Photo By Sgt. Mitch Armbruster | Pfc. Rodolfo Cerrillo, an ammunition specialist with the 664th Ordinance Company, uses...... read more read more
FOWARD OPERATING BASE ENDURANCE, Iraq - Soldiers with the 664th Ordnance Company from Fort Hood, Texas, supply units on Forward Operating Base Endurance and in northern Iraq with ammunition.
A small detachment deployed to Iraq while the rest of their company went to Afghanistan to support Operation Enduring Freedom.
The mission has been a challenge for the experienced members of the 664th explained Sgt. Dylan Shaw, one of a few Soldiers in the detachment with multiple deployments.
"About 75 percent of the Soldiers we have are out of AIT [Advanced Individual Training]," Shaw said.
Chief Warrant Officer Kevin Lupo, accountability officer for the detachment, explained why their mission in Iraq was so important.
"Our Soldiers are loving this because we are doing our jobs," said Lupo. At Fort Hood, civilians do the job his Soldiers are getting experience with in Iraq. The unit spent time in Korea where civilians also perform ammunition handling.
"I like the mission and I think the Soldiers do too," Lupo said. "We are relearning on the fly. We are training and doing our wartime mission combined."
The Soldiers" enthusiasm, in part, comes from the knowledge they are learning, but it is also related to the work they do. Lupo described the morale of his Soldiers as being higher now because they like being busy. Before, they felt they weren't doing what they were trained to do.
When the detachment arrived at FOB Endurance, they set up their work area in the most productive way possible, Shaw stated. The 664th was moving big gun ammunition [large caliber], as they call it, by hand and in some cases, it was taking Soldiers eight hours to finish. They acquired a forklift for their unit which has shortened the work time and made the unit more efficient.
"Now we have a little more freedom," said Spc. James Agee, a mechanic with the 664th. "It lets us get our job done, and do it safely."
Agee said the extra work the detachment put into revamping the work environment allows the mechanics a chance to keep vehicles working properly.
"At first there were hurdles, but lately it has been smooth," Shaw said.
The detachment has streamlined the system they were given. They pull their own force protection, do their own maintenance and communicate with their customers to serve them better.
"We have a big impact," said Sgt. Kimberly Watson, a Sergeant of the Guard with the 664th. "Every job in the Army needs each other, but you can't fight a war without ammunition."
The detachment has issued more than 625,000 pounds of ammunition while working in Iraq, and will issue more as their time goes on.
"They are doing an excellent job," Lupo said. "I'm very proud of my Soldiers. I had to go on emergency leave and these Soldiers stepped up and accomplished the mission while I was gone."
| Date Taken: | 04.14.2006 |
| Date Posted: | 04.14.2006 11:31 |
| Story ID: | 6028 |
| Location: | QAYYARAH, IQ |
| Web Views: | 100 |
| Downloads: | 35 |
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