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PATROL BASE 7171, Helmand province, Afghanistan (1/31/2012)
– Infantry Marines deployed to Afghanistan endure trials
that Americans unfamiliar with military life cannot begin to
fathom. Inclement weather, insatiable hunger, perpetual
fatigue and direct combat with enemy forces are challenges
frequently confronting the infantryman because he regularly
operates in austere, hostile conditions. The infantry Marine
in Afghanistan, commonly 18 years old and fresh out of high
school, is often significantly more mature than others his
age because of his unique experiences.
Marines with Fox Company, 2nd Battalion, 4th Marine Regiment, move to a new position during the opening phase of Operation Double Check, a battalion-level offensive to rid areas of southern Musa Qal'eh district of insurgents. Every time they changed positions, the Marines carried large packs stuffed with food, warming layers, blankets, batteries and other equipment needed for survival in a remote combat environment. Photo by USMC Cpl. Tommy Bellegarde
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The Marines of Fox Company, 2nd Battalion, 4th Marine
Regiment, face the challenges of combat as they participate
in Operation Double Check, an ongoing battalion-level
offensive to rid areas in southern Musa Qal'eh district,
Helmand province, of insurgents and establish a government
presence in places that have been insurgent safe havens in
recent years.
Double Check started in the early hours
of Jan. 3 when the infantrymen, commonly called grunts,
helicopter inserted into the area under the blanket of
darkness and began clearing compounds believed to be
improvised explosive device manufacturing factories. An
early discovery of contraband suggested the enemy might be
near.
“We
moved into a compound; it ended up being abandoned, but
after we searched it, we found one room that had homemade
explosive [materials] all over the floor and walls,” said
Staff Sgt. Justin Smith, a squad leader with Fox Company
from Clinton Township, Mich. “We searched the rest of the
compound, keeping our eyes open for anything else, and then
we came across a locked door – it wasn't really a full
weapons cache, but we did find some machinegun parts in
there as well.”
The initial resistance directed at
Smith's squad began as the Marines continued to clear
compounds while the sun crept above the horizon. They
received machinegun fire from a concealed enemy position,
forcing many of the Marines to duck for cover. The Marines
responded by launching grenades, maneuvering to a dominant
position, and returning direct fire at the insurgents, which
caused them to flee, according to the 27-year-old Smith.
“No one freaked out under fire even though a lot of us
almost got shot,” said Smith, a 2002 graduate of L'Anse
Creuse High School in Harrison Township, Mich. “[The
Marines] would get shot at, and they'd just get right back
up and look at the enemy like, ‘Try again!'”
Mother
Nature was also unkind to the Marines during the operation's
first weeks. Freezing temperatures made life miserable for
the Marines at night, who only had sleeping bags, cold
weather jackets and warming layers to try and keep warm. The
gear helped, but the cold proved inescapable.
“We
settled in, tried to fit as many guys as we could in small
rooms, as small as these rooms are, to keep warm at night,”
said Dayton, Ohio, native Cpl. Russell Swabb, a fireteam
leader with Fox Company. “We would find some nasty, nasty
blankets and pillows that were left in compounds and just
kind of snuggle up next to each other to stay warm when we
weren't on post. While on post, me and whoever I was on post
with, we'd throw a tarp over each other and just stay
close.”
The Marines traveled everywhere by foot and
tried to keep their packs as light as possible. Most packed
only the bare essentials needed for survival in a combat
zone, such as food, cold-weather gear and batteries. Even
still, the bags were awkward and heavy to carry for the
Marines, who were also wearing full combat gear.
“It's definitely exhausting, regardless of if you're
somebody who has to carry around a lot of stuff or if you're
just carrying the bare minimum,” said Edmond, Okla., native
Lance Cpl. Nathan Aschenbrenner, an automatic rifleman with
Fox Company. “The only way to really do it and keep positive
about it is to think of it like a joke like, ‘I can't
believe I'm doing this.'
“I just take it from
checkpoint to checkpoint,” added the 24-year-old. “If I'm
thinking, ‘Oh my gosh, I've got to move so many kilometers
tonight or so far today,' it's just going to beat you down,
but if you take it from checkpoint to checkpoint or
objective to objective, it goes by pretty quick.”
The
Marines have stayed busy during the operation, spending most
of their time moving positions, sending out security
patrols, or standing posts. When the infantrymen do get some
spare time, they spend it hanging out with other Marines
from their squads, sitting around a fire, playing cards or
joking around.
“Most of the time if we've got some
downtime we really try to sleep, but that's really when all
the jokes and horseplay really comes out,” said
Aschenbrenner, a 2005 graduate of Edmond North High School.
“If we've got a chance to horse around and have some fun,
kind of boost morale, that's definitely what we do.”
Experiences like Double Check may seem like a nightmare to
people who have never experienced a combat operation –
volunteering to be cold and miserable, to go without bathing
or using a toilet, to have incessant hunger, and to
regularly put one's own life in danger for an extended
period of time may seem crazy.
There is an upside,
however.
The infantrymen of Fox Company share
special bonds with members of their squads because on
deployment, grunts spend every day together, sharing every
triumph, every hardship – shared experiences in Afghanistan
have made them friends for life.
“We're all around
each other 24/7 living in small tents or sleeping in small
buildings, getting together close for warmth so we don't
freeze to death, and these are the best friends you're ever
going to have,” said Swabb, who graduated from Belmont High
School in 2008. “I've got good friends back home, but
honestly I'm closer to these guys than I'll ever be with
anybody else.”
More photos available in frame below
By USMC Cpl. Tommy Bellegarde
nd Marine Division
Provided
through DVIDS
Copyright 2012
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