Q&A: Brigadier General Brian R. Layer

Written by Jeff McKaughan

The Transportation Cornerstone
is the Foundation of Army Logistics


 

Previously, Layer served as the deputy commanding general of the Military Surface Deployment and Distribution Command. He assumed command in 2003 of the 3rd Infantry Division’s Support Command at Camp Dogwood, Iraq. Upon redeployment, he transformed the division’s Support Command into the 3rd Sustainment Brigade, the Army’s first such structure to be modularly designed; and he returned to Iraq in support of Multi-National Division, Baghdad. His other command assignments include 801st Main Support Battalion, 101st Airborne (Air Assault), at Fort Campbell, Ky.; and Service Company, 5th Special Forces Group, at Fort Bragg, N.C.

Layer has also held several key Joint and Army staff positions, including executive officer to the Army G-4, Headquarters, Department of the Army; G-3 plans officer, XVIII Airborne Corps (Joint Task Force 180, Operation Restore/Uphold Democracy); transportation officer, XVIII Airborne Corps; and joint staff officer, U.S. European Command, J-4.

His awards, decorations, and badges include the Legion of Merit, Bronze Star Medal, Defense Meritorious Service Medal, Army Meritorious Service Medal, Joint Service Commendation Medal, Army Commendation Medal, Army Achievement Medal, Presidential Unit Citation, Joint Meritorious Unit Award, National Defense Service Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service and Expeditionary Medals, Korean Defense Service Medal, Army Service Ribbon, the Overseas Service Ribbon, Combat Action Badge, Air Assault Badge, Senior Parachutist Badge, and the Special Forces Tab.

Layer was interviewed by MLF Editor Jeff McKaughan.

Q: Can you give me an overview of the Transportation Corps as far as its structure, size and mission?

A: The Transportation Corps is made up of more than 77,000 professional soldiers and civilians in the active Army, Army Reserve and National Guard. Our motto is that “nothing happens until something moves,” which has never been more true. The desire to apply combat power in support of our national interests lies directly with the ability to move the force. We do that for the Army. Transportation Corps soldiers are found in every organization in the Army. We are a small part of the Army that provides tremendous power to the force.

Our mission is to provide transportation support to ground forces across all five modes of transportation: highway, water, air, rail and pipeline. Although we are the smallest of the logistics branches, we continue to provide a level of functional expertise coupled with a bias for action that is in our culture and makes transporters a valuable asset for their organization and the Army. Our most important system is the soldier and his ability to think and solve problems to keep our forces on the move.

I always tell people to remember that you can build the most powerful military force ever seen, but transporters make it function. It’s like having the best car at Daytona, but keeping it up on blocks, it goes nowhere. We are the wheels that keep the Army rolling forward.

Q: What is the biggest challenge that the Army logistics team faces today?

A: The biggest challenge facing us today can be summarized into one word—balance. As we continue the current war in an era of persistent conflict, it is critically important that we find a balance in our programs and decisions that supports the needs of the Army in today’s fight but also looks to the future and the requirements of the next fight. Part of my job is to help make decisions that balance our force for today and the future in equipment acquisition and development, force structure, active and reserve component mix, etc., to ensure that whenever the Army needs to move we have the right systems with expert transportation soldiers to get the job done.

While achieving that strategic balance is our endstate, we are focused on striking that same balance within the Logistics Corps. Together with our quartermaster and ordnance teammates, we work hard every day to ensure that the decisions we make are not what is best for the Transportation Corps, but rather what is best from an overall logistics standpoint for the Army.

I’m proud of the tremendous contribution that transporters make to achieving the most agile and mobile Army in the world. As part of that logistics team, I have always felt that transporters bring a bias for action as part of our culture that makes the whole team better. Being great teammates only serves to make everybody winners.

Q: Is the solution doctrinal, technological or a combination?

A: I believe the solution is a combination of factors. As you know, we have developed new doctrines and tactics, techniques, and procedures in response to the combat environment of Iraq and Afghanistan. At the same time, we have transformed from a division-based Army to a modular force based on the brigade combat team.

