Hello friends,
A quick post this week. The attached video was shot by a military public affairs team way back in October. Supposedly it was to be distributed to television stations in my hometown local viewing area. Since I haven't heard from anybody that they saw it, I'm assuming that it either wasn't shown or was shown at some unGodly hour. Either way, here it is for your viewing pleasure. Please don't laugh too much; I only had one chance.
I want to wish each of you a joyous holiday season, a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Hopefully we'll all be catching up very soon.
Take care,
-Dave
Wednesday, December 23, 2009
Sunday, December 20, 2009
It Rained! ; Holidays
Hey followers,
IT FINALLY RAINED HERE!! A lot, too. Well, for Afghanistan that is. Back on December 9th it rained about a total of one inch. It was a good soaking rain that started in the early hours of the morning (thus, I could not go to the gym, which did not hurt my feelings). The wildest thing is that the rain cleaned off all the dust. It was like the Wizard of Oz - we walked outside and the colors were vibrant. Cars are blue and green and red, not just shades of gray. It was kind of cool for a short while. Then it was just another rainy day. Of course, drainage over here is a problem. Puddles get big and deep very quickly. And some puddles lasted right up until it rained yesterday. I took a few pictures; see below.
For those of you who haven’t heard yet, it appears I’m famous...at least in Boyertown. I did an e-mail interview for the Boyertown Times. Check it out at http://www.berksmontnews.com/articles/2009/12/09/boyertown_area_times/news/doc4b1fc1b1ab5cb090634002.txt
Well, Christmas is upon us. Quick story for you. I was walking back to my room the other night, which takes me across the boardwalk. There are several buildings under construction that have been in various states of completion for months. There is a building at one of the corners of the boardwalk that is made of cinder block with just openings where the doors and windows will go. As I'm walking past, I here "O Holy Night" being played on a saxophone. The acoustics of the empty building gave the sound a lot of volume. I slowed down to hear it better. I didn't want to loiter and make the player self conscious, but I just had to listen. I can't say it was beautiful, because there were a few pops and flat notes, but it still drew me in. The best way to describe it was moving. It made me smile and think of home and Christmas Eve. I hummed the song all the way back to my room.
I am so going to miss Christmas at home with friends and family. But we’re keeping it in perspective here; it is one more milestone in our time here and one more day closer to going home.
I wish you all a safe, healthy holiday season and a very Merry Christmas!
-Dave
IT FINALLY RAINED HERE!! A lot, too. Well, for Afghanistan that is. Back on December 9th it rained about a total of one inch. It was a good soaking rain that started in the early hours of the morning (thus, I could not go to the gym, which did not hurt my feelings). The wildest thing is that the rain cleaned off all the dust. It was like the Wizard of Oz - we walked outside and the colors were vibrant. Cars are blue and green and red, not just shades of gray. It was kind of cool for a short while. Then it was just another rainy day. Of course, drainage over here is a problem. Puddles get big and deep very quickly. And some puddles lasted right up until it rained yesterday. I took a few pictures; see below.
For those of you who haven’t heard yet, it appears I’m famous...at least in Boyertown. I did an e-mail interview for the Boyertown Times. Check it out at http://www.berksmontnews.com/articles/2009/12/09/boyertown_area_times/news/doc4b1fc1b1ab5cb090634002.txt
Well, Christmas is upon us. Quick story for you. I was walking back to my room the other night, which takes me across the boardwalk. There are several buildings under construction that have been in various states of completion for months. There is a building at one of the corners of the boardwalk that is made of cinder block with just openings where the doors and windows will go. As I'm walking past, I here "O Holy Night" being played on a saxophone. The acoustics of the empty building gave the sound a lot of volume. I slowed down to hear it better. I didn't want to loiter and make the player self conscious, but I just had to listen. I can't say it was beautiful, because there were a few pops and flat notes, but it still drew me in. The best way to describe it was moving. It made me smile and think of home and Christmas Eve. I hummed the song all the way back to my room.
I am so going to miss Christmas at home with friends and family. But we’re keeping it in perspective here; it is one more milestone in our time here and one more day closer to going home.
I wish you all a safe, healthy holiday season and a very Merry Christmas!
-Dave
Sunday, December 6, 2009
Light At The End Of The Tunnel
Hey followers,
I hope the Holiday spirit has caught hold of each of you. I can’t tell you how bad I wish I was home. I heard it snowed, too. As of today, I have been here 20 weeks. About six more to go, more or less. The timing depends on when our replacements get here. However, as the title says, there is now a light at the end of the tunnel.
There were more than a few reporters here this past week getting reactions to President Obama's troop surge. A Fox News reporter actually approached me in the lunch line on Wednesday, but I declined to speak, instead pointing him to my fellow airman, LtCol Todd Hirneisen. I hadn't seen or read the content of the President's address, so I wasn't really prepared to comment. (Plus, I'm just a shy person.) Anyway, doesn't Todd go and get on TV! A friend of his saw it in the Glenn Beck show. To think that might have been me. Oh well, opportunity missed.
MSNBC was also here (as was CNN). Follow this link (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/34289318#34289318) to a piece a about Kandahar Airfield (KAF). The reporter talks to Colonel Paul Oettinger, who is the USFOR-A(S) expansion chief. I work rather closely with Col O and see him several times a week in sync meetings. Practically all of the projects you see in construction were programmed and designed by the fine gentlemen on my team, so it’s good to see their hard work is recognized.
I added a recent picture to prove all is well. Also, take note to the very rare overcast skies behind me. It actually rained that day for a few minutes. Rumor is that a real soaking is coming our way this week. Stay tuned.
That about wraps it up for this week. Take care, enjoy the season and stay safe!
Later,
-Dave
I hope the Holiday spirit has caught hold of each of you. I can’t tell you how bad I wish I was home. I heard it snowed, too. As of today, I have been here 20 weeks. About six more to go, more or less. The timing depends on when our replacements get here. However, as the title says, there is now a light at the end of the tunnel.
There were more than a few reporters here this past week getting reactions to President Obama's troop surge. A Fox News reporter actually approached me in the lunch line on Wednesday, but I declined to speak, instead pointing him to my fellow airman, LtCol Todd Hirneisen. I hadn't seen or read the content of the President's address, so I wasn't really prepared to comment. (Plus, I'm just a shy person.) Anyway, doesn't Todd go and get on TV! A friend of his saw it in the Glenn Beck show. To think that might have been me. Oh well, opportunity missed.
MSNBC was also here (as was CNN). Follow this link (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/34289318#34289318) to a piece a about Kandahar Airfield (KAF). The reporter talks to Colonel Paul Oettinger, who is the USFOR-A(S) expansion chief. I work rather closely with Col O and see him several times a week in sync meetings. Practically all of the projects you see in construction were programmed and designed by the fine gentlemen on my team, so it’s good to see their hard work is recognized.
I added a recent picture to prove all is well. Also, take note to the very rare overcast skies behind me. It actually rained that day for a few minutes. Rumor is that a real soaking is coming our way this week. Stay tuned.
That about wraps it up for this week. Take care, enjoy the season and stay safe!
Later,
-Dave
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
Happy Thanksgiving!
Hello friends,
Hey, it's Thanksgiving! As much as I hate being away, it means I'm that much closer to coming home. We've decided to take the day off. Last night was relaxing and fun. We were paid a visit by the "Lt Dan Band", a group pulled together by Gary Sinise, Lt Dan of "Forrest Gump" fame. It was a nice respite from all the harried days. Lucky me, I actually had an opportunity to meet Mr. Sinise and Mykelti Williamson (Bubba from "Forrest Gump"). Check out the pictures below.
I also wanted to take this time to say thanks to each of you for your generous support and encouragement. The funny e-mails, the care packages and the kind thoughts have helped to make this time away more bearable. I’ve come to be a lot more appreciative of the family and friends in my life. I urge each of you to take a moment to consider everything you have to be thankful for. Don’t take your time with family and loved ones for granted.
I hope this Thanksgiving finds you all healthy and happy and is a warm kick-off to a wonderful holiday season. Enjoy the family time and fellowship and – by all means – enjoy the home-made turkey dinner!
Take care,
-Dave
Hey, it's Thanksgiving! As much as I hate being away, it means I'm that much closer to coming home. We've decided to take the day off. Last night was relaxing and fun. We were paid a visit by the "Lt Dan Band", a group pulled together by Gary Sinise, Lt Dan of "Forrest Gump" fame. It was a nice respite from all the harried days. Lucky me, I actually had an opportunity to meet Mr. Sinise and Mykelti Williamson (Bubba from "Forrest Gump"). Check out the pictures below.
I also wanted to take this time to say thanks to each of you for your generous support and encouragement. The funny e-mails, the care packages and the kind thoughts have helped to make this time away more bearable. I’ve come to be a lot more appreciative of the family and friends in my life. I urge each of you to take a moment to consider everything you have to be thankful for. Don’t take your time with family and loved ones for granted.
I hope this Thanksgiving finds you all healthy and happy and is a warm kick-off to a wonderful holiday season. Enjoy the family time and fellowship and – by all means – enjoy the home-made turkey dinner!
Take care,
-Dave
Sunday, November 22, 2009
Bizarre Bazaar
Hello friends,
I hope this post finds you all well. If all goes as planned, I should be heading home in about eight weeks. Hopefully, the Eagles will turn it around and still be playing then. A home playoff game would be perfect.
I haven’t posted in a while because I really don’t know what to talk about. However, it struck me that I have yet to talk about the bazaar. On Saturdays, local merchants come to KAF and set up a bazaar in a small fenced-in area on base. There are lots of items on display: rugs/carpets, black market DVDs, brass vases and other brass sculptures, watches, and other bric-a-brac. I’ve been to the bazaar only three times, but I know folks that never miss it. Some of the more serious shoppers go for the rugs, which can run from $25 to $2500 depending on the size and quality of the workmanship. I have no idea what I am looking at, but you can see some differences. I took the pictures below this past weekend.
The trick to the bazaar, aside from knowing what you are looking for quality-wise, is the haggling. As with most bazaars, the merchants are always calling to you to come see their wares. “Hey, American, you come look, eh? I have some nice things for your wife, eh?” (The shill is universal.) There are kids walking up and down the aisles hawking bracelets and other small items. “Sir! Sir! Look! Only one dollar. You buy two?” Hard to turn away the kids, but the stuff they’re trying to sell is just junk. Anyway, the haggling is just not natural to me; I have a hard time with it. Like back home, I want to walk up, ask what the price is, make a decision and either buy it or not. But these guys expect you to haggle. If I try to walk away, they’ll follow you asking “how much do you pay?” I just keep walking. Some other soldiers really get into it; back and forth, trying to get that last dollar reduction. It can be fun to watch. I have not bought a thing yet, but probably will just to have a souvenir. So, that’s the bazaar.
