Battery mechanics create full service shop

Photo By Sgt. Jason Mikeworth | Spc. Barry McCorkle, a mechanic with B Battery, 1/115th Field Artillery, works to remove a bad tire to reuse the wheel later with a good tire.  

AL TAQADDUM, IRAQ

06.03.2006

Courtesy Story

DVIDS Hub       

CAMP AL TAQQADUM, Iraq - The main mission of B Battery, 1-115th Field Artillery Battalion in Iraq is to provide security for combat logistics patrols operating out of Camp Al Taqqadum. Making sure the gun trucks of the Tennessee National Guard unit are fully mission capable to provide that security falls on the battery's maintenance team.

Sgt. 1st Class Steve Jolly, the battery truck master, is responsible for coordinating the unit's gun trucks for security missions.

"It takes a lot of time calculating their rest plans and making sure they have the rest they need to provide security for the convoy," said Jolly. "I depend a lot on the platoon sergeants to give me accurate information on their personnel."

Showing the success of the maintenance mission, Jolly said the unit has never missed a mission.

"Everyone knows what's expected of them," Jolly said. "We've been able to staff every convoy 100 percent. We have not turned down a mission."

Sgt. Ricky McConnell, a cook with the 1-115th, has put his civilian skills to work for the unit to assist the maintenance section as a unit level logistics system-ground clerk. McConnell is an assistant chief for the Shelbyville Fire Department in Shelbyville, Tenn., and oversees the maintenance of the department's fleet of fire trucks.

"The first thing we do each day is look at what we have that's non-mission capable, what's been added to the list, what's come off, and order the parts for them," McConnell said. "We also do dispatching and picking up parts for vehicles. It's something different, and I'm enjoying it."

McConnell attended a week-long course at Logistical Support Area Anaconda to learn about the ULLS-G system.

"Learning the ULLS has been pretty simple, because in my civilian life I do a lot of that for the fire department," McConnell said. "I've got a computer system there that does basically the same thing that ULLS-G does."

McConnell also said the section's teamwork makes the job easier.
"Over here, we run into every kind of problem you can have. You figure out your way through them," said McConnell. "I enjoy working with the people we have here. We've got a good group."

Staff Sgt. James Cashion, a mechanic with the 1-115th, said the section has seen nearly every issue a maintenance team can face.

"We do anything from servicing vehicles to major mechanical repairs," Cashion said. "We don't do major component replacement, but we do all of the organizational level maintenance."
Cashion said the sand and heat of the Iraqi desert take their toll on the unit's vehicles, especially the electrical components.

"Most of our work is coming from electrical troubleshooting," Cashion said. "The sand, the heat, it's rough on vehicles."

With a new system in place that has brought an aged vehicle fleet from an initial operational status of 70 percent to a level consistently well over 90 percent, Cashion reflected on the work the team put in to move closer to their goal of 100 percent.

"When we first got here, we were severely lacking in parts and had a lot of deadlined vehicles," said Cashion. "The unit that was here before us was pretty strung out. They had mechanic teams spread out at a lot of different bases. They didn't have the manpower here that we do."

Cashion said he began the deployment as a truck commander, but moved over to the maintenance section to apply his civilian skills as an electrician.

"I transitioned to maintenance when they had a need for mechanics down here," Cashion said. "I'm an electrician by trade back home, and they needed people with experience for all of the electrical problems."

Cashion said the section is resourceful, a talent they've used to make getting around the camp easier.

"The maintenance team rebuilt an entire vehicle damaged by an improvised explosive device to use on post," said Cashion.

"It was sitting here on jack stands being used for parts. They went out and found parts for it by making friends with other units as well as using the supply system to get it running again."
Cashion said that although the operators do a good job on maintenance, the road conditions contribute to a large portion of the section's workload.

"The roads around here are horrible. They really beat up on the vehicles," Cashion said. "Running up and down those roads, hitting those potholes, it's really bad on control arms, ball joints, any kind of steering component."

Good organization and flexible scheduling are two tools the maintenance team uses to improve their service.

"What we've done is establish a really good parts supply system," Cashion said. "We also get on the vehicles as soon as they come in off mission. A lot of the time we can get deadlined vehicles turned around in just a few hours."

Chief Warrant Officer Jeff Oosting, the OIC of the 1-115th's maintenance section, said his troops have put in long hours to get their vehicles up to their standards.

"We were able to accomplish a year's worth of maintenance in the first 90 days after we arrived," Oosting said.

"The previous unit's priorities were keeping the vehicles on the road and not necessarily fix every fault. We've taken a different approach than that. In addition to the full service schedules, we repair the vehicles back to the original standards to increase the reliability of the vehicles."

Oosting said some of the more difficult issues his section faces are being away from home and the amount of hours their job requires.

"A lot of these guys haven't deployed in the past, so this is a new experience for many of them," Oosting said. "The long hours " being on call 24 hours a day " and working until the job is complete are a different set of circumstances than you find yourself in back in the civilian world working an 8 to 5 job."

Oosting said he takes pride in the work his Soldiers accomplish every day.
"They do excellent work. I would match my guys against anyone here on base. I think we set the standard here," said Oosting.

"People show up on our doorstep, other units, even Marines, asking for our technical support. That's the biggest compliment I get for my guys."

• Date Taken: 06.03.2006
• Date Posted: 06.03.2006 04:29
• Story ID: 6655
• Location: AL TAQADDUM, IQ