After months of hard training and expectation, the rubber finally hit the street in Turkey for the 5th Battalion, 7th Air Defense Artillery Regiment, 10th Army Air and Missile Defense Command.
With a proper transfer of authority inside the southeastern Turkey city of Gaziantep, Dec. 13, the formidable responsibilities of safeguarding civilians from airborne threats now becomes the daily mission for almost 300 air defense Soldiers out of Rhine Ordnance Barracks in Germany.
“At the top of the day, always remember that there are greater than one million people inside the city of Gaziantep dependent on you for defense from ballistic missiles around the border,” said Col. Greg Brady, 10th Army Air and Missile Defense Command commander, who had traveled with numerous U.s.a. Army Europe representatives, including Lt. Gen. Donald Campbell, the U.S. Army Europe commander, to wait the development.
During the ceremony, Lt. Col. Lisa Bartel, 5-7 ADA commander, and Command Sgt. Maj. Stephen Burnley, the senior enlisted adviser for five-7 ADA, uncased their unit colors, signaling the official changing of the guard. The ballistic missile defense responsibilities in southeastern Turkey now assumed by 5-7 ADA had previously been held by the 3rd Battalion, 2nd Air Defense Artillery Regiment, from Fort Sill, Okla.
The NATO-sanctioned mission in Turkey, expected to last as long as twelve months for the 5-7 ADA contingent, includes air defense forces from The Netherlands and Germany. The NATO countries were assisting the Turkish government in protecting civilians from foreign missile threats. Such collaboration is neither new or unwelcome, said Bartel.
“We are here for a tactical ballistic missile defense, and we glance forward to working with all our partners,” she said.
That theme of teamwork and camaraderie across not only different U.S. Army units, but international partners was readily acknowledged by Brady.
“Our continued commitment to this NATO mission is stronger than ever,” said Brady, adding that Turkish help on deployment matters have been invaluable and plenty appreciated.
Multiple Turkish news outlets were present to hide the development, highlighting further the significance of the air defense mission. For plenty of the 5-7 ADA Soldiers, establishing a regular routine in the midst of the vacation season far from their families may take some being used to. As difficult as that can be, however, it won’t prevent them from looking after the main piece of commercial, consistent with one leading authority.
“Protecting Gaziantep is our mission,” said Burnley.
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