MANNHEIM, Germany – In the past few months several high-ranking military officials and distinguished visitors have conducted key leader engagements and site visits to the Coleman Army Prepositioned Stocks-2 worksite in Mannheim. And for good reason. The Coleman APS-2 worksite is a critical component to U.S. Army Europe and Africa’s power projection and warfighter readiness mission.

The latest key leader to visit the Coleman site is U.S. Army Europe and Africa Deputy Commanding General Lt. Gen. Sean Bernabe, who assumed that role in August of 2024 after his assignment as III Armored Corps and Fort Cavazos commanding general.

Bernabe’s top priority during his key leader engagement and site visit to Coleman March 25 was APS-2 readiness. While there, the U.S. Army Europe and Africa deputy commanding general engaged with the Army Field Support Battalion-Germany team at the site and asked questions about the site’s strategic posture and capabilities, which are both pivotal to U.S. Army Europe and Africa mission success.

Key leaders from AFSBn-Germany spoke with the deputy commanding general, including the commander of AFSBn-Germany, Lt. Col. Jonathan Neal; the Coleman interim site director, Maj. Konrad Dalecki; and the Coleman senior ordnance maintenance warrant officer, CW4 Harvey Alipio; among others.

Also at the site visit and key leader engagement briefing Bernabe was the 405th Army Field Support Brigade’s commander, Col. Ernest Lane II, and the 21st Theater Sustainment Command’s commanding general, Maj. Gen. Ronald Ragin. The 405th AFSB commander is the AFSBn-Germany commander’s rater, and the 21st TSC commanding general is the senior Army sustainer in Europe.

In the last few months, the supply team at Coleman has returned over 77,000 items worth $46 million to the Army system, and M2 Bradley fighting vehicle readiness is now at an all-time high of almost 80 percent following the return of an entire Armored Brigade Combat Team’s worth of APS-2, including all the Bradleys, after the APS-2 gear was issued and used by 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, during contingency operations following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Other recent senior military leaders and officials to visit the Coleman APS-2 worksite and engage with the workforce there include the Army’s deputy to the chief of staff for operations, U.S. Army Europe and Africa’s top operations officer, key representatives from the Center of Army Analysis and the Department of Defense Office of Inspector General, plus more. And before this, top leaders from U.S. Army Sustainment Command and U.S. Army Materiel Command visited the APS-2 site in Mannheim as well as the Chief of Staff of the Army, Sergeant Major of the Army and more.

Coleman is one of six APS-2 worksites in Europe. Besides Coleman, there is an APS-2 worksite at Dülmen, Germany, which is also under the mission command of AFSBn-Germany, and other APS-2 worksites in Europe include Eygelshoven, Netherlands; Zutendaal, Belgium; Livorno, Italy; and Powidz, Poland.

The 405th AFSB’s APS-2 program provides turn-key power projection packages ready to deploy at a moment’s notice while helping to reduce the amount of equipment needed from the deploying forces’ home stations. APS-2 sites like Coleman help reduce deployment timelines, improve deterrence capabilities and provide additional combat power for contingency operations. APS-2 equipment may also be drawn for use in training and exercises.

The 405th AFSB is assigned to ASC and headquartered in Kaiserslautern, Germany. The brigade provides materiel enterprise support to U.S. forces throughout Europe and Africa – providing theater sustainment logistics; synchronizing acquisition, logistics and technology; and leveraging AMC’s materiel enterprise to support joint forces. For more information on the 405th AFSB, visit the official website at www.afsbeurope.army.mil and the official Facebook site at www.facebook.com/405thAFSB.