Army. Active First program offers up to $60,000 in bonuses

Transcription

1

2 Army Active First program offers up to $60,000 in bonuses WASHINGTON A new Army program dubbed Active First promises up to $60,000 in bonuses to recruits who opt for 30-to- 48 months of active duty then transfer to the National Guard. Recruits who sign on under the program receive $20,000 for 30 months of active-duty service, $30,000 for 36 months and $40,000 for 48 months all paid after completion of basic and job training. After active service, Soldiers may opt to re-enlist in the active Army or take an additional $20,000 to serve their remaining obligation in the National Guard. Active-duty Soldiers already have a service obligation through the Individual Ready Reserve, for which they are not paid but may be recalled to active service. As of Oct. 23, 43 applicants had signed up for the program, according to National Guard Bureau spokesperson Army Lt. Col. Ellen Krenke. The huge benefit we re getting out of it is we know we re go- ing to have Soldiers come back to us three or four years down the road, highly skilled and with a lot of experience, said Army Sgt. Timothy Bilbrey, who trains Virginia National Guard enlistees awaiting shipment to basic training. Some of those Soldiers will be able to fill squad-leader and even platoon-sergeant slots, depending on how quickly they move up the ranks, Bilbrey added. It s also great for the enlistee because he or she gets all the benefits of going active duty, along with up to a $40,000 sign-in bonus, then another $20,000 upon coming back to the Guard, he said. Pvt. John Weaver of Phillipsburg, Mo., walked into a recruiting station early this month with plans to join the regular Army, but liked what recruiters told him about Active First. This way, when I get to my Guard unit after serving a few years in the regular Army, I ll have had more day-to-day military experience, said Weaver, who also chose the 48-month activeservice option. The program helps active-duty recruiting efforts because both active-duty and National Guard recruiters can offer the program, said Bilbrey. It serves the National Guard and the regular Army, he said. Many active-duty Soldiers traditionally move to the Guard after their enlistments. About 3,700 active-duty Soldiers transferred to the Guard after completing active-service obligations in fiscal 2007, according to Krenke, who added that numbers are usually higher but have dropped with the increase in deployments for Guard units. For more information about Active First go to GO-GUARD.com.

3 Freedom Watch Staff Commander Air Force Maj. Elizabeth Ortiz NCOIC Tech. Sgt. Aaron Cram Print Chief Air Force Staff Sgt. Daniel Bellis Editor Air Force Staff Sgt. Sarah Gregory Staff Writer Senior Airman Christine Collier Freedom Watch Nov, Visit the CJTF-82 Web site at Freedom Watch is a weekly publication of Combined Joint Task Force-82. CJTF-82 Commander Army Maj. Gen. David M. Rodriguez RC East Public Affairs Officer Army Lt. Col. David A. Accetta Freedom Watch, a Department of Defense publication, is produced each Monday by the American Forces Network Afghanistan Print Section, Bldg. 415, Room 205 at Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan. Printed circulation is 5,000 copies per week. In accordance with DoD Instruction , this DoD newspaper is an authorized publication for members of the U.S. military overseas. Contents of the Freedom Watch are not necessarily the official view of, or endorsed by, the U.S. government or the Department of Defense. Deadline for submissions is noon local each Friday. All submissions are subject to editing by the AFN-A Print Section. We can be reached at DSN COVER: An Afghan National Police officer stands guard on the lookout tower at a police substation near the village of Kolk in the Zhari District of Kandahar Province. The ANP and Coalition police mentor teams escorted ANP Kandahar Province Chief of Police Gen. Sayeed-agha Saquib around various Zhari District police checkpoints. Photo: Petty Officer 2nd Class Brian P. Seymour Standing up Airmen help Afghans start flight medicine clinic Safety dance UAV platoon reaches safety milestone The gift of a smile Kabul troop equips Afghan soccer players with equipment Stocked up Supply troops meet challenges Checking in Kandahar Province chief of police visits troops Get well Independent medical technician treats locals Around Afghanistan Photos from the field BACK COVER: An Afghan girl shows off her finery at an agricultural fair in Kabul. Courtesy photo Freedom Watch Magazine 3

