TRANSCOM hosts part of network outreach program Published July 30, 2009 By U.S. Transportation Command SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, Ill. -- U.S. Transportation Command hosted five officials from the government of Tajikistan in early June and three officials from the Government of Kazakhstan in mid-July. These teams were invited to USTRANSCOM by Gen. Duncan McNabb as part of the Northern Distribution Network Outreach Program. According to Mike Brogan, USTRANSCOM's Security Cooperation Program manager, the outreach program was specifically designed to invite small groups of transportation managers and logisticians to USTRANSCOM from seven Central Asia countries: Azerbaijan, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. The objective of the program is to inform the officials, through briefings and demonstrations of our logistics and transportation system, as well as to make them feel like partners in the global transportation system. Each team is composed of about five visitors, two interpreters, and two USTRANSCOM escorts. Joe Lepanto, USTRANSCOM's International Agreements Specialist, further explained the program and outlined a typical visit. "We plan for the team to arrive in St. Louis early in the week and allow them to adjust to the time zone change the next day, with a light schedule consisting of a cultural tour of the local area," Lepanto said. "The team will spend one day at USTRANSCOM meeting senior leaders and receiving briefings before going to Air Mobility Command for a briefing and tour from the 618th Tanker Airlift Control Center. "The main emphasis while at Scott Air Force Base is to provide an overall view of our transportation system thru discussions with the command staff and briefings about our command and control system," Mr. Lepanto continued. "The group then visits Charleston Air Force Base and the Port of Charleston. At the Port of Charleston, the team receives a briefing about the port's capabilities and future improvements before observing cargo operation and some of the unique inspection devices customs officials use to scan the cargo." According to Mr. Lepanto, the team visits a large air mobility wing in operation and starts the tour with a mission briefing from the 437th Airlift Wing and then a static display tour of a C-17 before a tour of the aerial port. After a day in Charleston, S.C., the team moves to Dulles International Airport, Va. and takes a scenic, two-hour drive to New Cumberland, Penn. The Defense Logistics Agency's Defense Depot Susquehanna, Penn., or DDSP, is located off the Susquehanna River and is the largest Department of Defense wholesale distribution depot in the United States. The Defense Distribution Center personnel provide an overview of their operation before visiting the Eastern Distribution Center and a walking tour through an over one million-square-foot warehouse. From DDSP, the team drives a short distance to the Norfolk Southern intermodal rail yard where they receive a briefing and tour of a massive rail yard operation. New Cumberland is the last official stop before driving south again to Herndon, Va., located near Dulles Airport, where the team will depart for home. The next five visits are spread out between now and the end of September. Mr. Brogan said the Tajikistan visit was very successful and the visitors left with a better understanding of the USTRANSCOM mission. Lepanto said the support received from everyone at the U.S. embassy, Scott, the 437th Airlift Wing, Port of Charleston, DDSP and Norfolk Southern was outstanding. Each organization visited went out of the way to make the team feel welcome and an important partner in the global transportation network.