Col. Troy Danderson, commander of U.S. Army Garrison Wiesbaden in Germany, swaps out a patch on a soldier's uniform at Clay Kaserne in Wiesbaden on Feb. 19, 2025. The patch reflects the soldier's new alignment with the 56th Artillery Command. (Roland Schedel/U.S. Army)
WIESBADEN, Germany — Senior commanders are set to take a more active role in day-to-day management at their respective bases as the Army changes how it supports its installations around the world.
An Army executive order in January directs senior responsible officers, who in most cases are generals, to exercise tactical control of their garrisons and all organizations providing services.
Such control gives them the authority over planning, coordination and movement of people and equipment.
The changes come as the armed forces have received scrutiny from Congress and interest groups in recent years over quality-of-life issues on bases, including health and safety in military housing.
Unit structure and direct administrative and logistics support will remain under the purview of the U.S. Army Installation Management Command, the higher headquarters for 67 garrison commands that manage around 130 posts.
Multiple Army units have released statements over the past few weeks saying the shift aims to increase efficiency, reduce bureaucracy and improve the well-being of those living and working on Army installations.
Brig. Gen. Steven Carpenter, commander of the 7th Army Training Command, repatches U.S. Army Garrison Ansbach commander Col. Aaron Southard on Feb. 19, 2025. Soldiers assigned to the garrison in Ansbach, Germany, changed their unit patches from Army Materiel Command to 7th Army Training Command. (Jon Bell/U.S. Army)
In 2019, IMCOM cited a similar rationale when explaining their reorganization under the Army Materiel Command.
Maj. Gen. John Rafferty, commander of the 56th Artillery Command and senior responsible officer for U.S. Army Garrison Wiesbaden, said Tuesday that the order formalizes a structured command relationship.
Rafferty said in a statement that he and Command Sgt. Maj. Rickey Jackson are already heavily involved in managing the community, in partnership with the garrison command team.
“In U.S. Army Europe and Africa we are focused on two priorities: warfighting and people, and now we are better organized to support the priorities as a community,” Rafferty said.
The new policy also directs uniform changes, which means soldiers assigned to garrison units across the force will soon be sporting new patches.
Soldiers supporting garrison operations will wear the shoulder sleeve insignia of their installation senior commander’s unit.
It’s unclear how many garrison units have implemented the changes or whether they have a deadline for doing so, but multiple commands have already made the transition.
Maj. Gen. John Reim puts a new patch on the uniform of Lt. Col. Craig Bonham II at Picatinny Arsenal, N.J., on Feb. 18, 2025. An Army executive order granting local senior leaders more responsibility over garrison matters has meant that several units are receiving new patches. (Todd Mozes/U.S. Army)
Army officials in Washington said they were still working on answering questions Stars and Stripes asked Monday regarding the changes.
At Fort Bragg, N.C., soldiers assigned to the garrison wear the XVIII Airborne Corps’ dragon patch.
Last week, USAG Wiesbaden swapped its Army Materiel Command patches for the missile-adorned patch of the 56th Artillery Command, and garrison soldiers in Ansbach began wearing the big “A” of the 7th Army Training Command.
Similar patching ceremonies have also taken place at Picatinny Arsenal, N.J., and Fort Detrick, Md.
