Posted on 05/18/2006 3:57:12 PM PDT by Gucho
By Kent Harris - Stars and Stripes European edition
Thursday, May 18, 2006
AVIANO AIR BASE, Italy — The U.S. military is looking at the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter as the next generation of fighter aircraft.
Or maybe it’s Next Generation. Because with technology resembling something from a Star Trek series, the F-35 appears to be light years away from the jets it’s supposed to replacing.
“It’s really amazing,” said 1st Lt. Matt Kuperus, an F-16 pilot with the 555th Fighter Squadron, after climbing into the cockpit of an F-35 simulator at Aviano. “It’s not like anything I’ve ever seen before.”
The Joint Strike Fighter is slated to eventually replace the F-16 Fighting Falcon, A-10 Thunderbolt, F/A-18 Hornet and AV-8B Harrier that are now being used by U.S. pilots. In theory, it would team with the F-22 to give the U.S. and its allies an even greater tactical edge in the air.
“It’s not an F-16 regurgitation,” said Mike Barton, a former F-16 squadron commander, who is now a pilot systems engineer for Lockheed Martin.
Barton and other Lockheed Martin reps are taking the simulator on a tour of NATO countries during its short swing in Europe. The simulator will be in Stuttgart next week, followed by stops in Copenhagen, Denmark, and Oslo, Norway. Denmark and Norway are two of the other eight countries that are partners with the U.S. in the development of the F-35.
Airmen at Aviano appeared to be impressed Tuesday.
“You have a giant TV screen in front of you and you have total [situational awareness],” Kuperus said.
He said he wasn’t intimidated by the technology. “It’s really exciting to know we’re going to have this kind of capability in the near future,” he said.
Billy Diehl, another former fighter pilot who works in business development for Lockheed Martin, said the first F-35s likely wouldn’t be deployed to bases such as Aviano until at least 2013. And that’s if Congress decides to approve the funding for the aircraft, which won’t be found in a discount bin at the base exchange.
The model that could eventually make its way to Aviano is the F-35A. It’s the smallest of the three under development and will come with a price tag of at least $46 million. It will likely be the most common as well, with interest shown by almost all the partners.
The F-35B, with short and vertical takeoff and landing abilities, has attracted interest from the United Kingdom, U.S. Marine Corps and Italy. It’s pricier at more than $63 million.
The $65 million F-35C is geared toward use on aircraft carriers, with the Navy set to be a big customer.
Story by Cpl. Graham Paulsgrove
GHARMAH, Iraq (May 14, 2006) -- When an optional piece of gear became mandatory, complaints were lodged, but when the gear did its job - saving a Marine’s life - a few opinions were changed.
Lance Cpl. Robert F. Dean, a light armored vehicle crewman with D Company, 3rd Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion, owes his life to the small arms protective insert he had strapped to the side of his body armor when he was shot by an insurgent sniper May 14 near the city of Gharmah.
“I thought someone had thrown a rock at me,” said Dean, from Spring, Texas.
Dean soon realized it was not a rock, but a bullet fired by an insurgent from roughly 500 meters away.
“We had an area cordoned off and the scouts were out searching the area,” recalled Cpl. Dustin R. Nelson, Dean’s vehicle commander. “I reached down to give him some water. As he popped out of his hatch to take it from me, I heard a crack.”
The Marines immediately responded to the insurgent attack.
“The bullet would have hit his femoral bone, and possibly gone through and hit his femoral artery,” said HN Chad T. Kenyon, 20, the corpsmen who treated Dean after the incident. “If that happened, he could have bled to death within a few minutes. It would have been a sticky situation, but the plates did their job and stopped the bullet.”
“The round hit the very bottom of the plate, shattering some of the ceramic, but the fiber paper [backing the plate] caught the round like a baseball mitt,” added Nelson, from Grand Junction, Colo.
Marines here are equipped with the interceptor body armor system, which consists of an outer tactical vest made of Kevlar and the small arms protective insert plates. The OTV and associated neck, throat and groin protectors are designed to offer protection from fragmentation weapons.
The ceramic SAPI plates are designed to defeat multiple hits from assault rifles common on the current battlefield. Recently, the side SAPI plates have been added to the armor system.
When the side SAPI plates were originally issued to the company, Marines with jobs that kept them inside their eight-wheeled vehicles- the drivers, gunners and vehicle commanders - could choose whether or not to wear the plates. Once the unit started operating around Fallujah under Regiment Combat Team 5, wearing the side plates was no longer a choice, it was a requirement.
“They make it harder to get in and out of the vehicle, but without them, I would probably be in bad shape,” said Dean, 20, about his side SAPI plates. “It was a good thing that they made all of us wear them.”
When the gear became mandatory for the Marines, some complained, but have since rescinded there objections after seeing the plates in action.
Thanks to the side SAPI plates, a life was perhaps saved and serious injury was definitely prevented.
