Southwest Border Engineer Support
Joint Task Force North engineer support missions consist of: road construction and improvement, border perimeter lighting installation, border fence construction, vehicle barrier construction, and mobility construction. Engineer support missions are long-term operations that are planned one to two years before execution and can consist of multiple phase operations that may take several months or years to complete. Department of Defense policy restricts JTN North engineering support only to the Southwest border.
Past Military Engineer Support Mission Information:
JTF North border engineer support missions have been conducted primarily near: San Diego CA, El Centro CA, Yuma AZ, Nogales AZ, Naco AZ, Douglas AZ, Columbus NM, El Paso TX, Van Horn TX, Eagle Pass TX, Del Rio TX, and Laredo TX.From 1989 - 1998, JTF North engineer support missions along the southwest border included approximately 536.6 miles of road construction and improvement, 7 miles of border perimeter lighting installation, 31.1 miles of border fence construction, 15 miles of vehicle barrier construction, and various mobility construction projects; i.e. bridges, drainage structures, vehicular guard rails, etc.
From 1999 to 2006, JTF North engineer support missions along the southwest border included approximately 82 miles of road construction and improvement, 12.3 miles of border perimeter lighting installation, 12.5 miles of border fence construction, 20 miles of vehicle barrier construction, and various mobility construction projects; i.e. bridges, drainage structures, vehicular guard rails, etc.FY07 Military Engineer Support Mission Information:
FY07 JTF North engineer support missions along the southwest border included approximately 4 miles of road construction and improvement, 1 mile of border perimeter lighting installation, 8 miles of border fence construction, 1 bridge and various mobility construction projects; i.e. drainage structures, vehicular guard rails, etc.
The majority of these missions were executed in San Diego, CA; Yuma, AZ; Naco, AZ; Douglas, AZ; and Columbus, NM. The focus and priority of these areas are in direct relation to a threat base analysis done by both JTF North and the U.S. Border Patrol Field Intelligence Center.Funding for Military Engineer Support Mission:
JTF North will generally fund all mission costs, to include travel, per diem, and other associated mission costs; all costs for materials used on engineer support missions are paid for by the supported law enforcement agency.
Benefits of Military Engineer Support Mission Information:
Military engineer units from all services execute a variety of construction projects along the southwest border desert environment. JTF North engineer missions offer military engineer units unique training opportunities to exercise multiple skill level tasks in military construction.
JTF North engineer missions are challenging and provide the unit leadership with some of the best ‘real world’ construction training opportunities within the continental United States. Volunteer units typically train in 90% of their wartime mission tasks. Volunteer units and individuals have repeatedly remarked in after-action reports that JTF North missions provided them with the best training they have ever received.
Worldwide deployments of military engineer units, combined with funding constraints, directly impact JTF North’s ability to execute engineer support missions. In recent years, JTF North has executed approximately 12 engineer missions each fiscal year.