4 Airmen help Afghans stand up clinic By Air Force Staff Sgt. Trevor Tiernan U.S. Central Command Air Forces Combat Correspondent Team KABUL, Afghanistan Like many Airmen around the world, Maj. Mical Kupke s day starts with a brief meeting to plan out the day s events. But that s where the similarity ends. The flight surgeon and her team s day involves mentoring members of the Afghan National Army Air Corps in the field of flight medicine and assisting them with standing up a flight medicine clinic. The major, along with Air Force Capt. Marilyn Thomas, a flight nurse; Air Force Master Sgt. Brian Engle, a public health technician; and Tech. Sgt. Janet Wilson, an aeromedical technician, make up part of the air corps advisor group at Kabul International Airport here. The mentoring process begins with assessing each Afghan Airman s individual ability and skill level, Kupke said. We talk one-on-one with an interpreter just to figure out what someone s knowledge base is and what they know. From there the mentors determine what training or mentoring the Airmen require and what skill they need to improve. The mentors either provide in-depth training according to the task at hand or take a more hands-off approach, merely providing guidance and suggestions as the Afghan Airmen go to work. It s a very dynamic process, Thomas said. We come out here daily and interact with them. Depending on the plan for the day, we ll either do training or we ll mentor and just give them advice and suggestions about how to better manage their clinic. The Air Force team teaches how to safely load patients onto aircraft, how to set up the laboratory, combat lifesaver skills, basic life support, and what Kupke identified as a key priority for Afghanistan s air corps casualty and medical evacuation. We have the No. 2 (ministry of defense) priority for the air corps which is casualty and medical evacuation, she said. So we really had to figure out where their capabilities were with that, and what we can do to help facilitate that from a training perspective. In order to provide the best training possible short of responding to a real evacuation, the Airmen are using all the resources available locally including loading patients onto MI-17 helicopters, coordinating with the Czech Republic field hospital here and working with the medevac unit at nearby Bagram Airfield. Kupke said the clinic s aims to be a stand-alone clinic and have a medical and casualty evacuation capability. We also have to be able to perform flying class physicals that meet Afghan and U.S. standards, she said. We are sending pilots to the United States for training on the MI-17 and hopefully some fixed-wing (aircraft) as well, so they have to meet U.S. standards. Right now the clinic isn t equipped to give them the proper physicals so we have to use U.S. facilities. A U.S.-trained flight surgeon is required to sign off on the flight physicals. Currently that person is Kupke, but she hopes Tech. Sgt. Janet Wilson observes a medical evacuation team as they load a patient onto an AN-32 cargo plane during a training exercise at Kabul International Airport, Afghanistan. Wilson is an Afghan National Army Air Corps medical mentor. Photo: Air Force Staff Sgt. Brian Ferguson to get a U.S.-trained Afghan flight surgeon who will, in turn, train their fellow Airmen. (Our goal) is to train them to do this themselves so basically our job is done, said Engle. The ultimate goal for Afghanistan is for us to be able to step away as the ANA becomes self-sustaining. Engle and the rest of the team are already seeing progress as the Afghan Airmen begin to work more independently. I m starting to step away from some of the stuff that they re doing, he said. They are very smart people and they ve been doing this for 30 years, since the Soviet times, so we re just giving them our perspective. It s really rewarding to see them press on with their own thing and not need us over their shoulder 24/7. Kupke said she has also seen results, especially from the recent opportunity to send some of the clinic leadership to the United States. They got to see the big picture of what an aeromedical program is, she said. For them to be able to come back and prioritize their own needs and to tell me I see what you re talking about is a winner. It s a winner for the ANA Air Corps and a winner for the deployed Airmen. The fact that we re able to bring something to the air corps and help the Afghan National Army build up their structure is very positive, Wilson said. It makes me proud that I can contribute just a tiny portion to that. I think this is one of those things I ll tell my grandchildren about, Kupke said. I ve not had an experience like this, directly mentoring or interacting with host nation members. It s very positive to see how they respond, not just to me, but to us as a team. They re my Afghan family now and I hope that I ll get the opportunity to see them again, she added. 4 Freedom Watch Magazine