“Now, our interpreter wants side SAPI’s, before he was complaining that his flak was too heavy,” Nelson said.
The Marine Corps has made several advancements in providing enhanced personal body armor for Marines and sailors deployed to Iraq. The level of protection of individual body armor has increased as advancements in the armor technology has improved and in response to the threats in the area.
Advancements include enhanced SAPI plates, which offer greater protection against small caliber weapons, the side SAPI plates, which increase protection on the flanks of the torso, and a new lightweight Kevlar helmet, which offers the same ballistic protection as the previous version but is easier to wear for long periods of time.
Lance Cpl. Robert F. Dean, a light armored vehicle crewman with D Company, 3rd Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion, owes his life to the small arms protective insert he had strapped to the side of his body armor when he was shot by an insurgent sniper May 14 near the city of Gharmah. Marines in Iraq are equipped with the interceptor body armor system, which consists of an outer tactical vest made of Kevlar and the small arms protective insert plates. The OTV and associated neck, throat and groin protectors are designed to offer protection from fragmentation weapons. The ceramic SAPI plates are designed to defeat multiple hits from assault rifles common on the current battlefield. Recently, the side SAPI plates have been added to the armor system. (Photo by: Cpl. Graham Paulsgrove)
May 18, 2006
BALAD, Iraq -- June 6, 1944 hundreds of Soldiers died in five to six feet of water before they reached the shores of Normandy, France -- they died because they did not know how to tread water in their heavy gear.
In Iraq there are a lot of canals adjoining the Tigris River. The insurgents have begun using the waterways as a means to transport weapons caches while avoiding coalition forces patrolling the streets. Weapons Caches have also been found in many of the riverbanks along the Tigris River.
To date more than 50 U.S. service members have drown in Iraq. Not wanting to repeat history, the command group of 3rd Battalion, 29th Field Artillery, 3rd Heavy Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, Task Force Band of Brothers decided to develop training to help Soldiers survive in full combat gear if they happen to fall in water.
A Soldier going out on patrol wears about 40 to 50 pounds of gear. With the weight of the gear there was concern the Soldier would sink to the bottom of a canal.
"I wondered to myself how much survivability a Soldier would have if he ended up in the river or in the canal," said Sgt. Maj. Dean Keveles, command sergeant major, 3rd Bn., 29th FA, 3rd HBCT. "Could they surface and get themselves to the bank of the river to survive?"
With river boat patrols becoming an increasing reality Keveles and a team of his senior NCOs decided to test the buoyancy of the interceptor body armor system at the outdoor swimming pool at Logistical Support Area Anaconda. Sgt. 1st Class Ralph Cook, Bradley Fighting Vehicle platoon sergeant, Bulldog Troop, 2nd Squadron, 9th Cavalry, 3rd HBCT, donned the vest, plates et all and jumped in the pool to see what would happen.
It turns out the Kevlar inside of the IBAS will float and support the weight of the Soldier. If the Soldier rips off his IBAS upon entering the water, they will sink, said Keveles. It is like having a bulletproof life vest.
From what they learned at the pool, Keveles and his NCOs were able to put together a training exercise they could teach Soldiers. The exercise would have a Soldier in full Army Combat Uniform wear an IBAS vest with plates and remove the ammunition pouches. The Soldier would crouch on one knee near the edge of the pool and hold an M-16 rifle in the ready position. The M-16 rifle would be connected to the instructor by 550 cord for quick retrieval out of the pool. Before hitting the water the Soldier would be instructed to throw his weapon away to lessen the weight.
"We know that you will automatically drop your weapon when you hit the water," said Keveles. "Soldier survival is first and if we have to, we will drudge the river for the weapon later."
The instructor would give the Soldier a swift kick in the back to simulate the surprise of falling into the water. After a Soldier fell in the water he would have to swim 15 meters before coming out of the pool.
Not every detail could be simulated at the pool, but Keveles was happy with the program.
We don’t have a way to simulate river current in the training but at least the Soldiers can build their confidence by doing the training, getting to the surface of the water and using their energy to get to the side of the pool, said Keveles.
Sgt. 1st Class Jason Maynard, platoon sergeant, Battery B, 3rd Bn., 29th FA took his Soldiers to the pool recently to teach them what he learned from Keveles’ team.
Before putting on the IBAS, Maynard had the Soldiers jump into the pool their uniform, helmet and boots in groups of eight. It was to determine how strong of swimmers they were. There were some non-swimmers in the groups. Lifeguards were on-hand to assist the Soldiers if they began to panic.
From there, he instructed the Soldiers to don the IBAS and get ready to be kicked into the pool.
1st Lt. Sean Craig, platoon leader, Battery B, 3rd Bn., 29th FA, felt no initial discomfort after hitting the water.
