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NEWS | June 30, 2022

B Company, 98th Signal Battalion supports the CSTX at Fort Hunter Liggett

By Capt. Fernando Ochoa 505th Signal Brigade

Lead by 1st Lt. Christopher Tolino, B Company 98th Signal Battalion commander, Herrea Hall, U.S. Army Reserve Center, Mesa, Arizona, Signal Soldiers traveled to Fort Hunter Liggett, California, to support Grecian Firebolt 2022, throughout the Combat Support Training Exercise 91-22-01, during the month of June 2022. The 98th Signal Bn. is a command within the 505th Signal Brigade footprint.

Grecian Firebolt 2022, for the 98th Signal Bn, is an overall exercise support of CSTX 91-22-01, a validation exercise conducted for Internet of Things support for real world deployments and training readiness for active Army, Army National Guard, Army Reserve and signal units.

Internet of Things connected sensors and radars collect and transmit data on the position and movements of U.S. troops and adversaries, supplies, and inadequately secured networks and can provide the leadership with quickly correlated and evaluated information, creating value from data, which is key to have an edge on the battlefield. The B Co., 98th Signal Bn. was tasked to provide a tactical network.

“One of our biggest challenges is keeping up the moral of our Soldiers who must not only endure the heat but also deal with the logistical problems that we encounter,” said 1st Lt. Dylan Hendrix, B Co., 98th Signal Bn. deputy commander. “Seeing our Soldiers go through hardship and still accomplish their mission regardless of the situations that are out of our control is very gratifying.”

Fort Hunter Liggett is a United States Army fort in Jolon, California, in southern Monterey County. The fort is primarily used as a training facility, where activities such as field maneuvers and live fire exercises are performed and hosts exercises like CSTX, where thousands of Soldiers throughout the U.S. come to perform their two-week obligated service.

The B Co. 98th Signal Bn. was sent to FHL to setup communication hubs to support many units that were spread out throughout one of the largest training venues in the U.S. Army Reserve training area of operations. They were also responsible for setting up antennas for the 261st Multi-Functional Medical Battalion, which provides a flexible and modular medical battle command, administrative assistance, logistical support, and technical supervision capability for assigned and attached medical organizations.

Trained Signal Solders are called Multichannel Transmission Systems Operator Maintainers, who install, repair, and maintain radio and satellite devices. Spc. Shane Mason is a recent graduate of the Advanced Individual Training course, and this was his first Annual Training experience.

“One of the best lessons I learned was how to find a good line of sight so that we can power up our equipment,” said Pvt. Mason. “Coming to this exercise has been a great experience. One of the reasons I joined the Army was to travel and see new places.”

The 98th Signal Battalion’s mission is to provide network planning and engineering support for assigned units to install, operate, maintain, secure, and defend the Department of Defense Information Network, which are communications in support of the theater Army and united land operations.

The 505th Signal Brigade conducts Joint Network Control Center operations, and the integration, operation, maintaining, and defending of a War Fighter Information Network Tactical communications network for CSTX 91-22-01 and performs unit and individual training, during the month of June.