Photo By Lt. Col. Adam Weece | Chief Warrant Officer Dave Ginn, an OH-58 Kiowa helicopter pilot with Crusader Troop,...... read more read more
KANDAHAR AIR FIELD, Afghanistan — Sgt. John Bulford, an Akron, Ohio, native assigned to 1st Battalion, 17th Infantry Regiment, 5th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, re-enlisted on Forward Operating Base Frontenac, Afghanistan, Dec. 26 ,with the help of a trusted battle buddy he'd never met before.
In the first two weeks of December Bulford, a sniper team leader for C Company, 1-17 Infantry, defeated several insurgent attempts to emplace improvised explosive devices by guiding air Scout Weapons Teams onto the targets. The SWTs, comprised of two OH-58D Kiowa helicopters, allowed Bulford to accomplish his mission to secure the roads with lethal precision, at a distance beyond the range of his team.
Naturally, two weeks later, when he asked those Kiowa pilots to administer his oath of re-enlistment, they agreed.
"We were conducting route reconnaissance until we were cleared in to the FOB for the ceremony. His company had assembled at the FOB, so we came in and landed," said Chief Warrant Officer Dave Ginn, assigned to Crusader Troop, 1st Squadron, 17th Cavalry Regiment, 82nd Combat Aviation Brigade. "While my sister ship was refueling I noticed his company had assembled so I took the helicopter right up to them and landed. I knew the guys would really like that."
Bulford was able to take his oath inside of one of the helicopters that had assisted him so many times.
"He came over and my co-pilot got out and gave him his helmet and helped him get seated and plugged him in to the intercom system and from there we just sort of had small talk for a little while," Ginn said. "Once I felt that he was comfortable and ready to roll we went through the reenlistment oath."
Bulford felt honored to have his oath administered by those he had worked so closely with.
"Shamus [the SWT call sign] is the biggest asset to the Infantrymen on the ground," he said. "No matter what the situation looks like, it's a relief to know that those guys overhead will put rockets where we need them."
Ginn also was honored to help the soldiers on the ground.
"It's obviously an honor. The fact that they request us by name not only for air support but also to do something like a re-enlistment shows that we have a strong relationship and a strong bond with our guys on the ground," Ginn said. "They trust us and we trust them. It's definitely positive feedback for us to know that we're doing a good job out there for them."
Ginn also attested to the character of Bulford, a leader from the hardest hit battalion in Afghanistan since 2001.
"For someone to continue putting themselves in situations like that, it obviously says something about his courage and moral conviction and commitment," Ginn said.
The similarity in their numerical designation isn't the only thing the two units share. They also share a bond forged in battle.
"I would say it's a pretty strong bond considering the nature of the engagement and the nature of the fight that we're currently in," Ginn said. "It's not easy doing what we're doing. We give them everything we can to make sure that they make it through there."
| Date Taken: | 12.26.2009 |
| Date Posted: | 01.11.2010 05:48 |
| Story ID: | 43652 |
| Location: | KANDAHAR, AF |
| Web Views: | 908 |
| Downloads: | 681 |
This work, Kiowas provide re-enlistment support for Stryker soldier, by SGT Nathan Booth, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
No keywords found.