Sgt. Justin Folts, native of Billings, Mont., treatment NCO, Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 3rd Battalion, 29th Field Artillery, 3rd Heavy Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, Task Force Band of Brothers, shows Staff Sgt. Derrick Gwin, native of Thomasville, Ala., gunnery sergeant, Battery B, 3rd Bn., 29th FA, how to breathe using a oxygen tank during a drown proofing class at the pool in Logistical Support Area Anaconda near Balad, Iraq. (U.S. Army photo by Pfc. Paul J. Harris, 3rd Heavy Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division Public Affairs Office)
"I am a pretty strong swimmer so it felt fine, felt like I normally swim," said Craig. "It felt like a life jacket, a secure feeling because as soon as you get in it pops you back up."
Not all Soldiers had the same reaction, especially those who do not swim well.
"I was nervous because I had never done this and I don’t swim at all. It was tough for me," said Spc. Albert James, gunner, Battery B, 3rd Bn., 29th FA. James struggled in the water but was able to complete the 15 meter swim. After he got out of the pool and let water drain out of his uniform he was tired but confident his vest would keep him afloat if he had to do it again.
The last stage of the exercise was to move to the shallow end of the pool where Sgt. Justin Folts, treatment NCO, Headquarters and Headquarters Battery, 3rd Bn., 29th FA set up a demonstration on how to use the National SCUBA Divers Association approved bottles containing a mixture of oxygen, nitrogen and breathable air that every Humvee in the battalion now carries.
When a Soldier rolls over in a canal or starts to drown they will panic, said Folts. The oxygen in the bottles will calm you down, allowing oxygen to be received by your vital organs. This will help you to regain composure and allow you move to safety.
We are the only task force in Iraq that has a mandate of two oxygen bottles per vehicle. I think the rest of the brigade will adapt as they see how useful these bottles are, said Folts.
I felt funny trying to breathe underwater, said Staff Sgt. Derrick Gwin, gunnery sergeant, Battery B, 3rd Bn., 29th FA. I got used to it after a while and I definitely would rather have it than not.
At the conclusion of the training Maynard was pleased with the way his teammates from Battery B preformed. With the possibilities of water operations becoming more of a reality the training will aid in the Soldiers’ confidence to do their job.
"(The training) is going to take their mind off of being nervous and keep it on the mission," Maynard said..
By Pfc. Paul J. Harris - 3rd Heavy Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division Public Affairs Office
May 18, 2006
BALAD, Iraq -- Mortar and rocket attacks have increased on the Iraqi city of Balad in recent days. To help alleviate this nuisance, Soldiers from Company B, 1-8 Combined Arms Battalion conducted a knock and search patrol south of the city.
"(We wanted to) see if we can find anything, if we can get any info from the local people out there, if anything was going on bad out there," said Staff Sgt. Marion Flint, a squad leader from Co. B, 1-8 CAB, 3rd Heavy Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, Task Force Band of Brothers.
During the patrol, the Soldiers encountered many smiling and inquisitive children, as well as somewhat surprised and supportive adults. To help add to the smiles, the group passed out "Operation Iraqi Children" packets, which consist of school supplies and a stuffed animal, to each of the children they saw.
"It’s basically just to give the kids and the families stuff just to show them that we are trying to help in any way possible," Flint said.
While at one house, there was a child who had a scratch on his finger. The medic who was traveling with the patrol, Sgt. Steven Lamonds, from Company A, 1-8 CAB, cleaned and re-dressed the wound.
This patrol was quiet, each home that was searched -- after obtaining permission from the homeowner -- was found to be in compliance with policies and rules. But, the presence of Coalition Forces served to alert the people that friendly forces are in the area and they can be trusted to assist the people.
"It’s important for a lot of reasons: one, our guys always have to be familiar with our area," said Capt. Brian Kavanagh, platoon leader with Company B. "We’ve got to be walking down the alleys, walking up paths, walking through orchards so they’re familiar with the terrain. Also, we need to make sure that people aren’t stockpiling weapons or caches. If we have a presence around this area, nobody knows when we’re going to show up walking through their orchards they’re going to be more deterred from doing that type of thing."
Soldiers of the company enjoy getting out and seeing the fruits of their labors as well.
"It’s good for them to see us looking for (the caches) and going out to those little farm areas," said Pfc. Gary Dishroon, an infantryman with Company B.
In the nearly three months the Fighting Eagles of 1-8 CAB have been operating in this area, attacks on coalition forces have decreased.
"We’ve disrupted enemy in this area quite a bit," Kavanagh said. "I think 1-8 is pretty effective."