5 UAV platoon reaches safety milestone Story and photo by Spc. Gregory Argentieri 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team Public Affairs JALALABAD, Afghanistan The unmanned aerial vehicle platoon of Bravo Company, 173rd Special Troops was recognized by the aviation branch in a ceremony at Forward Operating Base Fenty. During the ceremony, the platoon recieved an Army certificate for operating the Shadow UAV for 1,000 error-free hours. The UAV platoon has flown the Shadow UAV more than 1,500 mission hours since arriving in May. The UAV platoon is expecting the Shadow to fly 4,000 hours in this deployment alone. We ve got battalion commanders sitting in their tactical operations centers, wherever their area of operation is, getting video from our aircraft flying overhead, said Army Sgt. John Fenter, standardization and UAV operator for the platoon. They can see nearly instantaneously what is happening in their area with their eyes. The Shadow UAV is a 375-pound, rapidly-deployable aircraft designed to be the commanders eyes in the sky. These complex systems include air vehicles with modular mission payloads, ground control stations, launch and recovery equipment and communication equipment. The Shadow UAV is a highly effective system designed for tactical purposes, said Fenter. My unit and our equipment are set up for the purpose to be able to jump with the brigade as it moves forward in a mobile war. The Army has used the Shadow UAV system for five years. The Shadows first flew operational missions during Operation Iraqi Freedom in With the Shadow system still being relatively new, the Army has had a lot of heartache keeping birds up, said Sgt. 1st Class Joseph Cuevas, UAV operator and platoon sergeant. There have only been a few units to reach the 1,000-hour mark and beyond. So a 1,000-hour mark has become a really, really big deal in the Shadow community. The maintainers own the bird, and the operators borrow them to conduct their missions, said Fenter. This crew has had zero incidents due to maintenance and has not put down a bird at all. We know they re not going to give us a bad bird. Every 12 hours of flight, the Shadow receives a prop re-torque Army Sgts. Jeremy Squires and Ronald Williams (front), both generator mechanics with the 173rd Airborne Combat Team, Bravo Company, Special Troops Battalion, work to get a Shadow Unmanned Aerial Vehicle off the runway at Forward Operating Base Fenty, Jalalabad Airfield. and a new spark plug, said Army Sgt. Ronald Williams, a generator mechanic. At the 24-hour mark, the Shadow receives a new air filter. Then, after every 50 hours, we break the bird apart to do the engine mount nuts and fuel filter. Williams was chosen by the Army to go to school for the Shadow UAV because the systems run off generators. He has received a special UAV designator for his training and has been part of the platoon for a year. We do two types of missions: an intelligence-gathering mission or an operational-support mission, said Cuevas. A good intelligence case just happened where we were given information from a source that individuals were spotted digging on the side of a road trying to cover stuff up, including their footprints. It was very suspicious behavior and was discovered to be an improvised explosive device. An operations-support mission is when we have troops going outside the wire and the Shadow is airborne, added Cuevas. The Shadow UAV is having a huge impact on this war. Commanders using the Shadow get the biggest-possible intelligence picture and one more tool to preserve lives, said Fenter. PRT Farah funds $1.7 million bridge in Tojg Village Courtesy of Combined Joint Task Force-82 Public Affairs TOJG VILLAGE, Afghanistan Construction is underway for a $1.7 million bridge across the Farah Rud River in Tojg. The project, funded by the Farah Provisional Reconstruction Team, will employ several hundred Afghans for two years. Each year, the Farah Rud River rises approximately six feet, cutting the people in Tojg off from the main road and their farmlands. The nearest crossing is several hours away. Eight-to-10 people drown annually attempting to cross the river. The masonry and reinforced concrete bridge will span 300 meters and rise 12 meters over the center span. The bridge will benefit not only the 10,000 residents of Tojg, but also people from the districts of Shib Koh, Qalay Ka, Lashe Juwain and Farah City. Due to the size and duration of the project, several local contractors joined forces to create a joint-venture company, pooling resources, equipment and manpower for the construction. These companies include Shir Pir Construction Company, Bradaran Noori, Kheyaban Construction Company and Meihan Parwar. By reducing travel time to the city center, this link will enhance economic activity, decrease response times from the Afghan National Army and Afghan National Police and improve access to social services. The link will also extend the reach of the central government, allowing officials to conduct more frequent assessments of the outer districts. This project is right up there with some of the major projects we have done in Afghanistan. It s part of the foundation infrastructure, roads and bridges and dams, heavy infrastructure that allows transportation and goods and services to flow. Projects like this are critical for the functioning of the economy, said Lt. j.g. Stephen Ramsey, Farah PRT engineer. Freedom Watch Magazine 5

6 Air Force Master Sgt. William Whitt passes out soccer balls and gear to local children from the Kabul Youth Soccer League outside the gate at Kabul International Airport. The equipment was donated by supporters from Tennessee, Georgia and California. Whitt s wife, Lea-Ellen, was instrumental in the effort in Tennessee. Photo: Air Force Staff Sgt. Brian Ferguson Kabul troop brings gifts, smiles to local children 6 Freedom Watch Magazine By Air Force Staff Sgt. Trevor Tiernan U.S. Central Command Air Forces Combat Correspondent Team KABUL, Afghanistan Thanks to the efforts of an Airman deployed to Kabul International Airport and supporters back in the United States, 47 local youth soccer players are now better equipped. Master Sgt. William Whitt, a fuels mentor with the Air Corps Advisors Group here, worked with his wife, Lea-Ellen, at Arnold Air Force Base, Tenn., and members of the community there to obtain soccer uniforms and equipment for the team. He said the idea came about after the team s coach, an interpreter working with the Airmen here, mentioned it to Whitt s roommate. I contacted my wife and asked her to ask in the local community around Arnold AFB, he said. We got a lot of help from the folks in the Tullahoma and Manchester, Tenn., areas. But the ball really began rolling when Whitt s wife told a friend s husband, John Wachner, what they were trying to do. Wachner decided he wanted to take this on, so he coordinated with a company out of California called SoccerOne and basically got everything for these kids at cost, which was around $4,000, Mrs. Whitt said. As the children lined up, they each received a backpack containing a brand-new soccer uniform and a soccer ball from Sergeant Whitt and the other Airmen who offered to go outside the wire to pass out the gear. He also handed out goal-keeper uniforms, refereeing equipment, cones, flags and ball pumps to the coach. Everything you can imagine that you would need for a soccer game, said Whitt. Along with the work the members of the ACAG do with the Afghan National Army Air Corps here, Whitt feels getting involved in the local community like this is equally important. This is all part of winning hearts and minds, he said. The military operations and the mentoring and training that we do here are good things and we re on the right path. But getting the local populace on our side with things like this, where we help the community you can t go wrong. After handing out the equipment and stopping for photographs with the children, Whitt was pleased with the result and that he had been part of brightening a few children s lives. They were just happy to get something, he said. The smiles are all the reward you really need. It sounds cliché, but the reality is a lot of these kids don t really have anything. I think every one of them was as ecstatic as they could be. They were genuinely appreciative of what we gave them.

