KAISERSLAUTERN, Germany –
The Army of 2030 with its planned modernization efforts and stronger than ever readiness posture was the theme of the Association of the U.S. Army annual meeting and exposition held in Washington, D.C., Oct. 10-12. And directly in line with modernization and readiness is the 405th Army Field Support Brigade’s new Army Prepositioned Stocks-2 worksite currently under construction in Poland.
Following the no-notice deployment of the 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, to Europe in response to the Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the corresponding mass activation of APS-2 on the continent earlier this year, V Corps Commanding General Lt. Gen. John Kolasheski said U.S. Army Europe and Africa is on track to open a new APS-2 worksite in 2023.
The new APS-2 site, located adjacent to the Polish air force’s 33rd Air Base near Powidz, Poland, will contain equipment for a modernized armored brigade combat team, Kolasheski said Oct. 12 during a contemporary military forum at the AUSA meeting.
There are currently five APS-2 sites in four countries under the command and control of the 405th AFSB, supporting V Corps, U.S. Army Europe and Africa, and joint forces. Construction on what will become the 405th AFSB’s sixth APS-2 site is well underway, and completion is expected by late spring or early summer next year.
According to the 13th Secretary General of NATO, Jens Stoltenberg, the site is the largest, single infrastructure project funded by NATO in 30 years. The design and construction estimate for the new APS-2 site is more than $360 million.
Comprised of 650,000 square feet of humidity-controlled warehouse space, a vehicle maintenance facility and supporting facilities – the state-of-the-art APS-2 worksite demonstrates the commitment and investment of the U.S. and the host nation with NATO through enduring agreements to posture resources for rapid deployment and deter potential adversaries.
Capable of storing and maintaining an entire armored brigade combat team’s worth of equipment plus additional vehicles, equipment and ammunition – the new APS-2 site will be able to reduce the timeline to move that amount of equipment from the U.S. to Europe from about 45-60 days to just a handful of days during a contingency operation or exercise.
This enhances the Army’s ability to rapidly and dynamically employ forces within theater, vastly expanding the Army’s deterrence capabilities while improving readiness. Additionally, this major modernization project assures America’s partners and allies that the U.S. is committed to the collective defense of Europe, helping to promote stability and security in the region.
The 405th AFSB’s APS-2 program, a key component of U.S. Army Europe and Africa’s power projection and warfighter readiness missions, provides turn-key power projection packages – ready to deploy at a moment’s notice – while helping to reduce the amount of equipment needed from the deploying forces’ home stations. Combatant commanders identify their APS-2 requirements, and the 405th AFSB executes and then issues the equipment to the deploying warfighters.
The 405th AFSB is assigned to U.S. Army Sustainment Command and under the operational control of the 21st Theater Sustainment Command, U.S. Army Europe and Africa. The brigade is headquartered in Kaiserslautern, Germany, and provides materiel enterprise support to U.S. Forces throughout Europe and Africa – providing theater sustainment logistics; synchronizing acquisition, logistics and technology; and leveraging U.S. Army Materiel Command’s materiel enterprise to support joint forces. For more information on the 405th AFSB, visit the official website at www.afsbeurope.army.mil and the official Facebook site at www.facebook.com/405thAFSB.