By Sgt. Zach Mott - 3rd Heavy Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division Public Affairs Office
ADDITIONAL PHOTOS:
Staff Sgt. Marion Flint, a squad leader from Company B, 1-8 Combined Arms Battalion, 3rd Heavy Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, Task Force Band of Brothers, uses his weapon sight to search an open field while on a patrol in an area near Balad, Iraq. (Photo by Sgt. Zach Mott, 3rd Heavy Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division Public Affairs Office, March 8, 2006)
While patrolling an area near Balad, Iraq, Sgt. Steven Lamonds, medic from Company A, 1-8 Combined Arms Battalion, 3rd Heavy Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, Task Force Band of Brothers, cleaned up a cut on an Iraqi boys' finger. (Photo by Sgt. Zach Mott, 3rd Heavy Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division Public Affairs Office, March 8, 2006)
Pfc. Gary Dishroon, an infantryman with Company B, 1-8 Combined Arms Battalion, 3rd Heavy Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, Task Force Band of Brothers, peeks into a window of an abandoned building as his squad was patrolling an area near Balad, Iraq. (Photo by Sgt. Zach Mott, 3rd Heavy Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division Public Affairs Office, March 9, 2006)
Staff Sgt. Corey Mills, far right, team leader, Company B, 1-8 Combined Arms Battalion, 3rd Heavy Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, Task Force Band of Brothers, prepares to enter an apparently abandoned building during a patrol near Balad, Iraq. (Photo by Sgt. Zach Mott, 3rd Heavy Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division Public Affairs Office, March 8, 2006)
By Senior Airman Brian Ferguson - U.S. Central Command Air Forces Public Affairs
5/17/2006 - BALAD AIR BASE, Iraq (AFPN) -- Aircraft pack the flightline here and operations are non-stop and intense. C-130 Hercules, MQ-1 Predators, F-16 Fighting Falcons and HH-60 Pave Hawk helicopters all call this busy base home.
The men and women who support the aircraft say Balad has the busiest single-runway airfield in the Department of Defense.
One look and anyone can see this is probably true.
“The benefits of this forward operating airfield are immeasurable,” said Capt. Brian Chandler, 332nd Expeditionary Operations Support Squadron airfield operations flight commander. “Without this airfield, it would be much more difficult to be as effective as we are.”
To determine airfield flow, operators count the number of takeoffs, landings and over-flights that occur each day and add them together to get an operational total.
By having a forward operating location like Balad, the military reaches a level of efficiency that could not be achieved any other way, Captain Chandler said. This is why the base supports some of the most critical air operations in the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility.
Balad supports combat and cargo operations, aeromedical evacuation missions and troop movements, to name a few.
Moreover, things are not slowing down. In the last couple of months, hub-and-spoke operations have taken hold at Balad. C-5 Galaxy and C-17 Globemaster III aircraft drop off cargo and personnel at this hub. Then C-130s move the cargo and people to forward operating bases -- the spokes -- and return to Balad to do it all over again.
“This type of operation increases efficiency, using fewer aircraft and personnel,” Captain Chandler said. “It also increases our sorties by about 30 percent.”
By increasing in-theater C-130 missions, the Air Force has reduced the number of ground convoys and troops exposed to roadside bomb attacks.
The increase in sorties means an increase in work for the 777th Expeditionary Airlift Squadron’s maintainers who must keep these C-130s flying.
“Typically we do more sorties in a month here than we do in a year back in the States,” said 1st Lt. Byron Foster, maintenance unit officer in charge.
The “Triple-7” arrived at Balad in January, he said. Since then, its aircraft have flown more than 3,700 sorties, carrying more than 11,700 tons of cargo and transporting more than 54,200 people.
It is the active-duty and Reserve Airmen working together that gets the job done, providing safe, flyable aircraft, the lieutenant said.
With so many aircraft coming, going and flying over Balad, air traffic controllers work around the clock to keep military and civilian aircraft safe in the skies.
“This is where the rubber meets the road,” said Chief Master Sgt. Bobby Posey, chief controller.
“Some 24 of our 26 controllers here are staff sergeants and below," the chief said. "Everything comes down to those young kids sitting in the combined en-route radar approach control facility and in the tower.”
On a daily basis, the controllers direct military and civilian aircraft and helicopters, as well as vehicles needing flightline access.
“The de-confliction of these aircraft allows military, civilian and tactical aircraft to use the same airspace -- in one of the most congested airspaces in the world,” Chief Posey said.
Captain Chandler said the future of forward projected joint combat airpower is at Balad.
“It all centers on the airfield, the busiest in the Air Force,” he said.
Senior Airman Sorie Bangura monitors more than 200,000 square miles of air space from the transportable radio approach control facility at Balad Air Base, Iraq, on May 15, 2006. The airfield is the busiest single-runway airfield in the Department of Defense. Airman Bangura is an air traffic controller with the 332nd Expeditionary Operation Support Squadron and is deployed here from Vance Air Force Base, Okla. (U.S. Air Force photo/Senior Airman Brian Ferguson)
Senior Airman Derrick Farr performs surveillance and identification procedures with aircraft flying in the vicinity of Balad Air Base, Iraq, on May 15, 2006. Controllers here monitor more than 200,000 square miles of air space. The airfield is the busiest single-runway airfield in the Department of Defense. Airman Farr is an air traffic controller with the 332nd Expeditionary Operation Support Squadron and is an Air National Guardsman deployed here from Savannah, Ga. (U.S. Air Force photo/Senior Airman Brian Ferguson)
The roadwork project cleared the field of vision for guards manning an entry control point at Logistics Support Area Anaconda.