7 Combined medical staff provides quality care Courtesy of Combined Joint Task-82 Public Affairs FARAH CITY, Afghanistan Afghan and American medical staffs recently combined resources to provide quality medical care to the local people. When Army Dr. (Maj.) Elizabeth Lawrance, Farah Provincial Reconstruction Team surgeon, was faced with several hernia operations, she called on a local urology expert, Dr. Rabani, and Rahim, a nurse anesthetist from Farah Hospital to assist. The reason that I wanted this physician here is because he is trained in urology, said Lawrance. There are seven or eight different ways to repair a hernia. When we work together we can compare thoughts and ideas, especially about hernias and hydroceles, and what goes on in this patient population, which is a little bit different than what goes on in the United States. Over a two-day period Rabani, Lawrance and nurse anesthetists Army Capt. Eric Binder and Rahim worked side-byside, performing a hernia operation and a hydrocele on two village elders. We had very good rapport, said Binder, speaking about Rahim. I m interested in field medicine and what we can do if we re out in the field and have to do things. He lives that. He does that every day. I m going to show him some of the techniques we use for general anesthesia. Army Dr. (Maj.) Elizabeth Lawrance discusses the details of a surgical case with Dr. Rabani, a surgeon from Farah City. The two performed surgery together on a village elder. Courtesy photo Rahim has recently returned to Farah City where he works as head nurse in Farah Hospital. I have learned many things from Binder. We discussed the age of the drugs, the contraindication of the drugs and how to use the drugs. That was helpful for me and all the people working in the department of anesthesiology, said Rahim. While the primary function of the forward surgical team at the Farah PRT is trauma support for the International Security Assistance Force and Coalition forces, the staff also provides trauma support to Afghan National Security Forces and medical personnel offer elective surgery to the local populace. There is an orthopedic surgeon, a general surgeon, nurse anesthetists, licensed practical nurses and surgical scrub techs. The team plans to continue joint operations with medical staff from Farah City, exchanging thoughts and ideas as they work to provide quality medical care to the local citizens. Supply team meet challenges, bring fight to enemy By Air Force Staff Sgt. Mike Andriacco 455th Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs BAGRAM AIRFIELD, Afghanistan Keeping aircraft flying and warfighters supplied in Afghanistan is a challenging job, but one done gladly by members of the 455th Expeditionary Logistics Readiness Squadron Supply Flight here. An estimated $50 million in equipment and supplies, everything from aircraft weapon system parts to office supplies, makes its way through the flight every month. Twenty-one Airmen work in ELRS Supply and have the responsibility for managing all supply functions for the 455th Air Expeditionary Wing and eight forward-operating bases, said Senior Master Sgt. Brian Miller, flight superintendent. One of the greatest challenges is meeting the diverse needs of operations throughout the country, Miller added. Nearly $190 million of the more than $200 million in assets maintained by supply is kept in Contingency High Priority Mission Support Kits, which provide essential parts for immediate needs. The kits are primarily used to support aircraft maintainers and any parts removed are automatically replenished from various locations throughout Afghanistan and the United States, said Air Force Staff Sgt. Ivonne Collado, CHPMSK noncommissioned officer in charge. This process ensures maintenance flights have enough parts to keep the planes in the air, despite regular operations in often harsh environments. Miller also added that when it comes to ordering parts, customers should remember that an order can sometimes take longer to arrive if it is a lower-priority asset, as it can get bumped from a flight by a higher-priority part. The experience can be better for everyone if they remember we face logistical challenges and need them to be patient while we do everything we can to get them the items they need, Miller said. Without this process and the supply Airmen managing it, getting the parts to repair aircraft would be very difficult and could lead to grounded aircraft rather than aircraft that are able to complete their missions, Miller said. You can t fly without supply. Freedom Watch Magazine 7

8 Showing suppor Chief of police visits check Story and photos Petty Officer 2nd Cl Brian P. Seymou Combined Security Transition Afghanistan Public Af ZHARI DISTRICT, Afgha Afghan National Police Kandahar Province visited seve tions and checkpoints in the Zh to meet with his troops. Gen. Sayeed-agha Saquib sp speaking with members of his f acquainting himself with devel in one of the most volatile regio country. After serving as chief of pol Province, Saquib was promoted mer to head a more demanding ous region in the country. With many years of experien and in policing, Saquib realizes future of this district, Kandaha ince and, ultimately, the countr primarily on the preparedness a his troops. It was my intention to visit ties today to see how they were see if they needed anything fro see if I needed anything more f said Saquib. I enjoyed seeing officers and letting them know Army 1st Lt. James Payne, Zhari District police mentor team s executive officer, passes out educational materials that help locals provide Afghan and Coalition security forces with information on suspicious activities and objects they may know about. 8 Freedom Watch Magazine

