Photo By Sgt. Danielle Rodrigues | Task Force 14 Detachment I leaves its mark on a blast wall at Camp Arifjan. (Photo by...... read more read more
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FRESNO, Calif. - Soldiers from the 1106th Theater Aviation Sustainment Maintenance Group (TASMG) Task Force 14 returned home in December just in time for the holidays after successfully completing a nine-month mission to Afghanistan and Kuwait.
“Being home in time for Christmas was definitely a treat,” said Capt. Chris Renner, who deployed with the task force. “I’m glad we got everyone home safe. That’s the biggest thing.”
The 1106th TASMG, based at an aviation facility in Fresno, is tasked to perform aircraft maintenance for Army National Guard aviation units in 13 western states.
In February 2013, about 100 soldiers from the TASMG were mobilized into Task Force 14 and deployed to Afghanistan and Kuwait. The task force was assigned to provide depot-level maintenance for two combat aviation brigades (CABs) in theater that were in command of about 400 aircraft. The task force was responsible for repairing aircraft that had sustained damage beyond the level that the brigades could repair on their own.
“Since their first deployment in 2004-2005 as the 1106th Aviation Classification and Repair Activity Depot, followed by another tour in 2009-2010, the TASMG has set a precedent of specialized aircraft maintenance praised by Army combat aviation brigades in combat zones,” TASMG Command Sgt. Maj. Ronald Cabrera said.
During its most recent deployment, the soldiers of Task Force 14 repaired aircraft that were damaged by direct fire, indirect fire, hard landings, normal wear and tear, and at one point, a severe hailstorm that seriously damaged about 80 aircraft.
“If there was complex-type damage to an aircraft, our guys repaired it,” task force Commander Col. Myles Williams said.
The task force was organized into four detachments. Detachment I was assigned to Camp Arifjan in Kuwait. Detachment II, III and IV were stationed in Afghanistan at Bagram Air Field, Kandahar Air Field and Mazar-i-Sharif Air Field, respectively. In addition, a liaison officer was stationed in Kabul.
Williams said being in command of four detachments that were dispersed not only by distance, but by time zones, was a challenge, but they were able to make it work and get the job done effectively.
“Task Force 14 situated themselves and developed a battle rhythm of work, exercise, self-improvement and rest,” Cabrera said, adding that the task force’s mechanics and maintenance test pilots were able to hone their skills during the deployment.
Lt. Col. Bruce Malarky was the officer in charge of Detachment III.
“If an aircraft was shot, we repaired it,” Malarky said. “Three had been shot up through and through while we were at Kandahar.”
Malarky said Kandahar Airfield was hit by 41 rockets during the nine months his detachment was there. Fortunately no one was injured.
On April 23, when the task force had been in country for about a month, a hailstorm hit Kandahar, damaging more than 80 helicopters assigned to the 3rd CAB.
“It was pretty intense,” Malarky said of the storm. “I’ve never seen anything quite like it. Every single aircraft on the ramp was damaged. It was an incredible amount of damage for basically a half hour of hail.”
Repairing the aircraft became a group effort involving several units in theater and back in the United States; however, much of the work fell onto the shoulders of the soldiers of Task Force 14. The task force provided extra manning to get the work done and ensure the aircraft would soon be back in the fight.
“Our soldiers did great,” Williams said. “They were extremely knowledgeable and knew what they needed to do.”
Capt. Joseph Burke, officer in charge of Detachment II, said his detachment’s bread and butter was repairing crash- and battle-damaged aircraft.
“Certain locations had a lot of damage from indirect fire, and there were a couple direct fire engagements on aircraft that we had to repair,” he said.
Burke said the detachment’s machinist, Staff Sgt. Adrian Lizarraga, was able to manufacture many needed parts and special tools that were unavailable or would have taken too long to arrive in country.
At one point an AH-64 Apache attack helicopter was unable to fly because of a missing bracket. The bracket cost about $60,000 and would have taken a long time to arrive. Two soldiers in the detachment, Staff Sgt. Demetrius McCowan and Staff Sgt. Jon Ward, got together with Lizarraga and devised a way to manufacture the bracket on site.
“They manufactured the part and got the aircraft back into the fight within a few weeks,” Burke said. “That was a big deal.”
At Arifjan, Detachment I was responsible for building aircraft engines and electronic components that were in high demand in theater. The detachment worked through summer temperatures that exceeded 120 degrees.
“I had a good crew,” Detachment I noncommissioned officer in charge Master Sgt. Rebecca Calleja said. “They kept busy.”
With just six weeks left in the deployment, the International Security Assistance Force Joint Command in Kabul instructed the task force to shut down its operations at Mazar-i-Sharif and consolidate them at Bagram.
“I honestly did not think it could be done as fast as we did it,” Renner, the officer in charge of Detachment IV, said. “I was extremely pleased with how fast my guys took care of that work.”
Renner said the detachment shut down within 30 days of receiving the order, with all equipment accounted for.
“It was a major muscle movement getting the site cleared of all the equipment, and it happened in a short period of time, but they got it done,” Williams said. “Hats off to my guys.”
Cabrera said he was proud of the way his soldiers performed and how they improved their skills during the deployment.
“Task Force 14 returned home just in time for Christmas having fulfilled another successful deployment, with soldiers better than they were when they left,” he said.
| Date Taken: | 01.29.2014 |
| Date Posted: | 01.29.2014 16:24 |
| Story ID: | 119815 |
| Location: | FRESNO, CALIFORNIA, US |
| Web Views: | 555 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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