All else is going as well as can be expected. The weather is getting colder and it actually drizzled today for a few minutes. But, the dust and dirt are always present. Eight more weeks, then I’m outta here.
Take care,
-Dave
I hope this post finds you all well. If all goes as planned, I should be heading home in about eight weeks. Hopefully, the Eagles will turn it around and still be playing then. A home playoff game would be perfect.
I haven’t posted in a while because I really don’t know what to talk about. However, it struck me that I have yet to talk about the bazaar. On Saturdays, local merchants come to KAF and set up a bazaar in a small fenced-in area on base. There are lots of items on display: rugs/carpets, black market DVDs, brass vases and other brass sculptures, watches, and other bric-a-brac. I’ve been to the bazaar only three times, but I know folks that never miss it. Some of the more serious shoppers go for the rugs, which can run from $25 to $2500 depending on the size and quality of the workmanship. I have no idea what I am looking at, but you can see some differences. I took the pictures below this past weekend.
The trick to the bazaar, aside from knowing what you are looking for quality-wise, is the haggling. As with most bazaars, the merchants are always calling to you to come see their wares. “Hey, American, you come look, eh? I have some nice things for your wife, eh?” (The shill is universal.) There are kids walking up and down the aisles hawking bracelets and other small items. “Sir! Sir! Look! Only one dollar. You buy two?” Hard to turn away the kids, but the stuff they’re trying to sell is just junk. Anyway, the haggling is just not natural to me; I have a hard time with it. Like back home, I want to walk up, ask what the price is, make a decision and either buy it or not. But these guys expect you to haggle. If I try to walk away, they’ll follow you asking “how much do you pay?” I just keep walking. Some other soldiers really get into it; back and forth, trying to get that last dollar reduction. It can be fun to watch. I have not bought a thing yet, but probably will just to have a souvenir. So, that’s the bazaar.
All else is going as well as can be expected. The weather is getting colder and it actually drizzled today for a few minutes. But, the dust and dirt are always present. Eight more weeks, then I’m outta here.
Take care,
-Dave
Sunday, November 8, 2009
Acronyms and Military Lingo
Hey there friends!
As many of you know, the military takes great pains to develop and use a system of acronyms to describe just about anything. I thought I’d spell out a few that we use on a regular basis around here. Also, it may serve to act as an interpretation guide once I get home so you know what the heck I am saying. A few of the more common acronyms:
DFAC – dining facility (pronounced dee-fak);
SITREP – situational report;
SA – situational awareness (information about a topic);
RLB – re-locatable building (an 8’ x 20’ unit the same size as a shipping container that can be stacked and configured as housing);
CHU – containerized housing unit (same as an RLB);
OEF- Operation Enduring Freedom;
GWOT – global war on terror;
ISAF – international security augmentation force;
JFUB – joint facility utilization board (the folks who have the power to approve or deny a construction project);
IED – improvised explosive device;
HME – home made explosive;
MHE – material handling equipment;
ANA – Afghan National Army;
NTV – non-tactical vehicle;
FOB – Forward Operating Base;
CSO – Chief of Staff Officer;
NCR - Naval Construction Regiment;
The following are common terms used in general conversation:
JTAM – jump through your ass mission;
Haji – anything pertaining to Afghan or Middle Eastern ownership (technically a term of respect towards any Muslim who has made the pilgrimage to Mecca)
Poopy pants – humorous term used to describe an unknown and unwanted food item in the DFAC line
Inshalla – “if it is Allah’s will” – used the same as when your dad would say “maybe”, actually meaning “no way”
Oxygen thief – used to describe someone who is basically worthless
Embrace the suck – just deal with it
Examples:
“Hey, Sgt Jones, I need some SA on that JFUB package for RLBa at FOB X-ray so I can send a SITREP to the CSO over at the NCR.”
“What the heck is that?” “Some haji vegetable dish.” “Poopy pants?” “Oh, definitely poopy pants.”
Two pics for your viewing pleasure. First is one of (from L to R) LtCol Todd Hirneisen, Maj Nick Lynch and me enjoying a take-out lunch. We are sitting in a little gathering area right outside my office can. The weather has been a lot nicer lately, and we wanted to get away fromthe crouds in the DFAC. The second pic is of a little science experiment we are running. It started back in the summer. One of our Navy brethren was mailed some grass seed for whatever reason. So he planted it and watered it every day. It was slow going at first, but it is taking off now. He went back home in September and we just kept it going.
Take care!
-Dave
As many of you know, the military takes great pains to develop and use a system of acronyms to describe just about anything. I thought I’d spell out a few that we use on a regular basis around here. Also, it may serve to act as an interpretation guide once I get home so you know what the heck I am saying. A few of the more common acronyms:
DFAC – dining facility (pronounced dee-fak);
SITREP – situational report;
SA – situational awareness (information about a topic);
RLB – re-locatable building (an 8’ x 20’ unit the same size as a shipping container that can be stacked and configured as housing);
CHU – containerized housing unit (same as an RLB);
OEF- Operation Enduring Freedom;
GWOT – global war on terror;
ISAF – international security augmentation force;
JFUB – joint facility utilization board (the folks who have the power to approve or deny a construction project);
IED – improvised explosive device;
HME – home made explosive;
MHE – material handling equipment;
ANA – Afghan National Army;
NTV – non-tactical vehicle;
FOB – Forward Operating Base;
CSO – Chief of Staff Officer;
NCR - Naval Construction Regiment;
The following are common terms used in general conversation:
JTAM – jump through your ass mission;
Haji – anything pertaining to Afghan or Middle Eastern ownership (technically a term of respect towards any Muslim who has made the pilgrimage to Mecca)
Poopy pants – humorous term used to describe an unknown and unwanted food item in the DFAC line
Inshalla – “if it is Allah’s will” – used the same as when your dad would say “maybe”, actually meaning “no way”
Oxygen thief – used to describe someone who is basically worthless
Embrace the suck – just deal with it
Examples:
“Hey, Sgt Jones, I need some SA on that JFUB package for RLBa at FOB X-ray so I can send a SITREP to the CSO over at the NCR.”
“What the heck is that?” “Some haji vegetable dish.” “Poopy pants?” “Oh, definitely poopy pants.”
Two pics for your viewing pleasure. First is one of (from L to R) LtCol Todd Hirneisen, Maj Nick Lynch and me enjoying a take-out lunch. We are sitting in a little gathering area right outside my office can. The weather has been a lot nicer lately, and we wanted to get away fromthe crouds in the DFAC. The second pic is of a little science experiment we are running. It started back in the summer. One of our Navy brethren was mailed some grass seed for whatever reason. So he planted it and watered it every day. It was slow going at first, but it is taking off now. He went back home in September and we just kept it going.
Take care!
-Dave
Monday, November 2, 2009
Whirl Winds
Hey there followers! I’ve been having connectivity issues lately, so this blog may be late. I’ve been scratching my head what to write about. Every day is basically the same here. I was looking over some pictures the other day and ran across some of dust devils. You’ve likely seen little ones around home. Like little tornados that kick up dirt and loose paper. Well, over here, it’s a whole different phenomenon. They are huge and really pick up a lot of dust. If you are interested in the science behind them, check out http://www.weatherquestions.com/What_are_dust_devils.htm. The video and picture are of two different whirlwinds I saw at Camp Dwyer back in September. The still shot was taken by someone else on my team when we were waiting for a ride. The video I shot while waiting for a plane. If you look real close at the tent you see in front of me at the beginning has the video, you will see the shadows of the guys I was traveling with. I was walking around stretching my legs when I saw this dust devil forming and heading right for us. While you can’t really get hurt, you will get stung by the flying dust and get dust in every orifice you can imagine. So I grabbed my camera and shouted to the guys to look out. Luckily, the whirlwind skirted around the concrete barriers you can see in the background, so we didn’t get caught up in it. Cool sight, though. You don’t see that very often in Oley! If anyone has any ideas or questions I can answer in this blog, let me know. I’m running out of ideas! Take care and keep in touch! Later, -Dave 
Sunday, October 25, 2009
Hey there followers!
Sorry for the long gap since the last blog. As I tell everyone, we’re pretty busy over here. Still going strong working 14+ hour days, seven days a week for the past 14 weeks. But, we’re over the hump; just around 12 weeks to go. Several things have happened since I last wrote:
- On October 9, I celebrated my 21st anniversary to my beloved wife, Karen. Can’t really say we celebrated – it’s hard to do that when you’re half a world away. But, I still enjoy the fact that she has been my best friend all these years. Without her support and encouragement, this deployment would have been so much more difficult. Being able to call home every so often and sharing e-mails has done so much for my piece of mind. I truly look forward to the next 21 years.
- My son Craig turned 11 on October 21. I can’t believe how fast he is growing up. He is the joy of my life and so much fun to be around. During my semi-weekly phone calls home, he keeps me up to speed on sports. I so enjoy his viewpoints and analysis (he doesn’t think the Phillies stand a chance against the Yankees). He is also a great student. I can’t imagine being more proud.
- The Eagles started the season looking like the team people thought they could be. Then, they lost to the Raiders. Enough said.
Around here, there have been some changes. My team has been folded into a larger unit, now known as the 777 Expeditionary Prime BEEF Squadron (EPBS). Prime BEEF is a pseudo-acronym for Primary Base Expedient Engineering Force. We’re a larger unit and I have been tasked as the Engineering Flight Chief. So I head up the efforts of the engineers, designers, surveyors, planners and construction managers. Accordingly, I have that much more to do.
BUT, that is no excuse for not writing more. I will venture to share more funny stories and other odd things from this deployment. So, stay tuned!
Best wishes,
-Dave
(P.S. – pic below is of me opening a care package from Karen and Craig. Home made cookies!)
Sorry for the long gap since the last blog. As I tell everyone, we’re pretty busy over here. Still going strong working 14+ hour days, seven days a week for the past 14 weeks. But, we’re over the hump; just around 12 weeks to go. Several things have happened since I last wrote:
- On October 9, I celebrated my 21st anniversary to my beloved wife, Karen. Can’t really say we celebrated – it’s hard to do that when you’re half a world away. But, I still enjoy the fact that she has been my best friend all these years. Without her support and encouragement, this deployment would have been so much more difficult. Being able to call home every so often and sharing e-mails has done so much for my piece of mind. I truly look forward to the next 21 years.
- My son Craig turned 11 on October 21. I can’t believe how fast he is growing up. He is the joy of my life and so much fun to be around. During my semi-weekly phone calls home, he keeps me up to speed on sports. I so enjoy his viewpoints and analysis (he doesn’t think the Phillies stand a chance against the Yankees). He is also a great student. I can’t imagine being more proud.
- The Eagles started the season looking like the team people thought they could be. Then, they lost to the Raiders. Enough said.
