DEPLOYED MISSION STATEMENT
Team 40th installs, operates, maintains, and protects the operational base networks and services in support of OIF 07-09; acts as executive agent for Communications-Integration (COMM-I) and NETOPS; responsible for planning, integrating, and coordinating resources for all operational base communications services in the Iraq theater of operations. Provides forces in support of the strategic network in Kuwait and Afghanistan in support of CENTCOM, U.S. government agencies, and coalition partners.
DEPLOYED TASK ORGANIZATION
BATTALION COMMANDER’S EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Team 40th’s third tour of duty in Operation IRAQI FREEDOM was unique in the battalion’s history of tactical signal support. As the only ESB available to Army Central Command (ARCENT) for theater wide communications, it assumed the primary mission of operating and maintaining the Multi-National Force-Iraq's theater operational base communications network, a battle space that spanned the entire country. The battalion quickly overcame the challenges inherent in managing such an enterprise and achieved enormous success in executing a mission that had been previously performed by two signal battalions. The 40th was also tasked to provide forces to augment the 54th Signal Battalion in Kuwait and the 25th Signal Battalion in Qatar and Afghanistan; here too the Soldiers set the standard for communications excellence.
The 40th ESB installed, operated, maintained, and defended the largest, most complex operational base communications network ever to support an active warzone. The 473 Soldiers and 535 contract employees that comprised the Team demonstrated exceptional tactical and technical skills under combat conditions with a network comprised of 14 technical control facilities (TCFs), 14 help desks, and an extensive fiber optic cable infrastructure. Team 40th kept two three-star and a four-star headquarters informed and able to leverage the network in the fight, and worked tirelessly to meet the needs of the warfighting customers across the battlefield.
The battalion supported over 85,000 warfighters with no tolerance for outages, while implementing short and long term fixes to improve the facilities, infrastructure, and network operations. In its first 12 months on the ground, it processed over 200 Purchase Request and Commitment packets worth more than $19 million dollars to procure equipment and material used to support a variety of communications infrastructure expansion projects. These theater wide improvements enabled a 30 percent growth of the customer base, improved the robustness of the voice and data services provided to its users, brought facilities in compliance with commercial standards, and drastically improved network reliability by significantly reducing power related outages.
The battalion provided tactical extension of the strategic network through its employment of 18 deployable Coalition Military Network (CMN) nodes used to support disadvantaged joint and coalition forces located on austere operating bases throughout the battle space. These customers included forces from the countries of Georgia, Poland, Romania and Korea, and several Multi-National Security Transition Command –Iraq and MNC-I elements.
This year, the battalion continued to live up to its motto, “Team 40th.” It achieved the most successful retention mission in the Signal Corps and was the first battalion program in NETCOM to accomplish the FY08 mission, retaining over 66% of all eligible Soldiers. By the seventh month of deployment, Team 40th re-enlisted 200 Soldiers, surpassing every one of its retention objectives and accumulating the following statistics: 147% Initial-term, 129% Mid- Career, and 159% Careerist. Most Soldiers enlisted to stay in the battalion.
No single battalion has done more to enable our forces to command and control ongoing combat operations at all levels across Iraq than the 40th ESB. The 40th Expeditionary Signal Battalion proudly demonstrated for fifteen months the flexibility, agility, and capability that the ESB brings to warfighters at all echelons across the full spectrum of operations. Truly a historic performance by a gifted team of Soldiers and Leadership.
“TEAM 40th!”
LINDA C. JANTZEN
LTC, SC
Commanding
