Twenty-five Days On The Road
(March 21, 2011) |
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| BAGRAM AIR FIELD, Afghanistan (March 18, 2011) – No one has
ever claimed that conducting convoy operations through
Afghanistan is a piece of cake. Soldiers who've only been
deployed to Iraq quickly learn a valuable lesson once they
land on the ground here: the rules in Baghdad or Mosul don't
apply.
The only constant in this region's unforgiving
landscape is change: that is, change in weather, routes and
road conditions. This was a lesson soldiers of the 131th
Transportation Company learned after they spent 25
consecutive days on the road this winter.
The
company, a Pennsylvania National Guard unit attached to the
17th Combat Sustainment Support Battalion, 101st Sustainment
Brigade, got a first-hand look at what was in store for them
during this deployment: high elevation and uneven roads,
snow and rain that turned roads icy, slippery and muddy,
stalled out vehicles, and missions that have to be
constantly adjusted.
Despite the challenges, the
131th TC Company successfully completed their mission,
getting their supplies to Forward Operating Base Salerno and
returning to Bagram Air Field safely.
“We didn't want
to leave the job unfinished,” said Staff Sgt. Erik Campbell,
131th TC Company platoon leader. “There was a sense of
personal pride to get all of our trucks back to BAF.”
Col. Michael P. Peterman, 101st Sustainment Brigade
commander, said incidents like this drives home the risk of
modularity in units. For the units coming, the one
question that always has to be asked if they have the right
standards in place to ensure the missions are successful,”
he said. “You have to look at the leaders' efforts, and for
those who will follow us, we have to ensure that the proper
standards are in place on how to deal with those issues on
the road.”
Campbell and 1st Lt. Tucker Smith said the
first leg of their convoy went well, but then the mission
became hampered by weather and road conditions.
“We
experienced white-out conditions as we waited for the KG
Pass to clear,” said Tucker, platoon leader with the 131th
TC Company.
Pfc. John Speck, a gunner with the 131th
TC Company, said there were moments that tested the unit's
patience.
“Being at the KG Pass was the hardest
part,” he said. “I personally don't mind going out on
convoys because it makes the days go by faster. But it was
hard with us having to stop, get out, and hook up all the
time because of the weather.”
Once the weather
cleared, they discovered the weather turned the roads into
an icy, muddy mess. They ended up towing a host national
truck up a mountain, he said.
“That became a 24-hour
mission,” Smith said.
At one point, the company
assisted a unit from the 1st Infantry Division who had
gotten stuck in the snowstorm.
“That was definitely a
high point for us. I'm sure they weren't very happy getting
help from a National Guard unit,” Campbell said.
The unit
spent time at several FOBs in the area, waiting for the
weather to clear and get the OK to continue on with their
mission.
They worked on cross-training each other on
their respective jobs, learning the ins and outs of gunner
work and combat medicine.
Smith said about half the
soldiers in his company had deployed prior to Iraq, and
quickly noticed the differences between here and their
previous assignment.
“Iraq is level country. Here,
you're dealing with different elevations, as well as going
on and off the roads,” he said. “We didn't really know what
to expect during our mission. It went from get up, on to
stand down.”
Smith said the unit maintained their
morale by playing basketball and keeping the lines of
communication open.
We made sure everyone understood
what was happening and what changes were occurring,” he
said. “It helped us keep our focus, especially when dealing
with all the curveballs thrown at us.”
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By Army SFC Peter Mayes
101st Sustainment Brigade, 101st Airborne Division (AA)
Public Affairs
Copyright 2011 | |
Provided
through DVIDS
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