of an International Bridge Assessment Course. The Soldiers used different bridge assessment methods and later compared the Military Load Classifications to see the difference in how each country assesses a bridge.
U.S. Army 1st Lt. Graham Hill, an engineer with the 10th Engineer Battalion, 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, helps a German Soldier get out of a creek as they assess a bridge near Ingolstadt, Germany July 14. Soldiers from the battalion joined engineers from 11 NATO countries and a Partner for Peace country for an International Bridge Assessment Course aimed at informing Soldiers on the different existing bridge assessment methods.
Staff Sgt. Kwayne Huggins, a combat engineer with 10th Engineer Battalion, 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, scans a bridge to locate and assess the steel reinforcement as part of a bridge assessment near Ingolstadt, Germany July 14. Soldiers from the battalion joined engineers from ten NATO countries for an International Bridge Assessment Course to inform Soldiers on the different existing bridge assessment methods.
U.S. Army 2nd Lt. Katelynn Clark (center), an assistant operations officer for the 10th Engineer Battalion, 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, listens as a Belgian officer talks about different equipment they use to assess bridges during a an International Bridge Assessment Course at Ingolstadt, Germany July 12. The course, a bilateral project from the Belgian and German engineer schools, supported by the Military Engineering Centre of Excellence, aims to inform Soldiers on the different existing bridge assessment methods.
MEDITERRANEAN SEA (June 8, 2011) Harvey Carvajal, an able-body seaman onboard maritime prepositioning ship USNS LCPL Roy M. Wheat, scans the horizon with binoculars on the ship's bridge during an at-sea training exercise for Phoenix Express 2011 (PE-11). A three-week exercise divided into in-port and underway training phases, PE-11 is designed to enhance regional maritime partnerships among the 13 participating countries in their efforts to deter illicit trafficking at sea. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class (SW) Jeff Troutman)
As I mentioned in my vlog last week I was in Bergen, Norway during my official co-hosting duties with the Norwegian Chief of Defense, General Harald Sunde, for the Northern European Chief of Defense (CHOD) Conference. As "The Fjord Capital of Norway", Bergen is often described as "a city with its feet in the sea, its head in the skies, and its heart in the right place." What I didn't mention in the vlog is I found myself in a situation that affected my head and heart before the conference had even begun.
Our Commander, Admiral Jim Stavridis, often challenges us to serve like a “bridge” linking U.S. European Command to others. In May, we linked EUCOM with three varied groups, acting as a kind of bridge spanning oceans and generations.