In addition we have restructured from four levels of maintenance to two-level maintenance. Our personnel system has gone through incredible changes to keep up with the developing demand from the combat theaters. With all of these change agents, it has to be a combination of doctrine, organizational structure and technology that keeps us in the current fight and ready for what comes in the future. Through it all, however, it will be the human dimension, in our soldiers, that really make the difference in how we succeed.

Q: From a funding perspective, where is most of your money—in acquisition or O&M? Do you see your budget holding steady over the next few years?

A: As the chief of transportation and commandant of the Transportation School, my primary duties lie in the training and leader development arena, so most of my funding comes from operations and maintenance accounts. But as the proponent for transportation systems, I still have an interest in the acquisition of new technologies that can improve our ability to support soldiers. It is also important that we keep an eye to the long-range success of the Transportation Corps, and to do so we must employ a life cycle management approach to our programs. It would be fiscally and morally irresponsible not to consider the life cycle of our systems and soldiers, as both are finite and critical resources.

The key is remaining engaged in the process and keeping the leadership informed on what our requirements will be. I think we have been successful in doing that in the past, and I see no reason that should change in the future. I don’t spend a lot of time wondering about the budget of the next few years. Instead, I focus on ensuring we maintain a mindset that includes stewardship of resources, incorporating life cycle and cost-benefit analysis, and spending wisely with the goal of getting the best value for the expense.

As a leader developer, I spend a lot of time ensuring we grow leaders who have inculcated these same attitudes toward fiscal responsibility. This is the best long-term investment we can make as leaders and taxpayers.

Q: Has your command been involved in working with the militaries of Iraq and/or Afghanistan to establish a professional logistics corps?

A: Yes, but in an indirect approach. While the Transportation School continues to train officers from around the world, including officers from Iraq and Afghanistan, to be professional transportation officers at the individual level, the Transportation Center has no direct mission with the development of a professional logistics corps in those countries.

That being said, we have had thousands of logistics officers deployed on military transition teams living and working with logistics units in both Iraq and Afghanistan who have done a tremendous job of teaching, coaching and mentoring our allies toward the establishment of consistent logistics systems and, eventually, the development of a professional logistics corps. The development of consistency in logistics operations goes hand in hand with developing a military force that is stable and able to project security to the population at large. I cannot overstate the importance of the work these professionals are doing every day to make the world a safer place.

Q: What is the current state of the art for asset tracking? What are the challenges logisticians face with knowing where materiel is at any given time?

A: Asset tracking has been one of the success stories in this era of persistent conflict. In the last eight years, we have come lightyears ahead of where we were with regard to in-transit visibility and materiel tracking. As early as 2004 we had a pretty good system for tracking sustainment and supplies moved from factories and depots here in the United States, but we had more difficulty keeping track of unit equipment. Great effort was placed on bridging this gap, and we have largely closed the gap at this point. The debate continues on exactly what is the best technology for the task. There are multiple systems available that will provide visibility. The real challenge I think lies less in the specific systems, but more of a paradigm shift from logisticians with visibility to providing visibility to the customer. When we get that challenge met we will have true in-transit visibility from the factory to the foxhole.

Q: How are the Army’s tactical and line haul truck fleets holding up to the current OPTEMPO?

A: As I’m sure you are aware, since 2003 we have put an incredible amount of combat stress on our tactical and line-haul systems. Additional armor and continuous combat missions have increased the wear on our fleets. The only way we have been able to continue moving supplies is because of the robust maintenance and reset programs emplaced at the earliest stages of the war.

Field maintenance programs have improved greatly and do a tremendous job of keeping the fleets on the road while deployed. When units redeploy, their equipment goes immediately into the reset programs where the system is rebuilt and brought back into condition where it can go back to the fight with a new unit. This revolving door of equipment turnaround is unique to this war, and, frankly, has never been done on this scale.

The fact that our truck fleets continue to support the mission every day is testimony to the effectiveness of these programs. It is a little-known success story of this war that has changed the way we manage our equipment fleets in the Army.

The challenge for us is to start projecting the successes of our maintenance programs in the current operating environment to the future and ensuring that our programs have a longer perspective with regard to life cycle management and acquisition decisio-nmaking. I enter the process as the requirements generator, and as such try to stay linked with the materiel developers to ensure we are developing now to meet the requirements of the future.

Q: The Army operates its own ships. Why are they there, and do you need more ships in the Army fleet?