A humvee, followed by a 20-ton dump truck, crosses a newly constructed bridge at Logistics Support Area Anaconda's north entry control point. (Courtesy photo)
By U.S. Army 1st Lt. Waukemsha Kirkpatrick - 84th Engineer CombatBattalion (Heavy)
LOGISTICS SUPPORT AREA ANACONDA, Iraq, May 18, 2006 — U.S. soldiers assigned to the 84th Engineer Combat Battalion (Heavy) jumped into action to complete a project at Logistics Support Area Anaconda's north entry control point.
Civilian trucks delivering gravel to Anaconda's gravelyard blocked the entry control point guards' field of vision and posed a security threat.
To solve this problem, the force protection team of Logistics Support Area Anaconda's mayor cell and the 2-44th Air Defense Artillery Battalion developed a plan to reroute the gravel trucks and reorganize the gravel yard by upgrading two access roads and building bridges across canals south of the entry control point.
Because canal water used by local farmers to irrigate their crops would have to be cut off to complete build the bridges, the battalion assigned the bridging mission with the provisio that it must be completed in two weeks. B Company believed it could complete the mission in that time, and satisfy the U.S. Army, gravel contractors, and the Iraqi farmers and villagers.
B Company's Horizontal Platoon charged forward with the initial phase of the construction project - to upgrade roads to provide entrance and exit roads to the gravelyard. U.S. soldiers with 2nd platoon took charge of the next phase of the mission - to construct the headwalls for the culvert and timber bridges.
The battalion's construction team provided the design for the roads, and the B Company commander designed the culverts and timber bridges. Once Horizontal Platoon completed the in- and outbound routes, 2nd Platoon began work on the culvert and timber bridges.
From the start and throughout the construction project, 2nd Platoon faced several challenges involving the security of the project site and the construction of the culverts and bridges.
Though the actual construction of the bridges brought many challenges, only a few prompted serious concern.
Once Horizontal Platoon finished excavating and preparing the site, local farmers opened the valve to increase the canal's water flow the day before the project began, flooding the area they had just prepared for work.
From the start, 2nd Platoon had pushed to complete the project in two weeks in order to restore water to the canal quickly. Because local farmers restored water to the canal before the project started, leadership decided to divert water instead of block it. Therefore, the two-week time constraint was eased.
However, because soldiers worked outside the logistics support area, leadership wanted to finish the project quickly.
The soldiers worked under extreme conditions, wearing all their protective gear. This reduced their productivity and extended the project by a week.
During phase two, soldiers tamped the ground and built a formwork for the culvert footers. Once 2nd Platoon soldiers placed mortar onto the concrete footers, Horizontal Platoon used their crane to lower the culverts into position, and soldiers firmly packed in the mortar for stability.
The next task was building the formwork for the walls. Meanwhile, the bridge team placed the timbers onto the bridge footers and bolted them down. They also drilled holes in 86 pieces of timber for girders.
Soldiers with 2nd Platoon completed the third phase by removing formwork from culverts, head walls, and tail walls. Next, they constructed formwork for the culvert wing walls and bridge approach ramps. The bridge team placed decking and fascia onto the bridge. Horizontal Platoon filled and compacted at both sites to prepare for the road surface.
Second Platoon placed concrete for the road surface and approach ramps. The culvert and bridge teams completed their project and prepared for completion of compaction and grading at the approaches. The 2nd Platoon completed the cosmetic work on the bridges and horizontal platoon began work on the final phase of the project. They built up the existing road, filled and compacted, and placed a final gravel cap to meet the height of the bridge at each site.
Working outside Logistics Support Area Anaconda was more dangerous than expected. At one point during the project, the platoon's security team observed an Iraqi acting suspiciously around the site's concertina wire.
After questioning, leaders deemed that the situation needed additional security and called the quick reaction force. The team responded and detained the Iraqi for further questioning.
The 84th Engineer Combat Battalion (Heavy) soldiers improved operations in Iraq without disturbing the Iraqis' way of life. Building two culverts across an earth canal and two timber bridges required a lot of work and attention to detail to ensure the project's success.
The water flows in the earth canal again, and gravel trucks have a new entrance and exit into and out of the gravel yard. To celebrate the completion of this project, 2nd Platoon held an engineer "ribbon-cutting ceremony" to honor the B Company soldiers and other units that made the project a success.
They wrapped up the event with the cutting of engineer tape tied across the bridge and the crossing of a M1114 humvee and 20-ton dump truck over the timber bridge and culvert road surface.
U.S. Marine Corps - Cpl. Emilio Diaz Jr.
