Photo By Lance Cpl. Jerrick J. Griffin | Pfc. Brandon M. Bellis, ammunition technician, Ammunition Company, 1st Supply...... read more read more
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MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP PENDLETON, Calif. - - Marines know where the round goes when they pull the trigger, but few know where it comes from.
Every round fired on Camp Pendleton originates from Ammunitions Company, 1st Supply Battalion, Combat Logistics Regiment 15, 1st Marine Logistics Group.
Despite being the smallest Ammunition Supply Point in the Marine Corps, Camp Pendleton's ASP supplies the most ammo to more than 55,000 service members on base.
"Even though it's only eight people working here, they get the job done on time," said David L. Green, the issue coordinator. "It's a challenge to get things done on a really busy day, but the tasks get completed."
Marines with the ASP issue rounds to every unit on Camp Pendleton. Not only do they support Marines, but also Army and Navy units.
The eight Marines that work in the issue and supply section are in charge of taking requests and returns. Everytime a request for ammo is made, it's up to the ammunition technicians to make sure it's passed to the Marines in the storage facilities called magazines.
A normal work day consists of at least 50 to 81 'pulls,' or requests, for ammo. Supplying rounds for requests is a long process for the Marines.
The procedure consists of Marines counting the rounds twice and sending it to records, where they count them again. After that the unit can leave with their requested ammo.
"Counting rounds is the most important part of issuing ammo," said Lance Cpl. Colby J. Keels, an ammo tech with Ammo Co. If there are too many or not enough rounds in the final count, the techs have to go back through records to see where the count went wrong.
While there are rounds being issued, there are rounds being brought back in. After units are done with ammo and, the extra rounds are brought back to the ASP.
The ammo techs of the ASP are kept busy loading and unloading the rounds from seven-ton trucks while counting and documenting every case of ammo received and issued.
"Basically our job consists of keeping the count of how much ammo is in every magazine," said Pfc. Brandon M. Bellis, an ammo tech. with Ammo Co. "It's not that hard to do, except when it's a really busy day."
Every magazine is manned by at least two Marines to reduce the risk of a miscount.
"We make sure that every magazine has at least two Marines to prevent mistakes, by them watching each other and making sure they are doing the job right," said Master Sgt. Edwin D. Diaz, the operations chief for Ammo Co. "Safety is everything around here."
A single person couldn't get the requests issued dealing with so many bullets on a daily basis. To prevent mistakes, Marines count in two-man teams.
"The ammo techs have to use teamwork down there to make sure that all the rounds are counted accurately," said Staff Sgt. Elia Exile, ammo tech, Ammo. Co. "By having [ammo techs] in two-man teams it assures that every count is accurate and it helps speed up the process."
The Marines with Camp Pendleton's ASP don't consider their small numbers a factor in supplying thousands of service members with bullets. Their hard work and dedication ensures that Marines have rounds to put down range.
| Date Taken: | 03.10.2009 |
| Date Posted: | 03.10.2009 18:51 |
| Story ID: | 30977 |
| Location: | CAMP PENDLETON, CALIFORNIA, US |
| Web Views: | 1,133 |
| Downloads: | 354 |
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