Pershing

\\:d. ff, No. 3

able
'Arty' still 'King'

Update FYI
Veterans
WASHINGTON - "Welcome aboard," uid President Reagan in a message to America's 27
million veten.ns as he signed legislation creating a
new Cabinet-level Department of Veterans Affairs.
"I like to think this bill gives C abinet rank no t
to just an agency of goverment but to every single
veteran," Reagan said in a signing ceremony Oct.
25 at the National Defense University, Fort
McNair.
Reagan's signature c:2ps a year-long effort on
Capitol Hill to convert the Veterans Administration, the largest independent government agency, into the 14th executive-level Cabinet d epartment.
Both houses of Congress passed the measure by
large margins, following an endorsement by Reagan late last year and intense political pressure
from veteran's groups.
The new Veterans Department will officially begin operation March 15, although the next president can appoint his new Cabinet secretary as
early as Jan. 21.

by John K. D'Amato
NCOJC, Public Affairs
"Fidd Artillery is now, and the future belongs to
rhc Field Artillery," he proclaimed with the zeal of
an evangelist and a father's pride.
If artill,ery is the 'IUng of Battle,' rhen here at least
was it's prime minister.
Maj. Gen. Raphael J. Hallada, chief of the field
artillery, addressed an audienet of predominantly
field artillery officers and senior NCOs, during a
recent Officer Development class in Bismarck Kaserne's Community Club.
His message was two-fold : the field artillery is the
best branch of the service, and the future of the field
artillery is dynamic and exciting.
"We should be proud to be in the fire support
business," Hallada said about himself and field artille1;men e,erywhere. Crediting Pershing officers and
soldiers with the successful fielding of the Pershing II
missile. h e told the audience that no one should forget that it "'as the "PII that brought the Soviets to
the bargaining table and got them to sign the INF
Trea(v."
The signing of the Intermediate N uclear Forces
T reatv. ~owever, usher!i: in new a new era of
challenges for the field artilltry and the United States
Army, according to Hallada.
Remonl of the Pershing II weapon system from
the United States Army's arsenal means more reliance
upon conventional weapon's systems. That reliance
may forc,e the Army 10 ~uicken the process of upgrading existing field amllery systems and adding
new, technologically advanced delivery and support
equipment that will take the field artillery through
the vear 2000.
The push for new and better cannon, rocket and
missile S)'Stems, according to Hallada, is made more
difficult because the field artillery is made up of interdependent systems.
"The b~st delivery system in the world won't operate effectively without something to help it target
effectively , resupply it or help it communicate,"
Hallada s.aid. Improving the delivery part of the sysrem, therefore, accomplishes very little if advancements arc not made in targeting, resupply, communications or any of the other parts of the interdependent system.
Try ing to upgrade an existing fire suppo rt system
or design a totally new one is "like trying to wrestle
with an octopus," Hallada explained. "Once you get
four of the arms under control, you find that four
others go out of control.
Despite the difficu !ties, the Chief of the Field
Artillery Branch assured his audience that tremendous strides are being made as the field artillery "plots
an azimuth that will take it 15 years into the future.
Technological advances will enable the field artillery to experiment with new munitions and rocket
and missile systems with improved accuracy and
range, Hallada said.
Some existing field artillery weapons arc undergoing almost total redesigns, according to Hallada.
Most impressive is the work being done on the field
artillery'., workhorse, the M -109 self-propelled howitzer. Under the Army's Howitz~r Improvement
Program (HIP), the turret of the vehicle has been replaced and other improvements have been made to
increase s urvivability and accuracy.

Rebates

Photo bf YIICldll

Chief of field 1rtlllery, M1jor Gen. F11phNI J. H1ll1d1,

1ddreS1ea a group of field artillery otticere and Hnior
NCO's during recent officer development clns held
t Bismarck Keaeme's Community Club.

:Recent advances in the area of combat simulations

have also made it possible for field artillery units to
take a more active role in force-on-force exercises a1
major training areas, H allada said.
Taking the simulated firing devices and other laser-related equipment from a M-60Al tank, M-109
howitzers are now able 10 engage the enemy directly,
rather than simulating their support of anacking o r
de:fending units.
At the Nat.ional Training Center in California's
Mojave Desert, U.S. Army units continually match
their tactical skills against large armored formations
employing Soviet tactics.
The first time the Opposing Forces (OPFOR) tried
an attack, according to Hallada, they felt the full
force of field artillery direct fire capabilities.
An amored column crossed the front of an American battalion, where two M-109s were located. The
enemy thumbed their noses at the howitzers, which
ha,d never been able to simulate direct fire. Armed
with the new simulation devices, said Hallada, "they
killed the first three BMPs (Soviet vehicles) in column and stopped the war.
There is no doubt that Maj. Gen. H allada is high
or, the Field Artillery. The excitement he generates
when talking about the challenges and changes in the
field artillery over the coming years is contagious.
Before leaving, he had one more promise for the
officers and NCOs in the audience.
"The message I bring you today," he said, "is that
the 'King of Battle' is firmly riveted to the throne.

