Join us today at 15:10 EST as President Barack Obama posthumously awards U.S. Army Specialist Leslie Sabo the Medal of Honor for conspicuous gallantry in Vietnam. (Live)
Blood Screening in Theater
Too much is never enough, especially when it comes to fresh blood supplies in Afghanistan. If you are deployed, or are deploying soon, be sure to have a blood screening test so if the call for blood happens while you are in theater you can donate if need be.
By Sgt. 1st Class Walter Talens, 319th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment
Worth a Thousand Words: Moving into Position
While flying over Colorado a B-2 Stealth Bomber from Whiteman Air Force Base, MO, moves into position for a mid-air refueling via the boom of a KC-135R Stratotanker from the 128th Air Refueling Wing, Milwaukee on 09 May, 2012. The B-2 Stealth bomber and the KC-135 crews conducted the aerial refueling to maintain mission readiness standards. U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt Jeremy M. Wilson (DVIDS)
Wednesday Warfighter: For Instant Morale, Just Add Water
Lance Cpl. Koby Jensen, a water point team member with Support Company, 9th Engineer Support Battalion, 1st Marine Logistics Group (Forward), runs the tactical water purification system at Forward Operating Base Whitehouse, Afghanistan. (Photo by Sgt. Michele Watson)
After a 12-hour foot patrol in the baking heat of the Afghan desert, a shower to wash away the grime and the grit could be the one oasis the Marines and sailors here look forward to upon completing their arduous task.
When Marines from Support Company, 9th Engineer Support Battalion, 1st Marine Logistics Group (Forward) first arrived at Forward Operating Base Whitehouse, the oasis was only a mirage.
Within a few weeks, a team of three Marines turned a forgotten luxury into a reality and organized the construction of shower and laundry facilities for service members at the base.
“When we got here there was nothing,” said Cpl. Tammy La Pierre, the water point non-commissioned officer-in-charge at FOB Whitehouse. “It was basically for the morale of the Marines here with [1st Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment] to provide laundry and showers.”
Nicknamed “Water Dog,” La Pierre was the only water purification specialist at the FOB and had a big mission to fulfill. To help with the task, two Marines from Support Co. joined the “Water Dog” team and received on-the-job training.
Lance Cpl. Bobby Branch, an electrician, used his skills to provide power to the structures after they were built.
“To get the showers up and running, I ran wires from the generator to the power distributor,” said Branch.
The final member of the team, Lance Cpl. Koby Jensen, helped set up the lights for the facilities and the generator. Jensen, a basic electrical equipment engineer systems technician with 9th ESB, also learned the job of a water purification specialist.
With the facilities built, the generator in place and the tactical water purification system prepared, the last item left to get was the water. A few short miles from the FOB stretches the vast Helmand River.
“I do river runs and collect water from the river using a 125 Pump and Dolphin Strainer,” said Jensen, 21, a native of Vernal, Utah.
Ugly Angels Say ‘No’ To Drugs
Staff Sgt. Hugo Paniagua, an Aerial Observer with Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 362 and Brooklyn, N.Y., native, helps Marines from Weapons Company, 3rd Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment, get seated as they board a CH-53D Sea Stallion at Forward Operating Base Delhi, Afghanistan.(By Cpl. Isaac Lamberth)
As the sun rises over Afghanistan, two CH-53D Sea Stallions from Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 362, the “Ugly Angels,” roll down the runway at Camp Bastion, Afghanistan, to await their turn for takeoff.
Their mission will require them to fly to the southernmost end of Helmand province to assist Marines while they search for narcotics and weapons.
Upon arrival at FOB Delhi, the two helicopters pick up more than 20 Marines and members of the National Interdiction Unit (NIU), a specialized Afghan counter-narcotics team. The personnel board the Sea Stallions through a cloud of dust with grim determination on their faces, ready for the day’s events.
In the distance, potential narcotics and weapons smugglers have no idea that Marines and the NIU are about to descend upon them.
“We’re able to get Marines on the ground quickly and potentially catch narcotics in Helmand province,” said Capt. Christopher Lapps, a Helicopter Aircraft Commander for HMH-362.
Lapps says Marines and NIU to destinations that are suspected narcotics supply routes allows them to surprise smugglers and cut off the supply of narcotics and weapons flow at the source, rather than seize them after they have been sold.
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