A: The Army’s watercraft program provides various types of landing craft, tug boats and causeway ferries to support logistics operations in degraded ports or across the shore. Army vessels are deployed in every region of the globe every day supporting missions.They provide a cost-effective means of transporting supplies and equipment to places where conventional deep-draft ships cannot go.

In fiscal year 2011, the first of five joint high-speed vessels will arrive to the Army fleet, opening an era of rapid deployment capability on Army watercraft that will establish a new paradigm in the management of Army watercraft and increase their responsiveness to crisis points around the globe. With these new vessels, we will be able to rapidly project heavy combat power to hot spots that previously denied us access because of the inability to get larger ships into the ports. That increased ability to rapidly project power is directly tied to security and stability in the world.

Q: How intermodal are the land-sea-air components of Army transportation?

A: Intermodality in transporting supplies and cargo has been a key element of our design and acquisition processes for several years. Every time you have to re-pack or re-configure cargo loads due to a different mode of transportation wastes energy and results in delays of getting needed logistics to the customers. With that in mind, our goal is to ensure all our cargo configurations are intermodal to increase the velocity of logistics operations.

This intermodality does not limit itself to the military fleets. The capability to efficiently change from military to civilian equipment and vice versa is critical to enabling us to accomplish the mission in the most cost-effective manner, which translates to a better bottom line with taxpayer dollars.

However, I think we need to take intermodality to a new level. The current intermodal systems, such as the 463L pallet and the 20-foot container, are fine for the transportation system, but do not translate easily to the end user at the brigade support battalion and below. At that level, they simply do not have the materiel handling equipment to move these configurations. With the technology available today, we need to develop ways to further break down those intermodal configurations into loads better configured for the lift capacity of the user units.

As I said before, this translates to changing our focus from making it easier on the transportation system, to making it easier for the customer. Doing so will add a new level of agility to our logistic systems as we prepare for the next fight.

Q: What are the most important ramifications for Army transportation as the country transitions more to Afghanistan and less in Iraq in the coming years?

A: The greatest difference for transportation and logistics in Afghanistan compared to Iraq is the geography. The terrain in Afghanistan is treacherous. High mountain passes, narrow unimproved roads and harsh weather effects make our ground lines of communication [LOCs] susceptible to interdiction. The increased numbers of troops in Afghanistan also means an increased requirement for supplies. Air delivery and precision airdrops are often used for critical supplies, and I see their relevance increasing, but they alone cannot meet the needs of the entire theater.

Therefore, ground LOCs will become more relevant, meaning more trucks on these dangerous roads. The tactics, techniques and procedures that proved successful in Iraq may not apply in Afghanistan.

The good news is that we have also had eight years of experience in Afghanistan learning how to operate there. We will be taking the lessons developed there and using them in the training programs as units prepare to deploy. It really all comes down to training and leadership, and the expert transportation soldiers who excel at solving these types of problems to get the mission accomplished.

Q: Any final thoughts?

A: I am deeply honored to be the chief of transportation. From this position, I think of myself as leading the Transportation Regiment, an organization of highly trained experts who are dispersed throughout every unit in the Army. That dispersion is how we move the whole Army. With that in mind, we are redefining how we approach leader development and how we provide training resources to this dispersed formation through distance learning, lifelong learning models, and making the transportation school accessible worldwide as a depository of expertise and information for the soldiers in the field, who are doing the heavy lifting. I continue to believe that it is the transportation soldier that is our most important system. Technology, new equipment, better doctrine, and all other aspects of developing an Army are really only support to the soldier that operates them.

To quote the commercials on TV, it is the human element that makes the difference, and I am certain that Transportation Corps soldiers provide that “bias for action” that leads them to be creative, adaptive and agile problem solvers for our Army. While logistics may not be the most noted aspect of military operations, the great soldiers and the families that support them continually provide a herculean effort to our national defense every day.

In my travels around the Army, I am continually amazed at the dedication and sacrifice of these heroes with no expectation of getting something in return for their service except the hope for a brighter future in some very dark and dangerous places across the globe. As long as there are young men and women, husbands and wives, mothers and fathers who are willing to make that sacrifice, there is hope in the world, and you will find an American soldier standing watch over that hope. ♦

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