A brisk evening during golden hour. Reserve Sailors and Marines put in the practice of setting up, tearing down, and moving locations, all in an effort to get sets and reps in for when it’s go time to move fuel.

The blue-green teams of the Navy and Marine Corps expeditionary forces from Navy Cargo Handling Battalion EIGHT (NCHB-8) expeditionary fuels team and Marine Corps 6^th Engineer Support Battalion Bulk Fuels Team, joined up at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, New Jersey, to integrate and train in coordination to focus on a concept of employment experimentation with the Expeditionary Fuel Dispensing System–Small (EFDS-S).

“We’re here to have our Sailors get their hands on the equipment, and we have some experience with this setup," said Lt. Frank Peterson, NCHB-8 Expeditionary Fuels Company. "We have subject matter experts here that can help with training to rapidly deploy this and to be able to move it around quickly. It’s a good opportunity for us to work together, where we can see things that the Marines are doing that we can incorporate into our processes — and vice versa. We're focusing on future missions that may require us to work closely together, and this is an opportunity to work out any kinks with that integrated structure.”

Exercises like this demonstrate the interoperability of the Reserve force and the ability to integrate with other services, reinforcing a culture of learning and increasing  warfighting readiness.

“For us, it shows us how the marines set up their bulk fuels systems." said Operations Specialist 1^st Class Harry Carney, NCHB-8 Expeditionary Fuels Company. "Essentially, we do the same exact thing they do. It gives us a different perspective of how another branch does what we do. It defiantly helps us get lessons learned. After a while, it shows that we can work with other branches and do the exact same thing and get the job done.”

The expeditionary forces of the Navy and Marine Corps train no matter what the weather conditions are. Training in bulk fuels while sleeping in tents is another weekend for these Sailors and Marines.

“Coming from a ship it’s definitely a lot different," said Carney. "Working in an environment of rain and snow is an experience you need. Working in bulk fuels is different anyway, so it’s a good way to open your eyes with these experiences, especially as an operations specialist."

The U.S. Navy’s ability to conduct integrated operations around the globe across the full spectrum of military operations is a core requirement for maintaining maritime superiority during this era of strategic competition.

Navy Expeditionary Logistics Support Group (NAVELSG) provides dynamic logistics support to the joint force across the spectrum of conflict from peacetime support to major combat operations. NAVELSG rearms, refuels, and resupplies the fleet when and where needed to reinforce maritime lethality and support the Navy Expeditionary Combat Force efforts to CLEAR, SECURE, BUILD, and PROTECT in the littorals.

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