Around here, there have been some changes. My team has been folded into a larger unit, now known as the 777 Expeditionary Prime BEEF Squadron (EPBS). Prime BEEF is a pseudo-acronym for Primary Base Expedient Engineering Force. We’re a larger unit and I have been tasked as the Engineering Flight Chief. So I head up the efforts of the engineers, designers, surveyors, planners and construction managers. Accordingly, I have that much more to do.
BUT, that is no excuse for not writing more. I will venture to share more funny stories and other odd things from this deployment. So, stay tuned!
Best wishes,
-Dave
(P.S. – pic below is of me opening a care package from Karen and Craig. Home made cookies!)
Thursday, September 24, 2009
FOB Hopping
Hello friends!
Long time, no post. Sorry about that. Time flies when you’re having fun or working your butt off in Afghanistan. Actually, I didn’t have much to write about until recently. Last week I went FOB-hopping, which is to say I went to another FOB (forward operating base) to perform an electrical inspection on some shower and latrine containerized units. Sounds sort of trivial, I know, but with the issues we had in Iraq with shower units, it is necessary that any modifications be inspected. I will tell that story some other time. In order to get to the FOB, we had to fly there. We travelled on a C-130, which is a turbo-prop cargo plane. We were in a time crunch and had to catch the next flight available, so we ended up on a re-fueling mission. It was a Marine owned/flown aircraft and we were to re-fuel Harriers in flight. This is a rare opportunity because the Marines do not like to carry passengers on a re-fueling mission. Safety reasons (at least that is what they say.) So my team (me and my four other airmen) was the only “cargo” on the flight. The only down side was that the flight was 2-hours long, which is at least an hour longer than a direct trip would have taken.
Now many of you may be familiar with the concept of re-fueling aircraft in flight. On large re-fuelers, there is a boom that extends from the tail of the plane and mates up with a fuel port on the trailing aircraft. No big deal. C-130 re-fuelers use drogue shoot fuel lines, which are flexible hoses that are deployed from each wing. Each hose has a small drag chute at the end that pulls the line out and keeps it relatively stable in the air. The aircraft to be fueled have to fly up to the chute and basically stab a re-fueling line into the end of the hose. A bit trickier than the boom method. The other cool thing is that they can re-fuel two planes at a time, which is what we did.
The pictures tell the rest of the story. They were taken out of windows on each side of the plane towards the back. The load masters sit in seats by these windows to monitor the re-fueling and track the gallons transferred. The Harriers were no further that 35-40 feet away. I could easily see inside the cockpit. Kind of cool, don’t you think?
Next blog, I’ll have to write about the dust devils over here. Quite a phenomenon.
Take care,
-Dave
Long time, no post. Sorry about that. Time flies when you’re having fun or working your butt off in Afghanistan. Actually, I didn’t have much to write about until recently. Last week I went FOB-hopping, which is to say I went to another FOB (forward operating base) to perform an electrical inspection on some shower and latrine containerized units. Sounds sort of trivial, I know, but with the issues we had in Iraq with shower units, it is necessary that any modifications be inspected. I will tell that story some other time. In order to get to the FOB, we had to fly there. We travelled on a C-130, which is a turbo-prop cargo plane. We were in a time crunch and had to catch the next flight available, so we ended up on a re-fueling mission. It was a Marine owned/flown aircraft and we were to re-fuel Harriers in flight. This is a rare opportunity because the Marines do not like to carry passengers on a re-fueling mission. Safety reasons (at least that is what they say.) So my team (me and my four other airmen) was the only “cargo” on the flight. The only down side was that the flight was 2-hours long, which is at least an hour longer than a direct trip would have taken.
Now many of you may be familiar with the concept of re-fueling aircraft in flight. On large re-fuelers, there is a boom that extends from the tail of the plane and mates up with a fuel port on the trailing aircraft. No big deal. C-130 re-fuelers use drogue shoot fuel lines, which are flexible hoses that are deployed from each wing. Each hose has a small drag chute at the end that pulls the line out and keeps it relatively stable in the air. The aircraft to be fueled have to fly up to the chute and basically stab a re-fueling line into the end of the hose. A bit trickier than the boom method. The other cool thing is that they can re-fuel two planes at a time, which is what we did.
The pictures tell the rest of the story. They were taken out of windows on each side of the plane towards the back. The load masters sit in seats by these windows to monitor the re-fueling and track the gallons transferred. The Harriers were no further that 35-40 feet away. I could easily see inside the cockpit. Kind of cool, don’t you think?
Next blog, I’ll have to write about the dust devils over here. Quite a phenomenon.
Take care,
-Dave
Sunday, September 6, 2009
Hello friends,
Well, it’s Labor Day weekend. Summer is (un)officially over, football season is about to begin and I’ve been over here for 50 days (as of Sep 6). Everything is heading in the right direction. As much as I would like to be nursing a beer by my pool watching Craig and his friends swim while Karen slaves over the grill, I will be, well, laboring tomorrow. No rest for the weary; we’re working tomorrow as if it is any other Monday. We did have a cook-out tonight, however. Someone organized it and got rolling around 5:00. We decided to call it a day at 5:30 (I called home, so I was in the office until around 6:00) and join the party. Strange having a picnic without any beer in sight, but everyone seemed to have a good time anyway. At one point while standing in line, I overheard a young Army soldier asked “What’s the occasion?” One of his more astute friends replied, “Duh, dude, tomorrow’s Labor Day!” (Far more explicit language was used, but I try to keep this blog at least PG-13). First soldier says “Really!? Wow, I am completely out of sink.” (I know it is “synch”, but I am sure he would have spelled it that way.) So there you have it, another example of how this deployment is like that movie “Groundhog Day”.
Picture is of (L to R) me, Chief Larry Alt and Lt DeJaun Saunders. LtCol Todd Hirneisen took the picture. You can see the smoke from the grills in the background. (No, that is not Tinkerbell on my shirt. Our PT shirts and shorts have reflective decals so we can be seen in the dark. Good thing the Taliban don't carry flashlights.)
I hope everyone enjoyed their summer. Thanks again for all the kind thoughts and, more importantly, all the support. It makes the time away from home bearable.
Until next time,
-Dave
Well, it’s Labor Day weekend. Summer is (un)officially over, football season is about to begin and I’ve been over here for 50 days (as of Sep 6). Everything is heading in the right direction. As much as I would like to be nursing a beer by my pool watching Craig and his friends swim while Karen slaves over the grill, I will be, well, laboring tomorrow. No rest for the weary; we’re working tomorrow as if it is any other Monday. We did have a cook-out tonight, however. Someone organized it and got rolling around 5:00. We decided to call it a day at 5:30 (I called home, so I was in the office until around 6:00) and join the party. Strange having a picnic without any beer in sight, but everyone seemed to have a good time anyway. At one point while standing in line, I overheard a young Army soldier asked “What’s the occasion?” One of his more astute friends replied, “Duh, dude, tomorrow’s Labor Day!” (Far more explicit language was used, but I try to keep this blog at least PG-13). First soldier says “Really!? Wow, I am completely out of sink.” (I know it is “synch”, but I am sure he would have spelled it that way.) So there you have it, another example of how this deployment is like that movie “Groundhog Day”.
Picture is of (L to R) me, Chief Larry Alt and Lt DeJaun Saunders. LtCol Todd Hirneisen took the picture. You can see the smoke from the grills in the background. (No, that is not Tinkerbell on my shirt. Our PT shirts and shorts have reflective decals so we can be seen in the dark. Good thing the Taliban don't carry flashlights.)
I hope everyone enjoyed their summer. Thanks again for all the kind thoughts and, more importantly, all the support. It makes the time away from home bearable.
Until next time,
-Dave
Sunday, August 30, 2009
Pennsylvania Visit
Hey there followers,
Another rather un-eventful week. The temperatures are ever so slightly dropping, but it is still above 100 for the high each day. From what I see in the forecast, we still have a couple of weeks before we dip below that line.
Of note was my lunch last Monday (August 24). There was an e-mail put out looking for servicemen/women from Ohio and Pennsylvania who would like to have lunch with a delegation of Congressmen/Senators from those states. I figured, why not. I got there at 1130, got my lunch and waited. And waited. They were supposed to be there by 1145, but finally showed up at 1215. No big deal; these guys are important. Of course, I had a meeting at 1300 I had to make. As it turned out, the only rep from PA was Senator Bob Casey. I ended up sitting next to him, and we chatted for a while. There were only four of us from Pennsylvania there, so it was a nice talk. He thanked us for our service and chatted us up with all the latest from home regarding the economy and health care. Health care drug out the longest; I think he is trying to sell it. (Full disclosure: I am not political wonk, so I didn’t even know Casey is a Democrat. My Republican friends will probably never talk to me again!) Overall, though, it was a pleasant experience. I shook his hand and thanked him for coming over to see us. Then we took a picture with him. It just so happened that each branch of the service is represented. From left to right in the picture is a sailor is in the Navy (wearing Army ACUs), me in the Air Force, Senator Casey, a Marine Colonel and an Army Colonel. I understand the Senator Casey keeps a blog, but I have not had a chance to see if he updated it to mention Afghanistan. If you check it out, let me know if he mentions me. We’re old friends now.
Later,
-Dave
Another rather un-eventful week. The temperatures are ever so slightly dropping, but it is still above 100 for the high each day. From what I see in the forecast, we still have a couple of weeks before we dip below that line.
Of note was my lunch last Monday (August 24). There was an e-mail put out looking for servicemen/women from Ohio and Pennsylvania who would like to have lunch with a delegation of Congressmen/Senators from those states. I figured, why not. I got there at 1130, got my lunch and waited. And waited. They were supposed to be there by 1145, but finally showed up at 1215. No big deal; these guys are important. Of course, I had a meeting at 1300 I had to make. As it turned out, the only rep from PA was Senator Bob Casey. I ended up sitting next to him, and we chatted for a while. There were only four of us from Pennsylvania there, so it was a nice talk. He thanked us for our service and chatted us up with all the latest from home regarding the economy and health care. Health care drug out the longest; I think he is trying to sell it. (Full disclosure: I am not political wonk, so I didn’t even know Casey is a Democrat. My Republican friends will probably never talk to me again!) Overall, though, it was a pleasant experience. I shook his hand and thanked him for coming over to see us. Then we took a picture with him. It just so happened that each branch of the service is represented. From left to right in the picture is a sailor is in the Navy (wearing Army ACUs), me in the Air Force, Senator Casey, a Marine Colonel and an Army Colonel. I understand the Senator Casey keeps a blog, but I have not had a chance to see if he updated it to mention Afghanistan. If you check it out, let me know if he mentions me. We’re old friends now.
Later,
-Dave
Saturday, August 22, 2009
Ramp Ceremony
Hey followers.