9 t points, troops by ass r Command fairs nistan The chief of ral substaari District ent the day orce and opments ns in the ice in Farah this sumand dangerce in battle that the r Provy depends nd pride of these facilidoing, to m me and to rom them, my police I care about them. This will go a long way, I hope. For members of the Zhari ANP, the visit gave new policemen the chance to meet their leader, ask questions and show what Coalition police mentor teams have taught them. The Zhari PMT, alongside ANP forces whom they ve guided for more than three months, provided security and transportation for the general s tour. This 12-man team is tasked with assessing and training the district police force. Its executive officer, Army 1st Lt. James Payne, believes visits from leadership like this are vital to the morale of younger members of the ANP. To see General Saquib, who is a seasoned leader, looks good and seems to be sending the right message to his men; it sets a good example to some of the privates and recruits-in-training, said Payne. He wants to show them that he gives a damn and wants to see the Zhari District become successful once again. Zhari has not been successful in the eyes of its PMT leaders for some time now. Prior to their assignment as district mentors, this region and much of its police force was controlled by Taliban forces. The Taliban had their thumbs pressed so firmly on the district police that they were unable to provide security and peace for the people whom they serve, said Payne. Saquib knows this, which he says is why he wished to come here. He wanted to reassure his men they are not forgotten. To Payne and other PMT members, that sense of understanding is critical to the development of the ANP. They need a leader to show them what it s like to wear a uniform properly, to follow the lead of their commanders and always take care of the people whom they serve, said Payne. They need a leader to show them what right looks like and I think that that is what he is trying to accomplish. The tour marks the second time Saquib has visited the district since assuming command of its police force. And based on the hopes of PMT leadership, it won t be the last. Left: An Afghan National Police officer leads Army Capt. Hunter Hill and his Zhari District police mentor team down a road off Highway One near Kolk. The kilometer-long march was conducted to clear a safe path of travel for the visiting ANP Kandahar Province chief of police, Gen. Sayeed-agha Saquib. Right: Army Maj. Kevin Shegag, Kandahar City police mentor team leader, peeks around a mud wall near the village of Kolk in Zhari District as the Afghan National Police Kandahar Province chief of police visits leaders at a nearby checkpoint. Freedom Watch Magazine 9

