The post exchange and its various facilities are at the center of off-duty activities wherever sol-diers are stationed around the world. Whether it is the main store, shoppette, theater, military clothing sales store, barber or beauty shop, or just a vending machine in the barracks, the Army and Air Force Ex-change Service (AAFES) is always there for soldiers and their families. But what about sol-diers who are deployed on extended training exer-cises or peace-keeping missions in remote areas of the world? Is AAFES there for them too? You bet!
AAFES has always considered support of contin-gency operations a priority. However, AAFES usu-ally has been the last "player" to be included in op-erational deployment planning. This means that, when the call finally comes to move out, contingency planners at AAFES headquarters often have to scramble for information and timelines in order to establish exchange support on the ground. Because of the importance of AAFES facilities to soldier mo-rale and the volume of merchandise that must be moved by military transport, it is imperative that AAFES be included in the initial planning process. Planning is one of several critical issues addressed in the Army Combined Arms Support Command’s (CASCOM’s) Tactical Field Exchange Operational Concept, currently being staffed, and Joint Publica-tion 1, Joint Warfare.
Recently, the Strategic Planning and Communi-cations Directorate at AAFES headquarters in Dallas, Texas, took the proverbial bull by the horns and ini-tiated planning coordination with major military commands throughout the Army and Air Force to en-hance the readiness of AAFES to support contin-gency operations. It is hoped that this action will re-sult in AAFES routinely getting in on the ground floor of the planning process for major deployments.
Most military contingency plans call for units to deploy with 60 days’ worth of class VI supplies that are prepackaged in health and comfort packs. (Class VI supplies are personal items that normally would be available through the exchange system.) This means that, in many cases, AAFES is not considered in air or sea flow planning earlier than D+60. How-ever, soldiers have come to expect much more than the items provided in the health and com-fort packs. For that reason, commanders have re-quested AAFES support much sooner than planned during recent de-ployments for military operations other than war. For example, the first field exchange was opened on D+7 for personnel in Hungary for Opera-tion Joint En-deavor. AAFES will provide ground ex-change sup-port as early as the commander wants it. However, AAFES de-pends on the theater or major command commander for trans-portation, facilities, and, some-times, personnel to operate the field exchanges.
Levels of Support
AAFES can provide three levels of field exchange support. The support provided depends on the level of hostilities in the area of operations and the level of support desired by the commander. First, the com-mander can ask for an imprest fund activity. This type of support allows the commander to establish an account with a parent exchange and draw up to 10 thousand dollars’ worth of resale merchandise. The activity can be resupplied as often as desired, but its inventory must not exceed the total authorized stock-age level. The commander appoints an imprest fund activity manager who is trained by AAFES in ac-count-ability and retail sales procedures. The im-prest fund is best suited for small unit operations in remote areas.
If the commander will be operating in a hostile or potentially hostile environment, he may choose the second kind of support—a tactical field ex-change (TFE). A TFE is staffed by military personnel who are trained in retail operations by AAFES. A TFE offi-cer is appointed to supervise the operation and ac-count for the exchange funds and inventory. The TFE officer also must attend AAFES training.
There is no limit to the size of the inventory authorized for a TFE. However, it should include only health, hygiene, and welfare items. Televisions, compact disk players, and jewelry are beyond the in-tended scope of a TFE.
Finally, in nonhostile environments, AAFES can employ civilians to provide a direct operations ex-change-tactical (DOX-T). The size of the DOX-T is limited only by the size of the physical facility pro-vided by the military commander and the avail-ability of military transportation to support it.
Concurrent Operations
In a large area of operations, it is not uncommon for more than one type of AAFES field exchange support to be provided simultaneously. Current op-erations in Bosnia require a mix of DOX-T’s and im-prest fund activities to support the troops adequately. The number and geographic dispersion of base camps in Bosnia, coupled with force protection considera-tions and travel restrictions, make DOX-T support throughout the theater difficult. By the end of May 1996, nearly 20,000 U.S. troops were deployed south of the Sava River in Bosnia. To support them, AAFES operated 12 DOX-T’s staffed with AAFES employee volunteers and 20 imprest fund activities managed by unit personnel.
