Lessons Learned

Not everything went as planned. Much of the supplies being directed to the region were “pushed,” resulting in pockets of mal-distribution. But the DoD got the job done and saved hundreds of thousands of victims from even further misery.

The last piece of the logistic challenge from this mission was what is referred to as “reset;” a process that returns deployed equipment back to its original condition. This one-off mission created an Operational Tempo [OPTEMPO] that was not sustainable for a long period of time. It would be like an over-the-road truck running 24/7 for weeks; you know that if it wasn't brought back to a maintenance facility sooner, rather than later, downtime and safety issues would surface. And that in fact occurred with much of the equipment employed; it took months of some serious maintenance work to get all returning equipment in a condition that would enable our military to engage in future combat or non-combat missions.  

In Conclusion

The U.S. military's logistics capacity to provide food, water, medical and utilities and the capability to move into almost any region of the world is second to none. Flexible and robust, it can tackle many missions other than direct combat.  Planning for such events is part of its curriculum.

Elaborate facilities are not required. Whether based at sea or in an austere land environment, the services can operate in disaster stricken environments, bringing initial relief to those who are suffering. The pipeline back to the U.S. keeps replenishment moving to units distributing it.  The U.S. military is truly a “911 force” when tragedy strikes. 

Alan Will is a retired Marine colonel and logistics specialist. Ron Giuntini is a consultant and principal of Giuntini & Co., Inc. Both are members of MH&L's Editorial Advisory Board.