10 Airborne buddies: Friends for life Story and photo by Spc. Micah E. Clare 4th Brigade Combat Team Public Affairs PAKTIKA PROVINCE, Afghanistan Sitting in their turrets manning their guns as tracers whizzed over their heads from all directions, the two Paratroopers knew they always had somebody they could count on: each other. After serving in Iraq together, the two Soldiers couldn t remember how many times they were attacked, but they ve been through it all, thick and thin, for close to three years now. Army Sgt. Damon Bligh and Spc. Rick Crothers, drivers in Company A, 782nd Brigade Support Battalion, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, have served together in the same units since Airborne School in The two drivers were in the same squad while learning how to jump from airplanes, but they didn t really become friends until they ran into each other again at the 19th Replacement Detachment at Fort Bragg, N.C., waiting to receive their unit assignments, Bligh remembers. I saw this guy looking for the (dining facility), he said. And I said, Hey you were at Airborne School, right? Crothers finished. The two hit it off and thought it was fortunate when they were both assigned to the 546th Transportation Company, 1st Corps Support Command. However, it was only a matter of time until they were both sent right into the thick of things. This sergeant major [at replacement] asked us what our jobs were, and I told him we were drivers, Bligh explained. He replied, You re outta here! I seriously thought he meant we were getting kicked out of replacement, but, as I found out, he meant something completely different. Less than two months later, the two were boarding a plane, beginning a deployment to Iraq, an experience neither of them would ever forget. When they first got to Forward Operating Base Sietz in Iraq, they had just set down their bags and had only been at their bunks for a few minutes when they heard the whistle and explosion of an incoming round followed by a blaring alarm. We were just laying there in our bunks, Crothers said, laughing. We just looked at each other thinking, What is going on! We had no idea what to do. 10 Freedom Watch Magazine Army Sgt. Damon Bligh (front) and Spc. Rick Crothers (back), drivers in Company A, 782nd Brigade Support Battalion, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, laugh while walking on base in Paktika Province. A seasoned noncommissioned officer came running in and saw them lying there, and yelled at them to get their gear and get to the nearest bunker. Welcome to hell! From now on, get to the bunkers, he yelled at us, Bligh said. I m just glad I wasn t the only one who didn t know what to do. It wasn t long before the two became accustomed to the almost-daily attacks. When they began to get out on the road more often, frequent firefights became the norm, they said. Some of these situations were stressful, but they were always together on missions, Bligh in one truck, and Crothers in another. After the deployment, Bligh and Crothers watched as their other friends were split up and sent to different units, thinking the same thing was going to happen to them. I got orders for the 82nd, Crothers said. I said See you later Bligh! You re stuck here. Weeks later, Bligh got orders to a different brigade in the 82nd, but soon enough they found out they were both going to 4th Brigade, then to the 782nd BSB and, finally, to Company A. It s happening again, Bligh said he remembered thinking when he saw Crothers name again in his new unit roster. It was a completely different situation than their previous assignment though. This time, they were the ones who knew what was going on, Bligh said. When we first got to the company, there were only 20 of us, but it quickly became 120. Most of them were right out of basic (training), and we were pretty much the only ones wearing combat patches, he said. Crothers, who had trained and qualified on many different weapons systems and had attended armorer courses, was able to contribute much to the new unit. I was giving weapons classes as a (private first class), he explained. So I was able to hand off that knowledge to the other Soldiers in our platoon and get them ready for the upcoming deployment. Crothers and Bligh then deployed to Afghanistan with the 782nd BSB in January, where they ve spent the last nine months in a combat logistics patrol running supplies to far-reaching and isolated bases throughout the southeastern area of the country. This is sometimes a challenging mission, but the deep-rooted friendship of the two Paratroopers helps them get through it, Crothers explained. It would be really tough if [Bligh] wasn t here, he said. He s got a quick comeback for everything. Crothers keeps me sane sometimes being out here, Bligh added. We always have something to talk about, and we joke around about everything. We look forward to getting back home though. By the time they re-deploy next spring, they ll have both been in combat together for close to 25 months. We ve became really close, Crothers said. Being in stressful situations will do that to people. We ve roomed together, bunked together and been to war together, Bligh said. We got to know each other so well, even on days we didn t want to. At home, they plan on getting their families together for barbecues and parties, because their wives have also become good friends as well, the two said. Even though Bligh s time in service is finished soon after he returns from Afghanistan, the fact that the two will no longer be serving together won t dampen their camaraderie, they said. We ll definitely always be friends, Crothers and Bligh said.

11 Bagram tech helps Afghans get well Story and photo by Air Force Staff Sgt. Joshua Jasper 455th Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs KAPISA PROVINCE, Afghanistan Children line the streets during the short ride to the village. Adults with noticeable disabilities and young children who may have never had professional medical assistance look curiously at the visitors, probably wondering why they have come. Despite the lack of professional medical care, one of these visitors has been making a positive difference for local villagers. Tech. Sgt. Joy Flumerfelt, a squadron medical element independent medical technician, works with the 455th Air Expeditionary Wing. Although her main concern is the care of deployed servicemembers, she also provides medical support to local communities. Since arriving in early autumn, she has treated nearly 100 villagers. We [independent medical technicians] function as providers, so we can practice medicine to a greater degree than medics can, said Flumerfelt. Thanks to this capability, Flumerfelt has the opportunity to regularly provide medical assistance to local communities. Since I started, the villagers seem to be a lot more receptive to medical care and supportive of Americans in general, said Flumerfelt. The conditions she has treated have ranged from a simple rash to broken bones and tumors, as on a recent trip to a nearby village. I examined an old man who had a massive tumor across his brow, said Flumerfelt. The tumor was open and had taken his sight on one side. It was hard to imagine how painful it must have been for this man, who had been plagued with this illness for three years. I have been talking with the plastic surgeon on base to see if we can get him the medical assistance he needs. Flumerfelt said the villagers are very appreciative of what she does for them. So much so, she hasn t seen one villager yet who has not thanked her for the assistance she has provided. I am amazed at how simple a life these people live. It makes me realize how easy it can be to take the medical care that we receive back home for granted, said Flumerfelt. I am happy to give these people the assistance they need and I look forward to helping many more before I go home. Tech. Sgt. Joy Flumerfelt, 455th Air Expeditionary Wing independent medical technician, packs up equipment after providing medical care to residents of a small village outside Bagram Airfield. Ariana Afghan Airlines begins flights to Farah City By Gina Gillespie Farah Provincial Reconstruction Forward Media Team FARAH CITY, Afghanistan Farah City is now a regular stop on the Ariana Afghan Airlines schedule. The arrival of the inaugural flight at the Farah airport signalled a new era for development in the province. The danger of driving through Farah Province has kept out many non-governmental organizations and development organizations. Ariana Afghan Airlines coming into Farah is critical in opening the door for development agencies to establish themselves in Farah Province. One of the big issues with NGOs and public investment is accessibility to Farah Province on a regular, recurring basis, and Ariana Afghan Airlines is going to enable that to happen. From a development, capacity building standpoint, the inaugural flight of Ariana Afgan Airlines into Farah is significant, if not profound, said Navy Cmdr. Frank Hughlett, Farah PRT commander. He said the arrival of a commercial airline in Farah is the result of a partnership between the PRT and Provincial Governor Mawlawi Mohideen Baluch. We appreciate our governor helping our people by arranging for Ariana Afghan Airlines to come to Farah, said Haji Abdul Samad, a local businessman. Samad was one of four people to purchase a ticket aboard the return flight from Farah City to Kabul. When we leave Farah City there is a danger of kidnapping. The security situation outside the city is not good, he said. For the inaugural flight, 32 people took the two-hour trip from Kabul to Farah, including the provincial governor and the provincial chief of police. Hangama Sadid, a member of the provincial council, was one of four people taking the flight to Kabul. For the future I hope for ticket prices to drop and for more airlines to fly into Farah. Normally I couldn t afford the price of the ticket, but I prefer to pay a little bit more to be safe, she said. For now Ariana Afghan Airlines will fly into Farah twice a month. The cost of a ticket from Farah to Kabul will be 6,600 Afs, approximately $130. The planes hold 40 passengers. Priority will be given to government officials; non-government Afghans can purchase tickets if space remains. Freedom Watch Magazine 11