U.S. Marine Corps Cpl. Emilio Diaz Jr., a 1st Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment machine gunner with Weapons Company, Combined Anti-Armor Team 1, stands in front of a Humvee before embarking on a mission near Jalalabad, Afghanistan. Diaz, from Brownsville, Texas, received the Purple Heart for injuries he sustained while manning a .50-caliber machine gun in Iraq on 1/3's last combat deployment when his Humvee was hit by an improvised explosive device. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Sgt. Joe Lindsay)
By Marine Sgt. Joe Lindsay - Task Force Lava Public Affairs
JALALABAD AIRFIELD, Afghanistan, May 18, 2006 — There was a persistent ringing in his ears that just wouldn’t go away - piercing, consuming, unyielding.
It’s been more than a year since Marine Cpl. Emilio Diaz Jr., a 1st Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment machine gunner with Weapons Company, Combined Anti-Armor Team One, was riding in a Humvee that hit an improvised explosive device outside Fallujah, Iraq. Although violently rocked, Diaz somehow remained in his turret position atop the vehicle, where he was manning a .50-caliber machine gun.
When he woke up after the explosion, he was still atop the Humvee, still in the seated position, being held up only by his gunner’s strap. He wasn’t sure how much time had gone by. Marines were running around on the road below him yelling, but he couldn’t make out what they were saying over the ringing - the constant ringing.
The Humvee he was riding in just a few minutes before had been transformed into a heap of twisted metal. The .50-caliber gun he had been manning was in pieces. He thought, perhaps, he was dead - that his buddies were dead.
But he wasn’t dead. And his friends weren’t dead. In fact, just he and one other Marine in the Humvee were wounded in the explosion. The IED blast had come sideways from a tree, destroying everything in its midst, save the Marines. Some said their flak jackets and helmets saved them, or that the vehicle’s armor saved them. Others just called it luck and left it at that.
When the Purple Heart was pinned on his chest some months later, back at his unit’s home base of Marine Corps Base Hawaii, Kaneohe Bay, he called it the proudest moment of his life, with the possible exception of the day he graduated boot camp and became a Marine.
But the ringing in his ears - the ringing was still there. “Right after the IED hit, I went deaf. After a month, I was still deaf,” said Diaz, recounting his story as he prepared for yet another combat patrol, this time in Afghanistan. “They kept me in a military hospital in Iraq for about a month, observing me, monitoring me and hoping my hearing would come back. Eventually Diaz was sent to Germany and finally back to Hawaii for surgery.
“I was scared I’d never hear again - and also scared I’d get medically discharged from the Marine Corps,” said Diaz, from Brownsville, Texas. “I didn’t want that. I wanted to be back with the guys. I wanted to hear again. Most of all I wanted the ringing to stop. I hadn’t learned to block it out at that time.” After successful surgery back in Hawaii, Diaz regained full hearing in his right ear, and most of the hearing in his left ear. Still, though, the ringing persisted.
“It’s basically something I’ve learned to block out, or maybe it’s more accurate to say it’s something I’ve learned to live with,” explained Diaz. “It doesn’t dominate me anymore. I can function again as a Marine and as a leader of Marines.”
That is good news for the Lava Dogs of 1/3 who are serving with Diaz as part of Operation Enduring Freedom.
“Corporal Diaz is one of the best corporals, if not the best corporal, I’ve ever had,” said Staff Sgt. Douglas Derring, a 1/3 infantry platoon leader with Weapons Company, CAAT 1, from Virginia Beach, Va. “He’s just an outstanding NCO, the type of Marine that the younger troops can really look up to. He’s a self-starter and he’s got combat experience, which gives the Marines under his charge an added dose of confidence.”
Lance Cpl. Tyler Baecker, a 1/3 tow-gunner with Weapons Company, CAAT 1, has served with Diaz since they both went through the School of Infantry, then served in Iraq and now Afghanistan.
“He’s a good man and a good Marine,” said Baecker, from Montrose, Colo. “He’s always been that way, since day one. The more responsibility they put on his shoulders, the more he can carry. He believes in his Marines and we believe in him. There’s nothing we can’t do. We’ve all got a bond that can only be formed under fire.”
That bond sometimes affords the Marines in Diaz’s unit an opportunity for some good-natured fun.
“Sometimes the guys will start yelling or talking around me, except that they are only just moving their lips and mouthing the words, not actually speaking,” said Diaz, suppressing a chuckle, but unable to hide a growing smile. “A couple of times I’ve had to do a double-take, thinking my ears were messing with me again. That’s just Marines being Marines. I love ‘em for it.”
And that’s exactly the reason his Marines say they “sometimes mess with Corporal Diaz,” noted Lance Cpl. Michael Ericson, a 1/3 assaultman in Diaz’s unit.
“We wouldn’t do it if we didn’t respect him,” said Ericson, from Larkspur, Colo. “I served in Iraq with Corporal Diaz and I’d follow him anywhere. It’s just our way of showing him that we care about him, that we’re glad he’s still here with us, and that he’s once again leading us in a combat zone.”
For his part, Diaz said he wouldn’t want to be anywhere else but in Afghanistan right now.