As you have no doubt noticed, I try to make light of the things and circumstances in my life, particularly on this deployment. But this post will be different. Tonight I attended a Ramp Ceremony.
Every time a hero falls in our area of the theater, their bodies are brought to Kandahar and prepared for travel back to the States. For each and every one of the fallen, there is a Ramp Ceremony. There are several every week, which is far more than I care to think about. They park an aircraft, in this case a C-17 (a rather large plane) on the ramp with its tail door open. The “task force” - those of us in attendance - stand in formation on both sides of the path leading to the tail of the plane. Once the ceremony begins, everybody is called to attention. Tonight, there were several hundred servicemen/women in the formation. A military pastor says a few words and leads a prayer. The group is called to present arms, and everyone renders a salute as the casket is carried past the formation on the shoulders of men from the deceased’s unit. Tonight, the soldier was a Green Beret, so the casket was followed by a soldier playing a hymn on the bagpipes. The casket is carried up the tail of the plane and set down in the cargo hold. Taps is played. The colors – the American flag and the Army flag - are retired and the formation marches off the ramp to be dismissed. In all, it lasted about 20 minutes.
As I said earlier, there are several of these ceremonies during the week. The time of the ceremony is based on the availability of the plane and the remains, so they happen at all times of the day or night. The times are distributed via e-mail to all at KAF. I happened to find myself available at the set time tonight and it was recommended that I attend at least one during my time in theater. So I decided to go.
I did not know the fallen soldier. There was only handful of people there who did. I surmised from what the pastor said that he was a medic killed in the line of duty. He is survived by his parents and a sister, so I figured he was rather young. As we were dismissed and I was walking from the area, I noticed a small group of soldiers, all wearing green berets, standing and looking at the plane. So, I stole a look over my shoulder to see what they were looking at. As emotional as the ceremony was, this sight hit me the hardest. There, in the middle of that large cargo area, was a lone, flag draped coffin. The sole cargo for this mission. His friends stayed to watch the cargo bay door close.
I’ve been here in Afghanistan for 34 days. Attending this ceremony was the most worthwhile thing I have done.
Thanks for listening.
-Dave
As you have no doubt noticed, I try to make light of the things and circumstances in my life, particularly on this deployment. But this post will be different. Tonight I attended a Ramp Ceremony.
Every time a hero falls in our area of the theater, their bodies are brought to Kandahar and prepared for travel back to the States. For each and every one of the fallen, there is a Ramp Ceremony. There are several every week, which is far more than I care to think about. They park an aircraft, in this case a C-17 (a rather large plane) on the ramp with its tail door open. The “task force” - those of us in attendance - stand in formation on both sides of the path leading to the tail of the plane. Once the ceremony begins, everybody is called to attention. Tonight, there were several hundred servicemen/women in the formation. A military pastor says a few words and leads a prayer. The group is called to present arms, and everyone renders a salute as the casket is carried past the formation on the shoulders of men from the deceased’s unit. Tonight, the soldier was a Green Beret, so the casket was followed by a soldier playing a hymn on the bagpipes. The casket is carried up the tail of the plane and set down in the cargo hold. Taps is played. The colors – the American flag and the Army flag - are retired and the formation marches off the ramp to be dismissed. In all, it lasted about 20 minutes.
As I said earlier, there are several of these ceremonies during the week. The time of the ceremony is based on the availability of the plane and the remains, so they happen at all times of the day or night. The times are distributed via e-mail to all at KAF. I happened to find myself available at the set time tonight and it was recommended that I attend at least one during my time in theater. So I decided to go.
I did not know the fallen soldier. There was only handful of people there who did. I surmised from what the pastor said that he was a medic killed in the line of duty. He is survived by his parents and a sister, so I figured he was rather young. As we were dismissed and I was walking from the area, I noticed a small group of soldiers, all wearing green berets, standing and looking at the plane. So, I stole a look over my shoulder to see what they were looking at. As emotional as the ceremony was, this sight hit me the hardest. There, in the middle of that large cargo area, was a lone, flag draped coffin. The sole cargo for this mission. His friends stayed to watch the cargo bay door close.
I’ve been here in Afghanistan for 34 days. Attending this ceremony was the most worthwhile thing I have done.
Thanks for listening.
-Dave
Friday, August 7, 2009
Jingle Trucks
Hey there followers,
I hope all is well at home. I've been keeping up with the Eagles via the internet and I see Stewart Bradley (MLB) is out for the year. Well, it never fails; somebody always bites the dust. But, confidence fellow Eagles fans! They will prevail, if only because I am here and will miss the whole season. That’s just how the football gods work.
Anyway, on to Kandahar. Still hot (hasn’t been a day under 100 since arrival), still dusty, still smelly. But, I do seem to be getting use to it all. I’m not really sure if that is a good or bad thing.
The pictures are of what are commonly known as “jingle trucks” around here. They are driven by locals and third country nationals delivering gravel and other goods from destinations afar. Seems there is not a lot of natural beauty in the area, so they paint the trucks to make up for it. I wasn’t sure why they were called jingle trucks until the other day. One was working its way down the street I was walking along, stopping and starting because of traffic (it can get bad on base). Hanging from the front bumper were hundreds of little chains with metal discs hanging at the bottom of them, like those little wind chimes. Start, stop – jingle, jingle. Not something you see everyday back home. Some are more ornate than others. I'm not sure if it is reflective of status or just artistry. If I find out more, I'll be sure to let you know.
Not a lot else going on. Just the same old thing – everybody wants something, and they want it now. Eberybody is top priority! "I have a general with eyes on this project!" There must be a lot of generals out there looking at this base. We try to please, but some folks just need that 2x4 between the eyes. Like the Eagles, we will prevail!
Until next time…
-Dave
I hope all is well at home. I've been keeping up with the Eagles via the internet and I see Stewart Bradley (MLB) is out for the year. Well, it never fails; somebody always bites the dust. But, confidence fellow Eagles fans! They will prevail, if only because I am here and will miss the whole season. That’s just how the football gods work.
Anyway, on to Kandahar. Still hot (hasn’t been a day under 100 since arrival), still dusty, still smelly. But, I do seem to be getting use to it all. I’m not really sure if that is a good or bad thing.
The pictures are of what are commonly known as “jingle trucks” around here. They are driven by locals and third country nationals delivering gravel and other goods from destinations afar. Seems there is not a lot of natural beauty in the area, so they paint the trucks to make up for it. I wasn’t sure why they were called jingle trucks until the other day. One was working its way down the street I was walking along, stopping and starting because of traffic (it can get bad on base). Hanging from the front bumper were hundreds of little chains with metal discs hanging at the bottom of them, like those little wind chimes. Start, stop – jingle, jingle. Not something you see everyday back home. Some are more ornate than others. I'm not sure if it is reflective of status or just artistry. If I find out more, I'll be sure to let you know.
Not a lot else going on. Just the same old thing – everybody wants something, and they want it now. Eberybody is top priority! "I have a general with eyes on this project!" There must be a lot of generals out there looking at this base. We try to please, but some folks just need that 2x4 between the eyes. Like the Eagles, we will prevail!
Until next time…
-Dave
Sunday, August 2, 2009
Sundays in Afghanistan
Hey folks, welcome to another installment. Sunday's are my favorite day here because we go "casual" and take it easier. We still work, but we wear our PT clothes (shorts/t-shirt) and only go to the office for a few hours. Or at least try. I was in for a while today, but I really didn't want to do anything else. I had an electrical issue to straighten out and I caught up on some e-mails. Nobody came knocking on my door looking for something, so that alone makes it a good day. It gives me something to look forward to each week.
A few more pics to share from the Boardwalk. This one is a view of Tim Horton's, which is Canadian for Dunkin' Donuts. (I think Tim Horton is a famous hockey player that got into the coffee/pastry business up north. Take off, eh!)
This is a shot from the corner at Tim Horton's looking down one side of the Boardwalk. Notice the fast food joints.
And here is the American icon, Burger King. I haven't tried any of the food yet. I ordered a diet coke the other day hoping to get a cup with ice and soda, but all I got was a can of soda. Cool at best. What is the deal with no ice around here!
Well, time for bed here in Afghanistan. Take care, stay in touch, and thanks for the kind thoughts/prayers. They are well received.
Later,
-Dave
A few more pics to share from the Boardwalk. This one is a view of Tim Horton's, which is Canadian for Dunkin' Donuts. (I think Tim Horton is a famous hockey player that got into the coffee/pastry business up north. Take off, eh!)
This is a shot from the corner at Tim Horton's looking down one side of the Boardwalk. Notice the fast food joints.
And here is the American icon, Burger King. I haven't tried any of the food yet. I ordered a diet coke the other day hoping to get a cup with ice and soda, but all I got was a can of soda. Cool at best. What is the deal with no ice around here!
Well, time for bed here in Afghanistan. Take care, stay in touch, and thanks for the kind thoughts/prayers. They are well received.
Later,
-Dave
Friday, July 31, 2009
Where I Work
Here are a few pics of where I work. I am located in the bottom brown shipping container (the door is on the other side). You can see the dirt on the door. Bottled water is everywhere and free for the taking. We have a fridge inside, so we move it from a pallet in the sun, to that table there, to the floor inside then into the fridge. So there are packs of water everywhere in different stages of cooling. (Quick side note: I have a serious jones for a fountain soda over ice. There is no ice around here. I mean, we can turn down the fridge and freeze bottled water, but there are no ice machines that I have seen. In the dining halls, the drinks are either in a large refrigerator or in one of those drink machines. Neither can really keep up, so most drinks are cool at best. My kingdom for crushed ice!) There are three of us that work in this office, which is rather tight. Most spaces this size house two folks. I guess I'm just lucky!
Not much else to report. Kind of like that movie Groundhogs Day; each day seems just like the one before. I've adopted a saying over here. When somebody asks how I'm doing, I reply "better than yesterday, but not as good as tomorrow!" It's good for a smile.
Stay safe and keep in touch!
Later,
-Dave
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
More Pictures
As always, its was hectic day. High today was 111; tomorrow is supposed to hit 115. Just anither day in paradise! Oh, and I swear the smell increases with the heat. But, oddly, you start getting used to it. So, we press on and do our jobs. More pictures below.
This is what is called an MRAP, which is what the Army guys use for their patrols. Notice the Transformers emblem. It's a young Army!
Another MRAP with Transformer emblem. These things are beasts!
This is a picture of the hockey rink taken from a distance. It is built in the middle of the Boardwalk. It is used mostly in the morning (games start as early as 0530) and after sunset. Candians use it the most, but I've seen teams from various countires playing there.
So another day done, another day closer to coming home. Missing all those Eagles games is going ot be tough, but I'll find a way to keep up with them. (Of course you know this will be the best season ever!)
Later!