12 Multiple companies, ANA soldiers band together to bring the heat down on the Taliban during... Operation Rock Avalanche Story and photo by Sgt. 1st Class Jacob Caldwell 173rd Airborne Combat Team Public Affairs NAR PROVINCE, Afghanistan Under the cover of darkness, Soldiers from Able Company, 2nd Battalion, 503rd Infantry (Airborne), air-assaulted approximately three miles south of their forward-operating bases located in the Pech River Valley as one part of Operation Rock Avalanche. Operation Rock Avalanche was a multiple-company mission in the Chapa Dara, Korengal, Shuryak and Pech Valleys. Participating were Able, Battle and Chosen Companies from the 2-503rd, Bravo Company, 1st Battalion, 508th Infantry (Airborne) and multiple companies from the Afghan National Army s 201st Corps. The companies were positioned in different areas of Kunar Province at different times, in hopes of flushing insurgents out of one area into another, where U.S. and Afghan forces would be waiting for them. With a vantage point from 7,500 feet overlooking the Shuryak and Pech Valleys, Able Company s four-day mission was to locate and destroy insurgent command-andcontrol and logistical elements operating in that area, according to Army Capt. Louis Frketic, Able Company commander. After setting up a perimeter and establishing a command post, 2nd Platoon was dispatched to the nearby village of Aybot. Previous intelligence had suggested Taliban leaders might be holed-up in that area. We were looking for two named [highvalue targets]. One of them is the commander of the entire Shuryak forces and the other guy is an IED specialist, said Frketic, adding, We searched their compounds and they were not in there or in the area. Frketic and his paratroopers were not dissuaded. A low-level voice intercept team from Bravo Company, 173rd Special Troops Battalion (Airborne), was tasked to Able Company for the mission. The team had begun listening to Taliban radio traffic and was already getting a bead on the insurgents operating in the surrounding valleys. The team was an invaluable asset one that Frketic uses every chance he gets to collect intelligence on the enemy. A lot of times we will start getting locations and then we will pick up names, said Frketic. It is usually specific to that cell what kind of things they are talking about. Sometimes they will start talking about people, fighters, locations, ammo or weapons systems they have. Even the smallest details, including the specific words used, can yield valuable information, said Frketic. A couple days ago, right before the mission started, we heard a cell talking about their fighters and their leaders in terms of soldiers and officers. Other times, we ll hear them talk about fighters and commanders. The one talking about officers and soldiers: That is a professional organization. Little details like that are very critical in my mind, explained Frketic. With so much Afghan National Army and U.S. military activity on the surrounding mountains and in the surrounding valleys, the Taliban were never sure of Able Company s position and never mounted an attack on the company. The LLVI team used the time to continue to collect intelligence on enemy in the area. The formerly suspected enemy locations were now known. Frketic put that information to use and launched Soldiers from 1st Platoon, Destined Company, into action. The platoon is a heavy-weapons platoon attached to Able Company for the deployment and commonly referred to as the Dragon Platoon. They had air-assaulted onto the ridgeline with MK19 grenade launchers and M2 machine guns. A mortar team with an 81MM tube from Headquarters and Headquarters As far as firing goes, this is handsdown the most intense deployment that I have been on. Army Staff Sgt. Brandon Thomas Company, 2-503rd, was also put in action. Their fire destroyed one command-andcontrol node operating in the Shuryak Valley. But destroying the enemy position was probably the easiest part of the mission for the MK19 gun team, said Spc. David Hooker, a Dragon Platoon member. I ve never air-assaulted in with an MK19 before, said Hooker. But since we just set in and manned a blocking position, it was okay. The weight is the biggest challenge, getting it in and out, he added. The MK19, without the tripod, weighs 75 pounds and the ammo cans weigh between 40 and 60 pounds each, depending on the number of rounds in them. The mortar team, one of the busiest in the battalion, also spent most of the day putting rounds on target. The team averages firing more than 1,000 rounds per month. As far as firing goes, this is hands-down the most intense deployment I have been on, said Army Staff Sgt. Brandon Thomas. While there are Howitzers available for fire missions throughout the Kunar 12 Freedom Watch Magazine

