7th Finance Group
The 7th Finance Group soldiers were as ready as any when notified of the corps' deployemnt to Saudi Arabia.
The group built a structure that called for finance support commands to direct the operations of two or more finance detachments, depending on the population served.
Supporting the corps
The group deployed with four finance support commands -the 1st, 17th, 106th and 201st FSCs from Fort Riley, Kan., Ansbach, Ludwigsburg and Frankfurt, respectively. These units supported the corps with 12 finance detachments. The group filled positions within this new structure by drawing from non-deploying finance support units throughout Germany.
Task organizing equipment to match the deployment proved a difficult task. The group filled out understrength units by crossleveling within the deploying units and by drawing from theater stacks and units inactivating under the European troop drawdown.
Even before reaching Saudi Arabia, 7th Finance Group soldiers provided full finance support to deploying soldiers, and began funding field ordering agents as soon as it had personnel in the Southwest Asia Theater.
Moving to forward positions
As VII Corps units moved into place for the ground offensive, the group moved too, operating from four forward locations: Qaysumah, EPW Camp Brooklyn, Log Base Echo and the 33rd Medical Brigade area. In accordance with doctrine, finance units stayed behind the Saudi border during the offensive, but still sought to provide finance support as far forward as the tactical situation allowed and unit commanders desired.
The finance support in the field locations included continued funding of field ordering officers, commercial vendor support (Class A Agents), currency conversions, inquiry service, limited travel payments, limited accounting and PX funding.
Reviewing the statistics
From deployment to March 8, 7th Finance Group processed more than 117,000 transactions, disbursed more than $11.6 million, processed more than 10,000 documents to reflect pay changes, answered more than 15,000 pay inquiries and distributed leave and earnings statements to a population that often exceeded 140,000 soldiers.
Finance units moved forward to join combat units within a week of the cease fire. It took under the ARCENT forces in Kuwait City under its wing.
Tracing the group's history
The group traces its lineage back to units which served in World War 11, the Korean War and the Vietnam War. Its finance support units earned five presidential unit citations for participation in those conflicts.
Once again, 7th Finance Group units traveled to a combat theater to support U.S. Army soldiers.