All North Atlantic Treaty Organization coalition forces and Department of Defense civilians deployed in support of Operation Joint Endeavor are authorized to shop at AAFES facilities. For the first time, this authorization also extends to Russian, Polish, and Czech soldiers. AAFES also operates DOX-T’s in Hungary and Croatia. U.S. forces in Sarajevo, which is situated in the French-controlled sector of Bosnia, are supported by an imprest fund activity that draws from the DOX-T at Zagreb, Croatia.
AAFES also provides other services that enhance the quality of life for soldiers deployed to Hungary, Croatia, and Bosnia. AAFES opened its first food court in Hungary in April 1996. Initially, the food court included Anthony’s Pizza, Burger King, and Baskin-Robbins Ice Cream. The operation has ex-panded and now provides mobile food service to re-mote locations throughout Bosnia. As the situation stabilized, services such as barber shops and clothing altera-tion services were added at many DOX-T fa-cili-ties. Most of the troops deployed to Bosnia have access to AT&T phone service for morale-boosting calls home. This same phone service is also available in Hungary and Croatia.
Staffing Restraints
Before October 1995, the Army relied on Air Force personnel to operate TFE’s. However, the Air Force no longer has the capability to provide this support to the Army. This means that the Army must find a way to staff TFE’s with soldiers when the ex-change is located forward of the corps boundary or in a hostile environment. (As noncombatants, AAFES civilians usually are not authorized to be in these ar-eas.) However, operational units are not staffed to perform this mission. Therefore, CASCOM, in con-junction with AAFES; the Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff for Personnel, Department of the Army; and several other Army agencies, is studying this situa-tion to develop a doctrinal solution for staffing TFE’s with reserve component personnel.
The number of personnel required to operate a field exchange varies from 4 to 20, depending on the size of the facility and the number of soldiers sup-ported. To ensure that field commanders have trained and qualified military personnel, AAFES has devel-oped a 1-week training package that can be accom-plished with a mobile training team from AAFES. The training covers the various retail tasks a soldier must perform, such as receiving and account-ing for merchandise; rotating stock; managing the in-ven-tory, sales, and cash funds; reordering; and com-plet-ing daily paperwork and reports. Soldiers of the 240th Quartermaster Battalion, Fort Lee, Virginia, were the first personnel to receive this training during Operation Roving Sands ’95, held in Texas and New Mexico. AAFES will continue to refine the training package and use it as a starting point for devel-oping a formal Army and Air Force course.
AAFES em-ployees are proud of their mission to support soldiers, airmen, and their families. In a re-cent call for volun-teers to staff DOX-T’s, over 100 AAFES employees worldwide signed up to go wher-ever the need arises. AAFES will continue to search for ways to im-prove service to the soldiers and families in garrison. But AAFES also is committed to providing high quality goods and services at a mo-ment’s notice anywhere in the world for our deployed soldiers and airmen. ALOG
Major Richard S. Colley is assigned to the Mili-tary Clothing and Accessories Strategic Business Group at Headquarters, Army Air Force Exchange Service (AAFES), in Dallas, Texas, as the Army Business Program Manager following a year as aide-de-camp to the commander. He is a graduate of Eastern Kentucky University, the Infantry Officer Basic Course, Quartermaster Officer Advanced Course, and the Combined Arms and Services Staff School.
Major Earnest L. Evans is currently a student at the Air Command and Staff College, Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama. He served previously as contingency plans and operations officer at Head-quarters, AAFES, and deployed to Bosnia with the AAFES advance team in January 1996. He has a bachelor’s degree from Middle Tennessee State University and a master’s degree from Troy State University in Alabama. Major Evans is a graduate of the Air Defense Artillery Officer Basic Course and the Quartermaster Officer Advanced Course.