2-149 mobilizes at Ft. Sill for Iraq tour
Delta 2-149 Aviation Maintenance Company's arrival at Fort Sill in early June began with a ritual well known to every Soldier. Reminiscent of basic training days we formed long lines for a hot uncomfortable day to be issued new go-to-war personal gear. The pace was fast and furious and at the end of the line we had two duffle bags of clothing and armor and a backpack containing a sleeping bag, odds and ends accessories, and a camel back hydration system. The equipment is of the most recent available styles and models. The modern body armor is heavy with add-on insertable ballistic plates.
The new advanced-combat-helmet is a welcome replacement over the outgoing Kevlar helmet. One oddity of the day was the receipt of cold weather gear….fleece, overalls and gloves. It will get cold in Iraq one day. Back at the billets our bags are everywhere stuffed under bunks and stacked into corners of our crowded rooms.
A second day was allotted for reviews of each Soldier's information relating to medical history, finances, family matters, and administrative data. Every Soldier must be paid, powers of attorney and wills arranged, family support lines of communication established, and credit and entitlements for this tour of duty provided. The not-so-fun part involved vaccinations. Anthrax, typhoid, small pox shots were the order of the day for most recipients and the TB bubble-under-the-skin shot given to all and examined for negative reactions a couple of days later. The small pox shots left large gruesome blisters that were slow to heal.
We are settled into a work routine with the day and night crews of Delta Company turning wrenches on the 34th Brigade's helicopters. Tools, special equipment, and aircraft parts are stored in mil vans shipped from home stations to this large multi-state organization. After working together for the first time under the guidance of the Brigade staff at this temporary training site we are making the mistakes we should be making at the early stage of the game. Better here than over there. Soon all our equipment and the flight company's helicopters will be packed aboard ship and transferred through the Suez canal to Kuwait and onward to Iraq.
Fort Sill is a particularly attractive Army post. We are garrisoned in an older area that consists of well maintained historic two and three story quarters and barracks. The buildings are of large proportion and topped with red tile roofs. They speak of a time past. Massive entrance doors are in the style of old European architecture. A large vista of cut grass expands out from our barracks and offers a short walk to the main post PX and commissary. A walk across the grounds finds us accompanied by swallows crossing our paths as we flush out insects for their supper.
Air Force trainer jets fly into the Houston Post Army Airfield where we work. They can be seen with their landing gear down as they approach the runway.flying in front of our barracks at a comfortable distance but close enough to wish we were young and in the cockpit.
Our own helicopters, Blackhawks and Chinooks, fly all day and into the early morning hours. Delta Company is tasked to maintain the three company fleet and keep them in a safe and reliable state. The crews will not worry about the quality of our maintenance while on their inherently risky missions in the OIF theater. All our maintainer skills are required to keep the aircraft in a wartime readiness posture.
Day crews sweat in hot hangars and out on the flight line. A nice breeze is a welcome visitor in the hangar. Night crews are privy to the Oklahoma displays of lightning. Winks and flashes on the dark horizon signal the approach of native storms. When that happens all available hangar parking slots are quickly filled and those helicopters remaining on the line are secured and anchored. These helicopters are national assets and are treated as such. We ourselves are national assets.
By Chief Warrant Officer 4 Walter Payne, D 2-149 Public Affairs Rep., June 23, 2008 |
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