-Dave
This is what is called an MRAP, which is what the Army guys use for their patrols. Notice the Transformers emblem. It's a young Army!
Another MRAP with Transformer emblem. These things are beasts!
This is a picture of the hockey rink taken from a distance. It is built in the middle of the Boardwalk. It is used mostly in the morning (games start as early as 0530) and after sunset. Candians use it the most, but I've seen teams from various countires playing there.
So another day done, another day closer to coming home. Missing all those Eagles games is going ot be tough, but I'll find a way to keep up with them. (Of course you know this will be the best season ever!)
Later!
-Dave
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
Pics from Kandahar
Not much to add to earlier posts. Still hot, still dusty, still stinky. But, hey, it pays well!
Air Force FET - Kandahar. L to R: SMS Dan Sund, Maj Chris Thomason, me, CMS Larry Alt, Maj Peter Keegan, Maj Todd Hirneisen (Lt DeJuan Saunders not available for picture)
The Boardwalk. Notice Tim Horton's on right. A Canadian version of Dunkin Donuts.
And, finally, where I sleep. Doesn't it look comfy!
More pics to come when I get a chance. Thanks for all the kind e-mails and well wishes.
Until next time...
-Dave
Air Force FET - Kandahar. L to R: SMS Dan Sund, Maj Chris Thomason, me, CMS Larry Alt, Maj Peter Keegan, Maj Todd Hirneisen (Lt DeJuan Saunders not available for picture)
The Boardwalk. Notice Tim Horton's on right. A Canadian version of Dunkin Donuts.
And, finally, where I sleep. Doesn't it look comfy!
More pics to come when I get a chance. Thanks for all the kind e-mails and well wishes.
Until next time...
-Dave
Sunday, July 26, 2009
Kandahar, finally
Well, Followers, I am here. I arrived in Kandahar on July 19. Let’s start with the flight in. As you may remember my numerous diatribes regarding battle rattle, this was another fine opportunity to test our mettle. Me and one other person from my team were lucky enough to get seats on a C-130 aircraft with approximately 65 of our Army brethren. I know many of you have never flown on a military aircraft, let alone a C-130. Let me set the scene. There are no seats, per se; they call them jump seats. Similar in comfort to a lawn chair; stretched cloth seat with a webbing back. They set them up along the outer walls and back-to-back down the center of the plane, essentially two rows facing each other. The distance from the front of one seat to the front of another is, I’d say, about 24”. It is very difficult to sit right across from one another; you sort of have to interlock knees. A C-130 will carry about 40 people relatively comfortably – you can get up and move around. We had just under 70 and we were wearing our gear. I had my computer back-pack as a carry on. Most of the Army guys had their rucksack (think back-pack on steroids). It was tight. All I could do was stand up and twist by body to stretch. We were like that for three hours. The approach/landing into Kandahar was quite the ride also. They do a “tactical approach”, which is the closest thing a C-130 can do to dive-bombing. We went into a hard left downward spiral. Thank God for Dramamine! ‘Cause I surely would have lost it.
As I mentioned in some e-mails to folks, Kandahar airfield (KAF) is hot and dusty. Every day since I’ve arrived has been over 100 degrees. It hit 110 the other day. I sweat just standing still. Luckily our office spaces are air conditioned. It is also very dry. With all the vehicles driving around, the dirt is crushed into a powder the consistency of talcum powder. And it gets everywhere. My boots look white, not the nice suede tan. But by far the worst thing here is the smell. The “poop pond” – waste water treatment plant evaporation lagoon - is rather close to the modular housing. Now everybody has smelled poop before, but imagine the stench from over 15,000 people. The plant was originally designed for about 9,000 people, so it is overburdened. At times, depending on the wind and time of day, it’s nauseating. There is a new water treatment plant in the works, but it won’t be on line while I am here.
Our office space is fabricated from some steel shipping containers stacked together. Each has a door and window cut into it and a split a/c unit installed. They are comfortable, but small, so we’re cozy. We’ve been starting at 0730 and go until you’ve had enough, which for the most part has been after 2100 (9:00 pm). There is really nothing else to do. There are gyms and a “boardwalk” which has shops and such - Pizza Hut, Tommy Horton’s, Burger King, and Subway along with some trinket shops. They offer some distractions, but we’re staying busy trying to keep up with the projects around here. I’ll go into that in a future post. I should also have some pictures to post soon. So until next time, take care!
-Dave
As I mentioned in some e-mails to folks, Kandahar airfield (KAF) is hot and dusty. Every day since I’ve arrived has been over 100 degrees. It hit 110 the other day. I sweat just standing still. Luckily our office spaces are air conditioned. It is also very dry. With all the vehicles driving around, the dirt is crushed into a powder the consistency of talcum powder. And it gets everywhere. My boots look white, not the nice suede tan. But by far the worst thing here is the smell. The “poop pond” – waste water treatment plant evaporation lagoon - is rather close to the modular housing. Now everybody has smelled poop before, but imagine the stench from over 15,000 people. The plant was originally designed for about 9,000 people, so it is overburdened. At times, depending on the wind and time of day, it’s nauseating. There is a new water treatment plant in the works, but it won’t be on line while I am here.
Our office space is fabricated from some steel shipping containers stacked together. Each has a door and window cut into it and a split a/c unit installed. They are comfortable, but small, so we’re cozy. We’ve been starting at 0730 and go until you’ve had enough, which for the most part has been after 2100 (9:00 pm). There is really nothing else to do. There are gyms and a “boardwalk” which has shops and such - Pizza Hut, Tommy Horton’s, Burger King, and Subway along with some trinket shops. They offer some distractions, but we’re staying busy trying to keep up with the projects around here. I’ll go into that in a future post. I should also have some pictures to post soon. So until next time, take care!
-Dave
Saturday, July 18, 2009
Tired After Traveling for 20+ Hours
Hey there. We're at the Manas airfield in Bishkek(?) Kyrgyzstan for the time being. We are 10 hours ahead of the east coast. It's 2314 (11:14 pm) here and I am bushed. We traveled for roughly 24 hours, about 16 of that was in the air. Baltimore to Germany to Turkey to Kyrgyzstan. Same plane, but three different flight crews. Tired just doesn't explain how I feel right now; I'm beyond that. My head feels fuzzy and I'm having a hard time reading my own writing. This is as far east as I have ever travelled, so the jet lag is going to be rough for a few days. I should be leaving for Khandahar - my final destination - sometime tomorrow. Everybody is safe and well. Too tired to write any more, so I'll talk to y'all later. Time to go pass out in my bunk.
Take care,
-Dave
Take care,
-Dave
Friday, July 10, 2009
Hello friends,
Well, the hard part is over! Today (Friday) was our last official training day. Tomorrow we reconstitute – clean up and turn in equipment we borrowed, get stuff we need to take with us, clean up the barracks, etc. Everybody was motivated today because the light at the end of the tunnel was very bright.
Yesterday we did dry runs through various convoy situations: driving through a friendly village, driving through a hostile village, returning fire, identifying IEDs, quick recovery of a damaged vehicle, combat life saver on injured personnel, establishing a Medivac landing zone, and other tasks. It was the crawl/walk phase. Today was the walk/run phase. We ran the convoy on a live range, so we used real ammunition and fired at pop-up targets. Now don’t get worried; all the targets were down-range. We were not firing across one another. It was a very controlled training environment and overall good training. It’s almost too bad I’ll never use it, since I will never be on a convoy. But, I can live with that.
Now for some full disclosure. I have a beautiful wife and son that I love dearly and who love me. I have great family support and wonderful friends who I appreciate very much. But today, my favorite person on the planet is the man/woman who decided to put air conditioning in an up-armored HUMVEE. Those vehicles are beasts. They have inches thick armor and bulletproof glass. I’m glad they are available for our troops and I’m sure that if you are being shot at, they are worth every penny. But they are an oven inside. A “black box” for all you engineers. And that air conditioner made it tolerable. It was in the mid-eighties and sunny again. When we did have to get out of the vehicle, we would sweat just standing in place. If you had a task to perform, it was even worse. At one point I could feel the sweat running down the back of my knees (I was on the landing zone marking team). Just miserable for us Air Force folks. But that HUMVEE became a haven (even heaven?) and we couldn't wait to get back inside.
So, as I mentioned, the hard part of Ft McCoy is over. We leave on Monday for Baltimore. Craig and Karen are stopping in for the short time I am there. Then its the long haul; six months in Afghanistan. This may be my last post from state-side and I will try to update it periodically from over there. Thanks again for all the warm wishes. Please keep in touch and I'll be talking to you soon!
Later,
-Dave
P.S. Somebody gave me the pictures below. One of the barracks (that's me in the Eagles cut-off shorts), and one of me firing the crew serve .50 caliber machine gun.
Well, the hard part is over! Today (Friday) was our last official training day. Tomorrow we reconstitute – clean up and turn in equipment we borrowed, get stuff we need to take with us, clean up the barracks, etc. Everybody was motivated today because the light at the end of the tunnel was very bright.
Yesterday we did dry runs through various convoy situations: driving through a friendly village, driving through a hostile village, returning fire, identifying IEDs, quick recovery of a damaged vehicle, combat life saver on injured personnel, establishing a Medivac landing zone, and other tasks. It was the crawl/walk phase. Today was the walk/run phase. We ran the convoy on a live range, so we used real ammunition and fired at pop-up targets. Now don’t get worried; all the targets were down-range. We were not firing across one another. It was a very controlled training environment and overall good training. It’s almost too bad I’ll never use it, since I will never be on a convoy. But, I can live with that.
Now for some full disclosure. I have a beautiful wife and son that I love dearly and who love me. I have great family support and wonderful friends who I appreciate very much. But today, my favorite person on the planet is the man/woman who decided to put air conditioning in an up-armored HUMVEE. Those vehicles are beasts. They have inches thick armor and bulletproof glass. I’m glad they are available for our troops and I’m sure that if you are being shot at, they are worth every penny. But they are an oven inside. A “black box” for all you engineers. And that air conditioner made it tolerable. It was in the mid-eighties and sunny again. When we did have to get out of the vehicle, we would sweat just standing in place. If you had a task to perform, it was even worse. At one point I could feel the sweat running down the back of my knees (I was on the landing zone marking team). Just miserable for us Air Force folks. But that HUMVEE became a haven (even heaven?) and we couldn't wait to get back inside.
So, as I mentioned, the hard part of Ft McCoy is over. We leave on Monday for Baltimore. Craig and Karen are stopping in for the short time I am there. Then its the long haul; six months in Afghanistan. This may be my last post from state-side and I will try to update it periodically from over there. Thanks again for all the warm wishes. Please keep in touch and I'll be talking to you soon!
Later,
-Dave
P.S. Somebody gave me the pictures below. One of the barracks (that's me in the Eagles cut-off shorts), and one of me firing the crew serve .50 caliber machine gun.
