LEFT: Col. Stuart P. Goldsmith addresses the audience during the Military Information Support Operations Command change-ofcommand ceremony at the John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School. Goldsmith assumed command of the unit from the departing commander, Col. Robert A. Warburg. ABOVE: The 528th Sustainment Brigade (Airborne) officially broke ground on its 120,000-square-foot brigade headquarters facility during ceremonies Nov. 13, 2014. The facility signifies a modernization effort that will greatly improve the support the 528th is able to provide to Army special operations soldiers worldwide.
4th/8th Military Information Support Groups (MISGs) 2014 saw the 4th MISG and 8th MISG move under Special Forces Command in a reorganization, where they will remain. In June, Col. Stuart P. Goldsmith took over the unit from Col. Robert A. Warburg, who had served as the commander since, 2012. Rogers, commander of SFC, presided over the change of command ceremony. “The year ahead offers tremendous change, challenge, and opportunity,” Rogers said, as he addressed Goldsmith. “You bring a wealth of experience and knowledge and I am confident that MISOC is in the right hands. Welcome to the team.” The 4th and 8th cover the roles and missions that also are termed “Psychological Warfare Operations,” and are among the largest such units in the world today. While details of their organization, operations, and procedures must remain classified, the group did conduct one publicly acknowledged exercise in 2014. The group-level battle staff and planning exercise was conducted in the fall, in support of a Joint Information Support Task Force. 4th MISG commanders and staff tested their ability to track regional MISO assets in support of a hypothetical largescale Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief operation, including large-scale use of reach back assets. The
60
Col. Daniel K. Rickleff, the commander of the 528th Sustainment Brigade, continued to command this most varietal of USASOC units throughout 2014. Nowhere else in the U.S. Army is there a sustainment unit commanded by an O-6, that has such a diverse set of roles and missions being accomplished by such a small group of soldiers. And in 2014, Rickleff had the pleasure of breaking ground for a new home for his brigade. Long based in World War II-era legacy buildings, the 528th broke ground for a new $27 million facility that will consolidate the entire unit into a single complex. In a ceremony held on Nov. 13, ground was broken for a 120,000-square-foot brigade headquarters off of Gruber Road. In addition to consolidating the many parts of the 528th scattered around the post, the new headquarters will also include a modernized maintenance facility to help keep USASOC’s 21st century array of equipment and vehicles up to date and in service. “Today, we commemorate the groundbreaking of the brigade headquarters, Special Troops Battalion headquarters, and an adjoining maintenance facility,” Rickleff said of this notable beginning. “This marks a critical point in the brigade’s history as we currently redesign and reorganize the brigade to best support special operations forces globally and integrate under 1st Special Forces Command.” n
Photo by Lewis Perkins/Paraglide
528th Sustainment Brigade
U.S. Army photo by Sgt. 1st Class Aubree Davis
exercise also tested the capabilities of the new USASOC Special Operations Mission Training Center (SOMTC) at Fort Bragg, which helps provide a fully integrated and objective-based training scenario for the participants.