U.S. servicemembers and Department of the

Army civilians in the Federal Republic of
Germany who insured a privately owned v ehicle
(POV) may be authorized a rebate. Ten com panics
have been identified that will pay rebates on 1987
liability premiums.
There are six NATO tariff insurance companies
paying rebates. They are Albingia, Deutscher
Lloyd, Fortune, National Union, Neckura and
Zurich.
There are four German tariff companies that insure a substantial number of U.S. Forces POVs
that are paying rebates. They are Agrippina, CoIonia, DeutScher Herold and Haftpflichtverband
Der Deutschen Industries.
Many rebates arc paid automatically but to be
sure policyholders of companies paying rebates
should contact their agents or local Army Community Service Consumer Affairs/ Financial Assistance Program for further information.

OHA Advance
Soldiers authorized Overseas Housing Allowance (OHA) may be entitled t0 receive an Advanced Station Housing Allowance Payment
(ASHA) when moving into off-post quarters.
The purpose of the advance 1s to pay advance
rent, security deposits or initial expenses to
occupy economy housing.
The amount of the advance cannot exceed the
total of one housing allowance expected to be accrued by the soldier at that duty station.
The advance will be collected up to a 24 month
period if desired by the soldier. Collection will begin the month following the month of pyment.
The soldier's commander must approve all requem for ASHA. A DA Form 4187 must be completed with a statement from the unit Commander
and must be forwarded through the servicing Personnel Administration Center. The soldier will be
notified when to report to the Finance Office for
payments.

P91'shlng Csbi.
December 1988

'Players' team-up to finis

....... ...,
The IHt of nine first stage Is lowered Into It packing contlllner, 11
2-9'8 011ta B1ttery mlslle c:rewmembers demit,, peck Ind ship ml
slle1 and missile components ttils month. Treaty Items, such H the
missiles and erector launchers, were only part of the equipment
turntd In by Oelt1, In order to meet lte retrogr1d1 requl rements.

by Troy Darr
Pershing Cable Staff Writer
When the klaxon sounds, Pershing
soldiers assigned to missile units arc
used to scrambling to their equipment.
The sense of urgency is real.
They are pan of a larger team, and
know that team is depending on how
well and how quickly they can
accomplish their mission.
This Fall, so me Pershing units were
called upon to accomplish missions that
they were unfamiliar with. They had 10
maintain their combat-ready posture 10
the last possible moment and then inspect, tear down or clean every piece of
equipment and turn it in.
Bravo Battery, 4- 9 accomplished its
retrograde mission and cased its colors
in September and Delta Battery, 2-9 is
undergoing that same process this
month.
They are scrambling, though no klaxons sound. The sense of urgency is just
as real.
1111 order to comply with a schedule
desjgned to meet specifications of the
Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces
Treaty, signed by President Ronald
Reagan and General Secretary Mikhail
Gorbachev on December R, 1987, and

ratified on June l, all of Delta Battery's

equipment mus, be turned in and the
battery inactivated.
According to Lt. Col. Douglas
Wcm, Assistant Chief of Staff for Logistics (G-4 ), the time-frames of retrograding a unit could not be met without
a team effort involving nearly a dozen
agencies.
"The overall turn-in has been outstanding," ~aid Werts, "but it could not
be done without the help of 21st
Support Command, 200th Theatre
Army Material Management Center
(200 TAMMC), Missile Command (MJCOM)," and other suppon groups.
According 10 Wem, all the suppon
groups did a fantastic job. "Each of the
ployers put their best foot forward. All
the groups made it (a successful turn-in)
happen," he said.
The G-4 became involved in detailed,
in-depth planning, early in the retrograde process, working with all of the
support i;roups to establish procedures
for ,urning in treaty items, Pershing
II-peculiar and Army common equipment.