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
And Even More Army Training
Hey folks!
I haven't posted in a while because we've been pretty busy. Monday was short range marksmanship. We worked with our M4 rifles firing at targets within 20 meters. There were good guy and bad guy pop-ups - one of each per lane. They were just poster sized photos mounted on cardboard. They do not have an infinite supply, so they re-use the posters. Since the scoring is by hand, they put little squares of tape over the old holes. As you can imagine, the "good guy" posters are immaculate; the "bad guy" posters are covered in these litte white squares. Makes differentiating them a little easier! We shot from several different firing positions (straight ahead, turning to the left/right, walking forward, walking then kneeling, walking to the left/right). Each course of fire did a walk-through first, going through each firing position and literally saying "BANG! BANG!" if the bad guy popped up and "CLEAR!" if the good guy popped up. A very motivated female Army sergeant would announce each position. For example, "Shooters, assume a good and aggressive combat stance for the RIGHT TURN SHOOT!" And we had to echo "RIGHT TURN SHOOT!" She'd then say "SHOOTERS READY!", we'd echo "READY" and the target would pop-up. At the bad guys, we had to fire "controlled pairs", which most people recognize as the proverbial "double tap". So, as I said, each course of fire did a walk through then the live fire. There were five courses of fire, so we heard that wonderful Army sergeant shout out those commands ten times for each position. It got a little monotonous. Those who were not firing were running house clearing drills and troop movement drills. All within earshot of the range. I swear I heard that ladies voice in my sleep! And it was hysterical to watch us Air Force people try to perform a troop movement through a simulated urban environment - moving from building to building. Lots to think about and be aware of - look for cover, who's covering what sector, watch out for doors, duck under windows, etc. We looked like the Keystone Cops out there! Running into each other and walking right by windows/doors. I think the Army guys make us do it just for the entertainment value. So that was Monday.
Tuesday was brutal. We were at the FOB location all day. It was intensely sunny and hot in that battle rattle (temp was in mid 80s). We were outsde for most of the day. We got to the FOB at 7:30. The first few hours was death by PowerPoint in an old maintenance tent. There were 100 of us in a tent roughy 25' x 40'. Luckily we were allowed to remove the heavy stuff and leave it outside, but the inside of the tent got hotter and hotter as the sun got higher and higher. The Army really hammers their trainees. So after sweating in ther for 2+ hours, we were back outside in all our gear walking from station to station for hands-on training. This went on until 4:00. One girl got sick from dehydration; we all got sunburn on those minimal portions of skin exposed - mostly noses, ears and lips. I drank two full Camelbacks, whcih had to be in excess of 1.5 gallons total. When we got back to the barracks, I was soaked through. And as they promised when we first got started wearing the gear, my chest smelled like my feet. Just miserable, and Thursday and Friday look to be the same deal.
Today (Wednesday) was better. We live fired those crew serve weapons I mentioned a few posts ago. We fired the .50 caliber M2, the M240B and the MK19. I've mentioned the 50 cal and the M240B before, so I won't rehash that except to say that firing a real machine gun is prety cool. Th MK19 is essentially a machine gun grenade launcher. It fires 40mm explosive rounds. We fired them from the gunners spot on the HUMVEE. We would load 5 of us in a vehicle and rotate around after each person fired an ammo can of rounds. For the MK19, that was 32 rounds. From inside the front seat positions, you could actually see the rounds go down range. (The tarets were between 400 and 800 meters away.) Then you'd see a little spot of light and a small explosion. The rounds we fired were like flash-bangs, not real fragmentation rounds. Still pretty cool. So we got a chance to take out some agression today. Still a lot of hurry up and wait, though. It took over four hours to get 50 people through.
Time to head out for chow. Army cooking is about as good as high school cafeteria food, which is to say that it is edible and you get used to it, but nothing to get excited about. As I said, tomorrow and Friday look to be rough, so I may not update for a few days. Stay tuned!
Later,
-Dave
I haven't posted in a while because we've been pretty busy. Monday was short range marksmanship. We worked with our M4 rifles firing at targets within 20 meters. There were good guy and bad guy pop-ups - one of each per lane. They were just poster sized photos mounted on cardboard. They do not have an infinite supply, so they re-use the posters. Since the scoring is by hand, they put little squares of tape over the old holes. As you can imagine, the "good guy" posters are immaculate; the "bad guy" posters are covered in these litte white squares. Makes differentiating them a little easier! We shot from several different firing positions (straight ahead, turning to the left/right, walking forward, walking then kneeling, walking to the left/right). Each course of fire did a walk-through first, going through each firing position and literally saying "BANG! BANG!" if the bad guy popped up and "CLEAR!" if the good guy popped up. A very motivated female Army sergeant would announce each position. For example, "Shooters, assume a good and aggressive combat stance for the RIGHT TURN SHOOT!" And we had to echo "RIGHT TURN SHOOT!" She'd then say "SHOOTERS READY!", we'd echo "READY" and the target would pop-up. At the bad guys, we had to fire "controlled pairs", which most people recognize as the proverbial "double tap". So, as I said, each course of fire did a walk through then the live fire. There were five courses of fire, so we heard that wonderful Army sergeant shout out those commands ten times for each position. It got a little monotonous. Those who were not firing were running house clearing drills and troop movement drills. All within earshot of the range. I swear I heard that ladies voice in my sleep! And it was hysterical to watch us Air Force people try to perform a troop movement through a simulated urban environment - moving from building to building. Lots to think about and be aware of - look for cover, who's covering what sector, watch out for doors, duck under windows, etc. We looked like the Keystone Cops out there! Running into each other and walking right by windows/doors. I think the Army guys make us do it just for the entertainment value. So that was Monday.
Tuesday was brutal. We were at the FOB location all day. It was intensely sunny and hot in that battle rattle (temp was in mid 80s). We were outsde for most of the day. We got to the FOB at 7:30. The first few hours was death by PowerPoint in an old maintenance tent. There were 100 of us in a tent roughy 25' x 40'. Luckily we were allowed to remove the heavy stuff and leave it outside, but the inside of the tent got hotter and hotter as the sun got higher and higher. The Army really hammers their trainees. So after sweating in ther for 2+ hours, we were back outside in all our gear walking from station to station for hands-on training. This went on until 4:00. One girl got sick from dehydration; we all got sunburn on those minimal portions of skin exposed - mostly noses, ears and lips. I drank two full Camelbacks, whcih had to be in excess of 1.5 gallons total. When we got back to the barracks, I was soaked through. And as they promised when we first got started wearing the gear, my chest smelled like my feet. Just miserable, and Thursday and Friday look to be the same deal.
Today (Wednesday) was better. We live fired those crew serve weapons I mentioned a few posts ago. We fired the .50 caliber M2, the M240B and the MK19. I've mentioned the 50 cal and the M240B before, so I won't rehash that except to say that firing a real machine gun is prety cool. Th MK19 is essentially a machine gun grenade launcher. It fires 40mm explosive rounds. We fired them from the gunners spot on the HUMVEE. We would load 5 of us in a vehicle and rotate around after each person fired an ammo can of rounds. For the MK19, that was 32 rounds. From inside the front seat positions, you could actually see the rounds go down range. (The tarets were between 400 and 800 meters away.) Then you'd see a little spot of light and a small explosion. The rounds we fired were like flash-bangs, not real fragmentation rounds. Still pretty cool. So we got a chance to take out some agression today. Still a lot of hurry up and wait, though. It took over four hours to get 50 people through.
Time to head out for chow. Army cooking is about as good as high school cafeteria food, which is to say that it is edible and you get used to it, but nothing to get excited about. As I said, tomorrow and Friday look to be rough, so I may not update for a few days. Stay tuned!
Later,
-Dave
Sunday, July 5, 2009
Air Force People Playing the Army Game
Hello fans!
Well, no fireworks for me on the fourth, but we did get the day off, so to say. We had a burger burn at a campground on post. Of course, we still had to wear our PT (physical training) clothes. Slept in until 0730, helped set up the picnic, ate a few burgers, hot dogs and macaroni salad and called it a day. Nothing too exciting, which was good.
Today we were up at 0530 and went until 1700 (5:00 pm). Today's exercise was Base Defense, which included entry control points, vehicle searches, defensive fighting positions, guard towers, etc. Everything the Army does at a forward operating post (FOP), but nothing I will EVER do. Decent training, but somewhat wasted on us. If nothing else, it gave us a look into what the Army goes through.
The first half of the day was a walk through of the basic functions mentioned above. The exercise started after lunch. I was assigned to a guard tower, which turned out to be one of the better places to be. The initial "attack" came right in my sector. A man was firing mortars (simulated, of course) from beside a pick-up truck in a field across from us. They used ground burst simulators, so it got pretty loud. So while I was yelling "incoming", my tower partner - Dan Sund - was taking shots (blanks) at the bad guy. After a few shots, the man fell and played dead. Then we had to up-channel all the information. We picked up the "wounded" and waited for the next attack. There was a "village" (Hollywood prop-like buildings) across the road from the base. Due to its location, my tower was in the best position to see everything; I could see right down the main street. So we stayed pretty engaged throughout the day, passing information up and down the line. It helped the time pass by faster. We had to deal with drive-by shootings, civilians poking at the perimiter fence, roadside bombs, etc. The weather was agreeable, which made it somewhat bearable. (80 degrees, sunny and breezy, which by any other standard would be considered a BEAUTIFUL day. Not at Ft McCoy in your battle rattle.) I never got the chance to shoot my weapon, which suited me fine. I let Dan have all the "fun". Of course, now he has to clean his rifle; I don't. (The Lt Colonel is a little savvy!) I'm not sure if anybody took any pictures, but if I find any, I'll post them soon.
Tomorrow is supposed to be another live fire day, but I'm not sure exactly what is involved yet. But stay tuned and I'll give you all the details in time. Until then, take care and keep in touch!
Later,
-Dave
Well, no fireworks for me on the fourth, but we did get the day off, so to say. We had a burger burn at a campground on post. Of course, we still had to wear our PT (physical training) clothes. Slept in until 0730, helped set up the picnic, ate a few burgers, hot dogs and macaroni salad and called it a day. Nothing too exciting, which was good.
Today we were up at 0530 and went until 1700 (5:00 pm). Today's exercise was Base Defense, which included entry control points, vehicle searches, defensive fighting positions, guard towers, etc. Everything the Army does at a forward operating post (FOP), but nothing I will EVER do. Decent training, but somewhat wasted on us. If nothing else, it gave us a look into what the Army goes through.