“These people need our support,” said Diaz. “When we’re out on patrol, the locals wave at us and throw us the Hawaiian shaka hand sign as a gesture of goodwill. I guess it’s something they picked up from 3/3 or 2/3, but they seem to know that we are from Hawaii. It’s pretty cool. What isn’t cool is that there are enemies here that will kill and terrorize people for being friendly with us.”
But Diaz said he and his fellow Marines are convinced the enemy will be defeated.
“The Afghan people are our friends,” said Diaz. “It’s just that there are pockets of insurgents here, who want to keep the people enslaved both mentally and physically through terror. That is the problem here. We’re gonna fix that problem.”
U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Timothy Long maintains contact with headquarters as he leads a presence patrol to Hor al Bash, Iraq, May 14, 2006. (Defense Dept. photo by Jim Garamone)
Thursday, May 18, 2006
Thu May 18, 12:22 PM ET - Map locates Helmand and Kandahar, Afghanistan, where uo to 105 people were killed in fighting. (AP Graphic)
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, May 18, 2006 – Separate incidents in Baghdad and Mosul led to Iraqi and coalition forces killing or capturing several terrorists operating in those areas. Coalition forces also disarmed a car bomb in Mosul.
Iraqi police and Task Force Band of Brothers soldiers killed three terrorists and wounded 10 others in two separate incidents yesterday in Mosul.
In the first incident, soldiers from 172nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team watched as a group of insurgents began burying an improvised explosive device on a roadway southwest of the city. The troops carefully tracked the movements of each insurgent before engaging them with small-arms fire. The terrorists fled the area in waiting vehicles.
Iraqi soldiers from 1st Battalion, 2nd Brigade, 2nd Iraqi Army Division, and coalition forces identified nine insurgents with gun shot wounds from the engagement at a local hospital. All nine of the men were treated by doctors at the hospital and then detained.
One civilian also was wounded and treated at a local civilian hospital.
In the second incident, terrorists attacked three civilians on a highway outside Mosul shortly after noon. The terrorists chased the civilians' vehicle in two separate cars, firing into it several times.
U.S. soldiers from the 172nd responded to the gunfire and killed all three terrorists in one of the cars. Iraqi police pursued the remaining car until it stopped and the four terrorists fled on foot. Iraqi police captured one terrorist, who was wounded as he tried to escape.
The three civilians, all wounded, were taken to a nearby civilian hospital for treatment.
In other news, an elite Iraqi police unit disrupted terrorist activity in the region when it captured a local terrorist cell leader in a late afternoon raid south of Baghdad May 16.
Members of the Hillah Special Weapons and Tactics unit conducted the operation east of Iskandriyah, targeting Salih Hassan Latif al-Janabi, also known as Abu Sabrin.
Al-Janabi, a local terrorist cell leader, oversees the operations of several other terrorist cells. His cell is responsible for a counterfeit-document and -money network as well as for conducting improvised-explosive-device attacks in the area, U.S. officials said. He also has ties to other known terrorist leaders.
No injuries or casualties were reported from this incident.
Elsewhere the same day, Task Force Band of Brothers soldiers discovered and successfully disarmed a car bomb packed with munitions and explosives in Mosul.
Mosul police officers and U.S. soldiers from the 172nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team secured the area as an explosives disposal team assessed the device. The explosives team safely removed 14 large artillery rounds, a rocket-propelled-grenade warhead, a large gas can, and more than 100 pounds of bulk explosives from the vehicle.
(Compiled from Multinational Force Iraq news releases.)
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American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, May 18, 2006 – One Canadian army officer was killed and three Afghan National Army soldiers were wounded in an operation yesterday in the Panjway district of Afghanistan's Kandahar province. Eighteen Taliban extremists were killed and 26 captured in the operation.
A combined joint task force of Afghan National Police, Afghan National Army and Canadian forces from Task Force Orion conducted the intelligence-based combat operation, U.S. officials said.
The operation, which targeted extremists who had infiltrated a series of villages in Panjway, began before dawn and lasted well into the night.
"The combined force conducted a successful, complex fight synchronizing air and ground forces to bring the fight to the enemy," U.S. Army Maj. Gen. Benjamin C. Freakley, commander of Combined Joint Task Force 76, said. "This well-organized, cooperative engagement was exactly the operation needed to restore security to Panjway, where extremists have been intimidating and threatening the people."
In a statement, U.S. officials said the defeat of the enemy in Panjway is a direct result of the skill, valor and commitment of Canadian and Afghan national security forces. Panjway residents fully supported the operation, encouraging coalition forces to continue the fight to drive the enemy out of their district, officials said in the statement.
"Canadian and Afghan security personnel deployed into the area (Panjway) on the morning of May 17 to conduct sweeps through the areas suspected of harboring enemy forces," Canadian Brig. Gen. David Fraser, commander of Multi-National Brigade South, said. "During the sweeps, Afghan and Canadian troops came into contact with insurgents, those who daily threaten the lives and the livelihood of the local Afghan people."