13 Province, the mortar teams are able to react the quickest when indirect fire is needed, said Thomas. We have eyes on a lot of the targets and our response is a little bit quicker, said Thomas. The channels to clear the 155 go all the way through battalion and then back through their fires. Ours are cleared right here. If we are in direct contact, I can engage freely. The number of rounds fired combined with the danger of their job has earned the team the respect of Thomas and the Rock leadership. These guys are awesome, said Thomas. Everybody has been put in for valor awards. The mortar team and the pit in which they work are a favorite target of the Taliban, making it a dangerous job. There is no overhead cover and they stand out there and fire throughout the entire engagement and also in support after by hitting exfil routes, said Thomas. It s pretty remarkable what they do. During the night, Dragon Platoon was flown back to Able Main, but early the next morning, the remainder of Able Company began what would end up a 10- hour trek down treacherous, slippery and steep terrain back to their base. No small feat for even the most fit paratrooper, yet a regular occurrence for Soldiers in Kunar Province. We go on ruck marches into the mountains every other day or every third day, said Army Staff Sgt. Brian Mading, a member of Headquarters Platoon. The first couple are tough. Then, of course, the more you are doing it, the more you get built up, said Mading. The guys that come here right out of basic or other units usually get broke down pretty quick or get into it pretty quick, depending on what their physicalfitness level was before, he added. All the gear these Paratroopers carry is heavy: helmet, protective vests, rucksacks, weapons, ammunition and water. It makes packing before the mission extremely important, leaving little room for extra coldweather gear or even extra food. During the trip down the mountain, the Able Company Soldiers had hoped to drop in on some insurgents the LLVI team had confirmed were hiding out in villages in that area. But none were spotted and no contact was made. That s okay, according to Frketic. Those villages are only a three-to-four hour walk from our base. They ll be getting visits from us again soon. Spc. Cody Martin (left), Army Staff Sgt. Brandon Thomas (center), and Army Sgt. Steven Martin (right) launch an 81MM round from a M252 mortar during Operation Rock Avalanche. The mortar team from Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 2nd Battalion, 503rd Infantry (Airborne), was targeting known insurgent positions in the Pech Valley. Freedom Watch Magazine 13

14 Photos From the Field Medical logistics craftsmen and Afghan National Army mentors Air Force Master Sgt. Doug Suddueth (left) and Army Sgt. 1st Class Antonio Rivas carry a load of medical equipment out of a warehouse. The medical equipment is being transported to a $6.5 million 50-bed hospital on the ANA Hero Camp, outside Kandahar Airfield. Suddueth and Rivas are assigned to the Combined Security Transition Command-Afghanistan, Camp Eggers, Kabul. A team of medical technicians and logisticians from CSTC-A traveled to Kandahar to help ANA medical technicians stand up their new state-of-theart hospital. Photos: Air Force Master Sgt. Jim Varhegyi Afghan National Army Maj. Abdul Ghafar installs an ambulance stretcher in an ANA hospital. The facility is on the ANA s Hero Camp. Ghafar is the ANA s 205th Hero Corps warehouse commander and oversees all logistical support for the 205th. The more than 500 military members assigned to CSTC-A provide mentorship and training to the Afghan National Police to develop a stable Afghanistan, strengthen the rule of law and deter and defeat terrorism within its borders. 14 Freedom Watch Magazine

15 Afghan National Police Capt. Muhammad Ishaq (right) calls out cadence for Afghan National Auxiliary Police trainees during drill practice. The trainees are attending a two week ANAP sustainment course on Forward Operating Base Mehtar Lam in Laghman Province. The course is being taught for the first time entirely by ANP instructors. Prior to this class, all ANP instruction came from a police technical advisory team made up of security forces Airmen assigned to the Laghman Provincial Reconstruction Team. With the start of this course, the PTAT s role has shifted to monitoring the course s progress and mentoring the ANP instructors. U.S. Air Force security forces Staff Sgt. Zachary Osborne (right) listens as Afghan National Police Maj. Muhammad Omar teaches a class on patrol procedures to Afghan National Auxiliary Police. Osborne is assigned to the Laghman Provincial Reconstruction Team police technical advisory team. The two week course is required for auxiliary members to become full-fledged ANP officers. The course was written by PTAT members and approved by the Afghan interior ministry. Laghman is the first Afghan province to have Afghan instructors teaching an ANP course. The ANP instructors are competitively selected and must successfully complete an instructor development course taught at a regional training center. Freedom Watch Magazine 15

16

17