The first half of the day was a walk through of the basic functions mentioned above. The exercise started after lunch. I was assigned to a guard tower, which turned out to be one of the better places to be. The initial "attack" came right in my sector. A man was firing mortars (simulated, of course) from beside a pick-up truck in a field across from us. They used ground burst simulators, so it got pretty loud. So while I was yelling "incoming", my tower partner - Dan Sund - was taking shots (blanks) at the bad guy. After a few shots, the man fell and played dead. Then we had to up-channel all the information. We picked up the "wounded" and waited for the next attack. There was a "village" (Hollywood prop-like buildings) across the road from the base. Due to its location, my tower was in the best position to see everything; I could see right down the main street. So we stayed pretty engaged throughout the day, passing information up and down the line. It helped the time pass by faster. We had to deal with drive-by shootings, civilians poking at the perimiter fence, roadside bombs, etc. The weather was agreeable, which made it somewhat bearable. (80 degrees, sunny and breezy, which by any other standard would be considered a BEAUTIFUL day. Not at Ft McCoy in your battle rattle.) I never got the chance to shoot my weapon, which suited me fine. I let Dan have all the "fun". Of course, now he has to clean his rifle; I don't. (The Lt Colonel is a little savvy!) I'm not sure if anybody took any pictures, but if I find any, I'll post them soon.
Tomorrow is supposed to be another live fire day, but I'm not sure exactly what is involved yet. But stay tuned and I'll give you all the details in time. Until then, take care and keep in touch!
Later,
-Dave
Friday, July 3, 2009
Training Exercise Borings...uh Briefings
Hey gang!
Today was mostly boring. It started off as a gaggle, since we were traveling by HUMVEE all day today. We split the entire class (110 people) between 22 HUMVEES in convoys of four or five vehicles. (The picture below is of Major Peter Keegan from my team.) You'd think nobody ever drove in an organized fashion before! Folks crossing paths all over the parking lot, teams getting out of order. Eventually, everything fell into place and we were on our way. We drove to a training location about 15 minutes away and broke off into small groups for training. We were outside in our "battle rattle" most of the day. The weather held at about 80 degrees and sunny - hot, but not too hot. In the gear, though, it drains you.
The most interesting training was tactical clearing of a room. Now we will never do it, and the trainers know it, so they gave us the Reader's Digest version. How to go in as a group of four, take a position of dominance in the space and crossing sectors of fire. Cool stuff. Now I can critique the SWAT teams on television! The pictures below are of a few fellow airmen perfoming the task in simulated spaces (called a glass houses).
Another interesting class was on defeating IEDs (Improvised Explosive Devices). IEDs are those roadside bombs that the insurgency uses to attack military convoys. They come in all shapes and sizes. Those guys really know how to hide a bomb. Many of them are detonated by cell phone; just dial the number and BOOM! Luckily, we now have portable jamming devices that mount on a HUMVEE to overpower the cell transmissions used to activate IEDs. There are other technologies we employ, but I can't get into those here. (Nothing real secret squirrel, but you never know who reads these things.)
We also did some radio training, cultural awareness training, and basic convoy tactics. Again, not much that we - as Airmen - will ever use, except the cultural awareness. We will be practicing base defensive tactics on Sunday. Something we'll never do, but the Army wants us to know. The last picture is of me drinking water from my Camelback during an MRE lunch. MMMM..good!
Tomorrow, the 4th of July, is a day off, so to speak. We are going to have a picnic lunch, but are required to wear our PT clothes. No fireworks for me. So please enjoy the holiday and stay safe!
Later,
-Dave
Today was mostly boring. It started off as a gaggle, since we were traveling by HUMVEE all day today. We split the entire class (110 people) between 22 HUMVEES in convoys of four or five vehicles. (The picture below is of Major Peter Keegan from my team.) You'd think nobody ever drove in an organized fashion before! Folks crossing paths all over the parking lot, teams getting out of order. Eventually, everything fell into place and we were on our way. We drove to a training location about 15 minutes away and broke off into small groups for training. We were outside in our "battle rattle" most of the day. The weather held at about 80 degrees and sunny - hot, but not too hot. In the gear, though, it drains you.
The most interesting training was tactical clearing of a room. Now we will never do it, and the trainers know it, so they gave us the Reader's Digest version. How to go in as a group of four, take a position of dominance in the space and crossing sectors of fire. Cool stuff. Now I can critique the SWAT teams on television! The pictures below are of a few fellow airmen perfoming the task in simulated spaces (called a glass houses).
Another interesting class was on defeating IEDs (Improvised Explosive Devices). IEDs are those roadside bombs that the insurgency uses to attack military convoys. They come in all shapes and sizes. Those guys really know how to hide a bomb. Many of them are detonated by cell phone; just dial the number and BOOM! Luckily, we now have portable jamming devices that mount on a HUMVEE to overpower the cell transmissions used to activate IEDs. There are other technologies we employ, but I can't get into those here. (Nothing real secret squirrel, but you never know who reads these things.)
We also did some radio training, cultural awareness training, and basic convoy tactics. Again, not much that we - as Airmen - will ever use, except the cultural awareness. We will be practicing base defensive tactics on Sunday. Something we'll never do, but the Army wants us to know. The last picture is of me drinking water from my Camelback during an MRE lunch. MMMM..good!
Tomorrow, the 4th of July, is a day off, so to speak. We are going to have a picnic lunch, but are required to wear our PT clothes. No fireworks for me. So please enjoy the holiday and stay safe!
Later,
-Dave
Thursday, July 2, 2009
And now...Weapons Qualification
Hello followers! Sorry for not writing for a while, but it's been a busy few days here. Weapons qualification, Army style. Much more interesting than the boring Air Force qualification course. We began on Tuesday with basic marksmanship training for both weapons. This included how to take down (disassemble),reassemble and function check each weapon (M9 and M4) for malfunctions. That afternoon we went to an indoor simulation range similar to the one for the crew served weapons. We shot the M16 from three different position - prone supported, prone unsupported and kneeling - to practice engaging pop-up targets. The prone positions are difficult because of the body armor. It comes up high on the neck, so when you tip your head back, hte helmet hits the neck guard and stops. So you end up looking more out of the top of your eyes. Takes a little preactice. But, given the state of my knees these days, kneeling was the most difficult for me. But, I still hit 34 out of 40 targets. Not bad for an old Air Force guy!
After that, we went to the actual M9 pistol range. There we engaged popup targets from a standing position. The targets ranged from distances of 5 meters to 25 meters. Kind of hard to miss, but I did miss one; I hit 29 of 30. We were also required to fire undder "limited visibility" conditions, which typically translates to night firing. However, since we are Air Force, we just waited until dusk and put on our shaded ballistic goggles. (It was also overcast, which supposedly helped. Please!) The requirement was to hit two out of five pop-ups - all at the 5 meter range. I could have clubbed the dummy over the head, it was so close. Since the grade was simply go/no-go, we did not get actual numbers, but the guy I was firing with missed twice. Glad he's not on my team.
Wednesday, we had to be at breakfast - in all our gear - by 0600. Slop down some bacon and eggs and head to the M16 zero-ing range at 0630. At the zero-ing range we had to - you guessed it - "zero" our weapon. You have to put 5 out of 6 consecutive rounds in a 2 in diameter circle. We fired in three shot volleys, so this requires a tight shot group of 3 rounds each time and making the proper sight adjustments between. It took me a while to get zeroed with the iron sights (open sights). After that we zeroed our optics, which is a device similar to a scope with a red dot sight. This sets the rifle up so that you do not have to use the iron sights, but simply put the red dot on the target. After zeroing, we headed to the qualification range, which consisted of 6 pop-up targets set at 50,100,150,200,250 and 300 meters. They would "pop-up" for a few seconds and then disappear. You had 20 rounds from the prone supported position, 10 rounds from the prone unsupported position and then 10 from the kneeling position. You have to hit 23 out of 40 to qualify; I got 30. Not as good as the simulator, but not too shabby. Then we had to return at dusk for the limited visibility qual. Just like the M9 the day before, we wor our sunglasses at night (ha-ha) and had to hit seven out of 15 targets, all at the 50 m point. We used tracers every third round, which was kind of cool. You actually cannot see them when you are firing (at least at the close targets), but they are easy to see as an observer. Closest thing we will get to fireworks this week! The cool thing about the optics is that you can fire with both eyes open. Again, just place the dot on the target and pull the trigger.
It was a long 2 days, but its one more major training event concluded. We are now gearing up for STX's (situational training exercises) pertaining to urban warfare and base defense. (Like we'll ever do that!) Today was death by PowerPoint. Hopefully tomorrow is a little more exciting. I will keep you posted.
Thanks to everybody for the e-mails and blog comments. Its always good to hear from the folks back home. I apologize for not being able to respond to each one, but our time on these machines is limited to 20 minute increments (It took me three to get through this blog and some e-mails.) So, until nex time, take care and keep checking back!
Later,
-Dave
After that, we went to the actual M9 pistol range. There we engaged popup targets from a standing position. The targets ranged from distances of 5 meters to 25 meters. Kind of hard to miss, but I did miss one; I hit 29 of 30. We were also required to fire undder "limited visibility" conditions, which typically translates to night firing. However, since we are Air Force, we just waited until dusk and put on our shaded ballistic goggles. (It was also overcast, which supposedly helped. Please!) The requirement was to hit two out of five pop-ups - all at the 5 meter range. I could have clubbed the dummy over the head, it was so close. Since the grade was simply go/no-go, we did not get actual numbers, but the guy I was firing with missed twice. Glad he's not on my team.
Wednesday, we had to be at breakfast - in all our gear - by 0600. Slop down some bacon and eggs and head to the M16 zero-ing range at 0630. At the zero-ing range we had to - you guessed it - "zero" our weapon. You have to put 5 out of 6 consecutive rounds in a 2 in diameter circle. We fired in three shot volleys, so this requires a tight shot group of 3 rounds each time and making the proper sight adjustments between. It took me a while to get zeroed with the iron sights (open sights). After that we zeroed our optics, which is a device similar to a scope with a red dot sight. This sets the rifle up so that you do not have to use the iron sights, but simply put the red dot on the target. After zeroing, we headed to the qualification range, which consisted of 6 pop-up targets set at 50,100,150,200,250 and 300 meters. They would "pop-up" for a few seconds and then disappear. You had 20 rounds from the prone supported position, 10 rounds from the prone unsupported position and then 10 from the kneeling position. You have to hit 23 out of 40 to qualify; I got 30. Not as good as the simulator, but not too shabby. Then we had to return at dusk for the limited visibility qual. Just like the M9 the day before, we wor our sunglasses at night (ha-ha) and had to hit seven out of 15 targets, all at the 50 m point. We used tracers every third round, which was kind of cool. You actually cannot see them when you are firing (at least at the close targets), but they are easy to see as an observer. Closest thing we will get to fireworks this week! The cool thing about the optics is that you can fire with both eyes open. Again, just place the dot on the target and pull the trigger.