Canadian forces have identified the officer killed as Capt. Nichola Kathleen Sarah Goddard, of the 1st Regiment, Royal Canadian Horse Artillery.
"Captain Goddard's death was the price today of ensuring that tens of thousands of men, women and children of Afghanistan can have hope that their future will be brighter," Fraser added. "We will not forget her sacrifice."
An unspecified number of Afghan soldiers suffered non-life threatening wounds and are currently receiving treatment, U.S. officials said.
Freakley said the successful operation demonstrates the resolve of coalition and Afghan forces and their commitment to the security and prosperity of the Afghan people.
"This dynamic, complex operation demonstrates that insurgents do not operate freely in southern Afghanistan and that Canadian and Afghan national security forces are fully capable of defeating this enemy wherever they operate," Freakley said. "No sanctuary is too formidable or too remote. These extremists will be defeated at every encounter. Their aims and goals are in direct contrast to the growth and progress of the nation of Afghanistan and the Afghan people will continue to reject their presence."
In other news from Afghanistan, coalition forces conducted a successful operation early this morning that resulted in the confirmed deaths of seven Taliban members near the village of Azizi, in Afghanistan's Kandahar region.
The operation was intended to detain individuals suspected of terrorist and anti-Afghanistan activities.
"These individuals are active members of the Taliban network and have conducted attacks against Coalition and Afghan forces," a U.S. military official said in a statement. "Additionally, they have conducted attacks against Afghan government officials and are suspected of improvised explosive device construction and of training other enemy fighters."
During the course of the operation, Coalition forces killed seven members of the Taliban. An additional 15 to 20 others may have been killed in an associated air strike, officials said.
One coalition member was wounded.
Three of six Taliban-associated compounds may have been destroyed by air strikes as part of the operation, U.S. officials said.
"Effective operations such as these further increase the security and stability of Afghanistan," U.S. Army Col. Thomas Collins, a coalition spokesman, said. "The Afghan and coalition forces will not tolerate attacks against the innocent people of Afghanistan and will continue to pursue terrorists and terrorist facilitators relentlessly until they are brought to justice."
(Compiled from Combined Forces Command Afghanistan news releases.)
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By Jim Garamone - American Forces Press Service
BAGHDAD, May 18, 2006 – More than 80 percent of operations in Iraq currently are being performed either solely by Iraqi security forces or in concert with coalition troops, officials here said today.
In 446 operations during the week ending May 12, Iraqi and coalition forces cooperated in 223, new coalition spokesman Army Maj. Gen. William Caldwell said in his first press briefing. Iraqi army or police forces handled almost a third -- or 139 operations -- on their own. Coalition forces performed 84 operations -- 19 percent -- alone during the week.
Even Iraqi forces operating alone still need coalition help in logistics, transportation, close-air support, and medical assistance, said Caldwell, Multinational Force Iraq's deputy chief of staff for strategic effects.
"We know we have challenges still with logistics and resupply and the like for Iraqi security forces," he said. "But we do have forces that are organized, that are trained, that are able to go out there and operate independently."
Caldwell replaced Army Maj. Gen. Rick Lynch in the job.
The general said he was encouraged by the growing use of the Baghdad tip line, adding that almost 70 percent of the tips received from Iraqis are "effective."
He pointed to a recent operation in Baghdad as an example of how Iraqi forces are maturing. During the operation, U.S. and Iraqi troops responded when three men in a van fired on them. The van fled to the Abu Abbas mosque in southern Baghdad, where the men jumped out of the van and ran onto the mosque compound.
American troops from 1st Battalion, 87th Infantry, 10th Mountain Division, and Iraqi troops from the 6th Division searched the van and found it loaded with weapons. "So clearly, these are anti-coalition personnel who ran into the compound," Caldwell said.
The Iraqi forces gained permission from the imam to enter the mosque compound, escorted by local officials. They found guns, grenades, rocket-propelled grenades and RPG launchers, mines, TNT, artillery rounds, bombs, and other ordnance used for making improvised explosive devices, and 11 military-age men in the compound. The forces detained nine of the men.
"The good thing about this operation was they pursued a van; they didn't just go shooting up the neighborhood, went into the van and found something in it, which gave them probable cause to continue searching. They dealt with local officials; they didn't just go bursting into the mosque area. They were escorted there by somebody, and they treated the place with dignity and respect, and they accomplished the mission," Caldwell said of the Iraqi forces involved.
In another operation in southwestern Baghdad, Iraqi police captured Abu Jebril, leader of an al Qaeda in Iraq cell and an expert in car bombs. Iraqi police also captured two of the man's associates and confiscated about 500 pounds of ammonium nitrate and black powder.
The important thing in both these operations, Caldwell said, is that Iraqi forces took the lead. "You'd expect that to happen," he said. "And it is."
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