Tactical Field Exchange (TFE) is the official military term for "post exchange (PX) in the field." This type of logistics support gained prominence during the Persian Gulf war in the early 1990s and continues to increase in importance as each major contingency deployment unfolds. Military operations in Somalia, Haiti and Bosnia validated the need for this quality of life support to deployed soldiers, as did the most recent training exercises Roving Sands and Bright Star.
The very nature of war and operations other than war (OOTW), often demand that soldiers deploy on short notice to remote areas, under varying tactical environments and stressful living conditions, for extensive periods of time. While personal sacrifices and inconveniences are a way of life for soldiers, the Army leadership continues to place greater significance on quality of life issues. TFE support is an important component. During deployment, the accessibility to a TFE facility can have a very positive impact on a soldier's readiness and willingness to perform the mission. A direct correlation exists between quality of life, soldier morale and combat effectiveness. The ability to purchase snacks, soft drinks, tobacco products, and personal care and entertainment items helps ensure soldiers that their leaders are concerned for their personal welfare and that their contributions to the mission are appreciated.
Recognizing the value of this logistics support to soldiers, the US Army Quartermaster Center and School developed an operational concept to document the required capabilities of a TFE. The concept was closely coordinated with the Army and Air Force Exchange Service (AAFES) and staffed worldwide. Field comments and recommendations were incorporated. The concept is now being processed for approval.
Location on the battlefield greatly determines the level of TFE support a soldier receives. Soldiers in a fast-moving combat environment will have a more restrictive selection of merchandise than those in an OOTW environment. The quantity and type of merchandise changes in inverse proportion to the intensity of the tactical environment. For example, soft drinks may not be high priority TFE items in an intense tactical environment due to their weight and cube, but soft drinks will become a high priority commodity in a nontactical or OOTW environment.
While the lack of TFE support is not considered a war-stopper, this quality of life support is an essential segment of logistics that requires detailed planning - key to all successful military operations. Whether planning for an actual contingency deployment or a field training exercise, TFE considerations should be included. Annual war planning conferences hosted by the commanders in chief provide excellent opportunities for documenting known and anticipated TFE requirements. Exchange support to coalition forces, as authorized by AR 60-20 (Army and Air Force Exchange Service Operating Policies), should be considered during the planning phase of a contingency operation or exercise. This ensures that the total support force is taken into account and that special provisions are put into place when applicable, for example, the rationing of highly desirable items such as cigarettes. The operational concept suggests that contingency-oriented units should develop and maintain a TFE support plan as a way of being immediately responsive to rapid deployment. Plans for securing operating facilities and utilities, transporting merchandise and equipment, and establishing priorities for lift are crucial to successful TFE operations.
The initial establishment of an exchange facility in an operational area is usually accomplished with the use of military personnel. Once the theater is stabilized, or the mission, enemy, terrain, troops and time available (METT-T) otherwise allow, AAFES civilian personnel may be brought into the theater to operate a Direct Operation Exchange-Tactical (DOX-T). The difference between a TFE and a DOX-T is the type of personnel staffing the operation. In a TFE, military personnel from or attached to the supported unit operate the facility for AAFES. In a DOX-T, AAFES civilians operate the facility directly. The use of civilians in the theater is based primarily on the availability of volunteers and the tactical situation. Therefore, placing total reliance on civilians to operate exchange facilities throughout the operational area is unrealistic and impractical.
The TFE support structure has a built-in flexibility that can be tailored to the needs of the command. There are three basic structures for exchange support that can be used either singularly or collectively, depending upon METT-T. A static facility (TFE or DOX-T) that provides area support may be the method of choice for supporting soldiers. However, certain tactical considerations may dictate establishing a mobile TFE (PX on wheels) to support remote units on a periodic schedule. In a third and very effective method of support, the unit commander establishes an AAFES Imprest Fund Activity (AIFA), which the commander operates for unit personnel and staffs with unit soldiers. This method provides a degree of convenience and accessibility otherwise unavailable under other support structures. The downside of this method is that this support requires the use of one or more unit soldiers, which takes soldiers away from primary duties. The negative consequence of using unit soldiers can be minimized by establishing operating hours that are in the best interest of the unit as whole.
The mobile TFE has a significant characteristic that underscores its flexibility. Conceptually, mobile TFE visits to remote units could be synchronized with the field services company's shower, laundry and clothing repair operations, doctrinally provided to soldiers on a weekly basis. Adopting this arrangement would allow soldiers to take care of their personal hygiene, clothes-cleaning and repair needs and also their shopping at the same time and location. Coordination between the field services company, the TFE, transportation agencies and the supported unit(s) is the key to achieving this integrated support arrangement.
While developing the Force Provider operational concept in 1993, a TFE outlet was recognized as an essential component of this containerized, modular field facility designed to give frontline soldiers a brief respite. Today, Force Provider includes approximately 640 square feet of space designated exclusively for TFE operations. Six Force Provider modules, each capable of housing 550 soldiers, are currently deployed in Bosnia. Each includes a TFE facility. There are about six additional exchange outlets in Bosnia, and several are AIFA operations at the unit level.
Success in operating TFE facilities, in part, depends on trained operators. Headquarters, AAFES, using local installation AAFES facilities, will provide on-site training to soldiers of deploying units. Training topics may include merchandising, ordering procedures, inventory procedures, finance requirements, cash register operations, storage and security of highly pilferable items, and other subjects as required by the units. The training can be tailored to the command's needs. Soldiers with this training would serve as TFE officers, TFE assistants and AIFA managers. Field training exercises and simulations provide excellent opportunities for TFE-trained soldiers to demonstrate and hone their skills in TFE support. Experience has shown that overall aptitude is a better predictor of success than choosing soldiers with a particular military occupational specialty to operate the TFE.
Staffing exchange facilities with military personnel becomes a critical issue when the METT-T renders the use of AAFES civilians impractical or impossible. This current era of Army downsizing, unprecedented in modern times, has created an intense competition for scarce military personnel spaces. Ideally, the METT-T will always allow AAFES civilians to staff exchange facilities. However, the likelihood of this is remote. Therefore, the Army must seek a personnel solution to provide efficient support and bridge the gap before civilian-run exchange facilities become possible during some Army operations.
Conceptually, the Quartermaster supply company could assume the responsibility of exchange support as an additional unit mission. Selected unit personnel could be trained and made available for deployment according to established timetables. US Army Reserve units may be the appropriate source of soldiers for this mission. This procedure is a likely solution to the TFE staffing problem.
Providing TFE support to authorized patrons is in step with the Army leadership's many initiatives for improving the quality of life for soldiers. Headquarters, AAFES, the source of TFE merchandise and equipment, and the US Army Quartermaster Center and School, the proponent for TFE doctrine, are totally committed to this mission.
Fred D. Choice Jr. is a retired Quartermaster Officer currently serving as a Supply Management Specialist with the US Army Combined Arms Support Command, Fort Lee, Virginia. In addition to the Tactical Field Exchange concept, he has written operational concepts on Army Field Feeding, Airdrop Operations, Shower and Laundry Support, and Organizational Clothing and Individual Equipment on the Battlefield.