Courtesy Photo | Senior Airman Jesse N. Gent, a structural journeyman with the 557th Expeditionary Red...... read more read more
Story, photos by U.S. Army Spc. Jeremy D. Crisp
MNC " I PAO
23 November 2005
FORWARD OPERATING BASE QAYYARAH-WEST, Iraq " The sounds of hammers smashing nails, mixed with the whizzing of saws cutting wood, are typical sounds that resonate through the forward Army outpost known simply as Q-West.
Things get built by the hands of construction unit troops on a daily basis. These troops are fish out of water though, yet somehow they swim marvelously.
The 200-plus civil engineering airmen of the 557th Expeditionary Red Horse Squadron are nowhere near an airfield, or are they near any of their Air Force brothers and sisters-in-arms.
"It's just us flying solo, wherever we are," said Senior Airman Jesse N. Gent, a structural journeyman with the Red Horse Squadron. "We're kind of like a contractor, and we support the Army wherever they need us."
"We've had a pretty good gelling of sorts with the Army," said Air Force Staff Sgt. Christopher M. Leonard, a structural craft team leader with the unit. "If they need something built, we'll go build it."
On a six-month deployment, the unit is right at home when it comes to building structures from the ground up.
"We do a lot of bed-down; building quarters for people to sleep in," Leonard said. "We are currently working on a (Morale, Welfare and Recreation) building for the 101st Airborne Division and our airmen to use."
The squadron is comprised of airmen from all over the States and Europe, and the unit is a mix of electricians, plumbers, carpenters and engineers. Although there aren't any runways at Q-west, airfield workers are being utilized as heavy equipment operators here as well.
Leonard, from Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif., and Gent, who is a base maintainer and member of the honor guard at Cannon AFB, N. M., don't always have opportunities to do hands-on structural work at their home duty stations. That's why deploying with the Red Horse is a great opportunity to get experience, explained Gent.
"This is where we really learn," Gent said. "It just gets thrown at you, and there is a wealth of experienced guys in the unit who help us out. We really get hands on with what we do and that's what the Red Horse is known for. I'm pretty excited to be out here and be a part of the unit."
Not only are the airmen capable of constructing most anything, they are prepared to handle themselves on the battlefield.
Before deploying, the troops conducted a month of practical training with the Army at Fort McCoy, Wis., which has come to good use since they run convoys throughout Iraq.
"We trained on various weapons systems, convoy operations, tactical movements and close-quarter marksmanship," Leonard said. "We came prepared for just about everything."
Not only have the airmen trained with Soldiers, the two recently had the chance to work together. The Army sent over some of it's Soldiers to help assist the airmen and to learn from them as well.
"When the Army came out and worked with us, it was a lot of fun," Gent said. "There were a lot of guardsmen, and for them to come help us out was an awesome experience. A lot them didn't even know carpentry, but the Army just threw us a bunch of different people in whatever career fields just to give us a hand and learn how to build the sleeping quarters."
This dual-service relationship is nothing new to either. The airmen go to technical school to learn their trade in Gulfport, Miss., the same place the Army sends their troopers to learn engineering career field specialties.
Gent " who studied carpentry, welding and sheet metal layout at technical school " said the reward of doing what they do is the thanks they get when a job is complete.
"It's great when Army commanders come out and say "hey, that's an awesome job,"" Gent said.
"We take a lot of pride in our work and a job well done," Leonard added.
| Date Taken: | 12.05.2005 |
| Date Posted: | 12.05.2005 16:33 |
| Story ID: | 3950 |
| Location: | QAYYARAH, IQ |
| Web Views: | 140 |
| Downloads: | 25 |
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