It was a long 2 days, but its one more major training event concluded. We are now gearing up for STX's (situational training exercises) pertaining to urban warfare and base defense. (Like we'll ever do that!) Today was death by PowerPoint. Hopefully tomorrow is a little more exciting. I will keep you posted.
Thanks to everybody for the e-mails and blog comments. Its always good to hear from the folks back home. I apologize for not being able to respond to each one, but our time on these machines is limited to 20 minute increments (It took me three to get through this blog and some e-mails.) So, until nex time, take care and keep checking back!
Later,
-Dave
Monday, June 29, 2009
Hey there!
Today wasn't too bad. Crew served weapons was the topic of the day. Crew servced weapons are the big rifles usually carried by the gunner on a HUMVEE. We were familiarized with the M2(50 caliber bullet), the M249 (5.56mm bullet, same as the M16) and the M240B (7.62mm bullet). The M249 and the M240B are very similar in how they are loaded and handled, just a different bullet size. The pictures below are of me handling the M240B. The other pic is of the M2. After the familiarization class, we went to a simulator to fire the weapons. Its really just a big video game, with targets popping up or moving around. The weapons connected are very life-like in feel. They use compressed air and a sound system to give you the feel of the recoil and sound. I was a good shot with the smaller rifles, but couldn't hit a thing with the 50 cal. It has a difficult site to use, or at least I think so.
Today wasn't too bad. Crew served weapons was the topic of the day. Crew servced weapons are the big rifles usually carried by the gunner on a HUMVEE. We were familiarized with the M2(50 caliber bullet), the M249 (5.56mm bullet, same as the M16) and the M240B (7.62mm bullet). The M249 and the M240B are very similar in how they are loaded and handled, just a different bullet size. The pictures below are of me handling the M240B. The other pic is of the M2. After the familiarization class, we went to a simulator to fire the weapons. Its really just a big video game, with targets popping up or moving around. The weapons connected are very life-like in feel. They use compressed air and a sound system to give you the feel of the recoil and sound. I was a good shot with the smaller rifles, but couldn't hit a thing with the 50 cal. It has a difficult site to use, or at least I think so.
I didn't mention it before, but yesterday our class was called DARWARS. Its a computer software package where we were able to virtually move around, drive vehicles and shoot in response to being attacked in a convoy. Exactly like those first-person role playing games that are so popular. The graphics were pretty incredible and we were able to complete many scenarios and then discuss our response. I was the driver for our vehicle, so I had to use a video game steering wheel and foot pedals to drive. I used to fancy myself a video gamer, but I had a real hard time keeping the HUMVEE on the road. I kept oversteering. I also hit what looked like a donkey, which must have ticked off the locals because they started firing on us. After the teaching scenarios were complete, they let us run around in a "compound", firing at each other. Have to admit that was fun.
All in all, things are going well. The weather broke on yesterday and now its in the 70s and breezy - a far cry from the 90s and humidity we had during last week's training. The team is getting along fine and we we are looking forward to finishing this training so that we can get to our location and get to doing our job.
Until next time, take care and keep in touch!
Later,
-Dave
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Just a quick FYI as I pass thru the computer lab. Yesterday after our Combatives class, I saw a scale in the classroom. With everyting on, the total weight was 250 pounds! We figure all the gear weighs around 65 pounds. No wonder my legs hurt. Lots of bruises this morning; felt like I got hit by a truck.
Send e-mail or comment here as you wish. It great to hear from everybody.
Later,
-Dave
Send e-mail or comment here as you wish. It great to hear from everybody.
Later,
-Dave
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Hello viewers!
No pictures today (Saturday), just my ramblings. Today was Combatives, which is hand-to-hand combat. Not like the good old days with rubber knives and pugil sticks. Today's combatives focuses on submissive positions and choke holds. Cool stuff, but exhausting. The class lasted about three hours and everybody was gassed when it was over. As usual with the training here, lots of good info. The down sde to today's training is that it requires a lot of mat time to get the moves down right. We practiced for a while then "battled" each other for a while. We traded off opponents after each round to get a fee for different body types and weights. All the work was on our knees or lower. Once on the ground, with the proper leverage, it really doesn't matter how large/small the opponent is. Everyone got bruised - egos included - but all agreed it was the best class to date.
That's it today from Wisconsin. Stay tuned for more excitement!
-Dave
No pictures today (Saturday), just my ramblings. Today was Combatives, which is hand-to-hand combat. Not like the good old days with rubber knives and pugil sticks. Today's combatives focuses on submissive positions and choke holds. Cool stuff, but exhausting. The class lasted about three hours and everybody was gassed when it was over. As usual with the training here, lots of good info. The down sde to today's training is that it requires a lot of mat time to get the moves down right. We practiced for a while then "battled" each other for a while. We traded off opponents after each round to get a fee for different body types and weights. All the work was on our knees or lower. Once on the ground, with the proper leverage, it really doesn't matter how large/small the opponent is. Everyone got bruised - egos included - but all agreed it was the best class to date.
That's it today from Wisconsin. Stay tuned for more excitement!
-Dave
Friday, June 26, 2009
Hello everybody!
All is well here in Wisconsin. Actually, its damn hot and humid. Seems summer is starting early here. High 80s with what feels like 90% humidity. Take a look at the pics to get an idea of what I look like every day now. The group pic was taken before the haircut. The cut was my choice, but it was a great idea.
I am starting this blog late into the training, but will try to get you caught up here. Lots of great training finised; lots more to go. On Wednesday, we finished four days of Combat Life Saver (CLS), which teaches how to treat a serious casualty on the field of battle. It is not so much a first aid class as it is a “slap a bandage on them and move them out” class. (It was realized after Vietnam that a large percentage of KIAs were a result of bleeding out or airway issues.) This class teaches the basics of tourniquets, nasoesophageal tubes and IVs. And, yes I stuck a needle in my friends arm and started a saline IV. Pretty cool, actually. Wednesday was our test exercise where we simulated treating wounded soldiers. First we had to grab them from the fire zone and drag them to a safe place for treatment. Once there, we laid them out, assessed the damage and treated accordingly while waiting for medevac (simulated, of course). It was hot and we had to wear the full battle-rattle (as seen in the picture).
We also went through HEAT training the other night which is HUMVEE Evacuation Assistance Training. There we sat in a HUMVEE mock-up (see picture) that rolled to simulate a roll-over. After an orientation class, we went in as teams of four (no gunner) and they rolled us over four times. Then we had to egress the vehicle, remembering to take our weapons (fake foam rifles) and other sensitive items, such as a laptop. What a trip! Felt like an amusement ride at first, but once upside down, all hell broke loose. (On the second or third time around a foam ammo can smacked me in the head and bounced my helmet off the window. Thank God it was foam! If it were a real ammo can; I’d be dead.) I was in the front passenger seat as the troop commander. As good as I like to think I am at puzzles, I was completely disoriented once upside down. As always, we had our full gear on, so we weighed about 40 more than usual. I found the seatbelt clasp easy enough, but it wouldn’t let go. So I gave a little pelvic thrust and immediately fell on my head. Imagine a headstand with a child strapped to your chest. Plus, my feet were stuck in the foot well. Not comfortable; amusement ride definitely over. Once I extricated myself from that mess, I had to find my fake rifle and fake laptop. Remember that there were three other guys attempting the same feat, with an Army Sergeant yelling “Egress! Egress! Egress!” at us the whole time. Felt like quite an accomplishment once it was over. Then we got a chance to watch the other victims go through it.
All is well here in Wisconsin. Actually, its damn hot and humid. Seems summer is starting early here. High 80s with what feels like 90% humidity. Take a look at the pics to get an idea of what I look like every day now. The group pic was taken before the haircut. The cut was my choice, but it was a great idea.
I am starting this blog late into the training, but will try to get you caught up here. Lots of great training finised; lots more to go. On Wednesday, we finished four days of Combat Life Saver (CLS), which teaches how to treat a serious casualty on the field of battle. It is not so much a first aid class as it is a “slap a bandage on them and move them out” class. (It was realized after Vietnam that a large percentage of KIAs were a result of bleeding out or airway issues.) This class teaches the basics of tourniquets, nasoesophageal tubes and IVs. And, yes I stuck a needle in my friends arm and started a saline IV. Pretty cool, actually. Wednesday was our test exercise where we simulated treating wounded soldiers. First we had to grab them from the fire zone and drag them to a safe place for treatment. Once there, we laid them out, assessed the damage and treated accordingly while waiting for medevac (simulated, of course). It was hot and we had to wear the full battle-rattle (as seen in the picture).
We also went through HEAT training the other night which is HUMVEE Evacuation Assistance Training. There we sat in a HUMVEE mock-up (see picture) that rolled to simulate a roll-over. After an orientation class, we went in as teams of four (no gunner) and they rolled us over four times. Then we had to egress the vehicle, remembering to take our weapons (fake foam rifles) and other sensitive items, such as a laptop. What a trip! Felt like an amusement ride at first, but once upside down, all hell broke loose. (On the second or third time around a foam ammo can smacked me in the head and bounced my helmet off the window. Thank God it was foam! If it were a real ammo can; I’d be dead.) I was in the front passenger seat as the troop commander. As good as I like to think I am at puzzles, I was completely disoriented once upside down. As always, we had our full gear on, so we weighed about 40 more than usual. I found the seatbelt clasp easy enough, but it wouldn’t let go. So I gave a little pelvic thrust and immediately fell on my head. Imagine a headstand with a child strapped to your chest. Plus, my feet were stuck in the foot well. Not comfortable; amusement ride definitely over. Once I extricated myself from that mess, I had to find my fake rifle and fake laptop. Remember that there were three other guys attempting the same feat, with an Army Sergeant yelling “Egress! Egress! Egress!” at us the whole time. Felt like quite an accomplishment once it was over. Then we got a chance to watch the other victims go through it.
Today (Friday), we had vehicle training. Basically we had HUMVEE driver refresher training. It is a up-armored HUMVEE, so it weighs a ton. (Six tons, actually.) For its size, it drives rather easily. But it is large and the windows are small. You have to use your gunner as your eyes for anything past your side windows. Everybody got a chance to drive and sit inthe gunner hatch. (The pic is not of me, but of friend of mine during the same drivers class.)
So as you can tell, I’m having a blast! (Ha-ha.) Access to a computer with an internet connection is spotty. There is one community center with lots of computers, but also lots of folks waiting to use them. So, accordingly, updates to this blog will be spotty. Comments are welcome, though, so come along for the ride!
Later,
-Dave
So as you can tell, I’m having a blast! (Ha-ha.) Access to a computer with an internet connection is spotty. There is one community center with lots of computers, but also lots of folks waiting to use them. So, accordingly, updates to this blog will be spotty. Comments are welcome, though, so come along for the ride!
Later,
-Dave
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