Pershing II equipment covered by the

INF Treaty is transported by the 59th
Ordnance Brigade to proper destruction
sites, with one exception. Erector Laun-

Wooten said, "We had to requisition

a lot of items that we thought were in
good condition. For example, camou
fiage poles had 10 be able to fit together
on both ends or they were not accepta
ble. "
Every single piece of equipment had
to have a technical inspection. Wooten
said, "It's amazing how ma.ny pieces of
equipment the battery has.
The Modified Table of Organization
Equipment (MTOE) alone accounts for
more than 2000 pieces of equipment in
each battery. MTOE, according to
Capt. Patrick Hannon, 56th Field
Artillery Command G-4 plans officer,
is anything the unit has that a soldier
uses during a war, such as tactical vehicles, weapons and NBC (Nuclear,
Biological and Chemical operations)
gear.
MTOE is divided into two subgroups; Pershing II peculiar equipment
not covered in the INF treaty and
equipment common throughout Arm)'
inventory.
Another group of items to be turned
in is the Table of Distribution Allowances (TOA). TDA includes desks,
chairs and all other furnishings.
The batteries arc also required 10 turn
in their basic and mission loads of all
authorized Stock, induding unit facilities.
"There's more to rurning in the
equipment than just pulling it through
the gate and having somebody sign for
it," said Hannon.
' in."
In order to tum all the equipment in,
After the initial inventory, everything it has to be accounted for. Serviceabilitv
the battery was sbon of, like fire ex- (combat readiness capability) has to be
tinguishers for vehicles, had to be or checked and ascertained. Then a condidered.
tion code will be provided. "The code
will tell receiving personnel whether the
equipment can be reissued," said
Hannon.

chers are transponed to Equipment

Maintenance Center Hausen by the
retrograding battalion and there the
erector launchers are cut up and
destroyed.
The removal of missiles and erector
launchers is only pan of the retrograde
rum-in process, however. A new system had to be designed to allow the units to speedily tum in all of their other
equipment as well. What the G-4 designed was simple but efficient.
"It was a new and unique tum in
method - like one stop shopping," said
Wens.
"To the best of my knowledge, this is
the first time that we've done a retrograde of this magnitude with an on-site
marshalling area," said Wens, referring
to the large holding areas set up for vehicles and equipment.
All of the key players in Europe
came down to our area to inventory and
Tl (technical inspection)," he said. They
also gave classes on preparation of re
quired documentation for turn-in of the
equipment.
"The biggest problem we had was
getting the vehicles ready," said Maj.
Hubert Wooten, Delta Battery com
mander.
"The (29th Area Support Group)
Mobile Training Team came out and
identified some of the problems we had
with our vehicles, 8 he said. "The vehicles had to be in perfect condition. All
the small leaks and body work had to
be repaired before they could be turned

The goal with all items of equipment

and property is "they be operationally
safe and ready according 10 preventative
maintenance checks and services
(PMCS)," said Hannon. "Technical manual scandards will be adhered 10 and
any exceptions will be handled on a case
by case bas is."

-..-

Weapons Inspections are a critical part

of the retrogrlde proceas. Cpl. Kevin
Auatero, Delta Battery's armorer, In
spects I rllle for cleanllneas and functioning.

In order to facilitate the inactivation a

120 day program has been set up. The
first month of the 120 days is for inventory, according to Hannon.
"We started preparing for the inactivation with a 100 percent inventory in
the middle of August," said Wooten.
The second and third months are for
maintenance and inspections, according
to Hannon.
In conjunction with the inac,ivation,
the battery had a Command Materiel
Readiness Inspection (CMRI). "It
helped us to focus on vehicles, trailers,
communication equipment, arms and
NBC gear," said Wooten.
According to Hannon the fourth
month is reserved for turn-in.
Now Delta Battery is doing the
scrambling, and if procedures keep go
ing as expected, soon there will be an
other unit casing its colors.

Pershing Ceble

December ! 988

h final Pershing m1ss1on

Photo by o.,,
'tlotob)'OMr

Every piece of equipment had to have a technical lnspec

lion, Including this fire extinguisher that Is getting a
thorough exam from Sgt. Harold Ashby.

Surrounded by equipment at Delta's marshalling area, soldiers prepare to alack more camoull1ge poles on
the ever growing pile.

Photo by V.cktt,I

Delta Battery's nine erector launchers roll out the gate of Mutlangen Mlaslle Storage Area. The launchers will be taken to the Equipment Maintenance Center In Hausen for
destruc:11 on.