The US Army Corps of Engineers Expeditionary District, the only forward-deployed district, welcomed its newest commander on 6 July. The reigns to the ‘Caravan’, as the district is known colloquially, were passed to Col. Mohammed Rahman by outgoing district commander, Lt. Col. Richard Childers during a ceremony officiated by Transatlantic Division Commander Col. William Hannan and attended by local leadership, the district workforce and Kuwait Ministry of Defense partners.
Childers, who has led the Expeditionary District for the past year, emphasized the need for strong partnerships and said the US Army Corps of Engineers does not do anything alone. “We rely heavily on our partners and the relationships that we’ve built at every level to accomplish our mission,” he said.
Childers, praised the support from the Transatlantic Division Commander Hannan, and thanked the Middle East District leadership, corporate board, program managers, branch chiefs, area engineers, deputy commanders and senior enlisted advisors for their collective role in providing engineering solutions and expertise in a challenging region where nothing is ever easy.
Childers called his tenure as the Expeditionary District commander an amazing ride and said that the team has more accomplishments that can be mentioned.”You rose to the occasion,” he said to the workforce. “It has been my honor to work alongside you. Together, we made this organization better than when we found it.”
While the district has provided design, contracting, construction and quality assurance support to multiple projects across the CENTCOM region, Childers said he would be remiss to not mention the support provided to Kuwait. In 2022, the Expeditionary District executed ten independent, vital contracts at over $12 million, he said. From constructing unit headquarters, air traffic control renovations and equipment storage warehouses for vital stocks of equipment, Childers said that, “these characterize the enduring, effective and expanding US- Kuwaiti military partnership… and I am glad to have been a part of it.”
For the new commander, the opportunity to lead a dedicated, professional organization like the Expeditionary District is a humbling experience and a chance to continue to build partnerships, capacity and standing as the executor of engineering excellence in the region.
“We are the definition of engineering excellence, not just in the US, but all over the world,” said Rahman. “Our civilian workforce is the bedrock of this organization. You work very hard and provide 110 percent of your skills to make a difference in this world. I thank you from the bottom of my heart.”
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