JOINT BASE ANDREWS, Md. –
The U.S. Army Priority Transport Battalion on Joint Base Andrews, Md., serves as the Army's premiere fixed-wing transit service.
The USAPAT plans, coordinates and conducts worldwide executive airlift support of Army senior leaders, Department of Defense executives, congressional delegates and combatant commanders.
U.S. Army Maj. James Demonstranti, USAPAT executive officer, says while the unit is capable and prepared for presidential support, their primary operations are transport of Army and DOD senior leaders and executives.
USAPAT operates out of JBA because the nearest Army facility, Davison Army Airfield on Fort Belvoir, Virginia, is not suited for the fixed-wing aircraft the unit uses.
"The airfield at Fort Belvoir simply isn't sufficient for the Gulf Stream aircraft we operate; it's too short and a bit too narrow," Demonstranti said. "Our leadership prefers to come through Andrews anyway, because the mission here allows for easier access for distinguished visitors."
U.S. Army Staff Sgt. John Stefanik, USAPAT flight engineer, appreciates having a mission and facilities that operate out of JBA.
"Living on base, housing is better than I'd normally receive, plus it's only a five-minute drive to work for me," Stefanik said. "It also really helps that our hangar is just a few hundred feet from our offices."
Due to the high amount of high-ranking customers, the unit is comprised of some of the best personnel the Army has to offer.
"Our unit is unique in that nobody is simply assigned to us, we're 100 percent hand-selected," Demonstranti said. "Because we're in front of general officers and other senior leaders all the time, everyone that comes to USAPAT has gone through a board selection process to join the unit."
The unit, made up by only approximately 50 people, still has to meet all the requirements of much larger units. Demonstranti said Soldiers with USAPAT could be responsible for five or 10 times more additional duties as they would be in any other unit.
"That's why we hand-select people we know can constantly multitask while handling the stress of a high-visibility job," Demonstranti said. "We only keep and retain Soldiers of the highest caliber."