Photo By Sgt. 1st Class Glenn Sierra | U.S. Army Sgt. Jonathan Seals (right) and Spc. Mark Ledford (left) with the 190th...... read more read more
KUNDUZ PROVINCE, Afghanistan- July 23, 1st Platoon, 190th Engineer Company, Task Force Roughneck, TF Sword, from Morrisville, Tenn., rolled out of Forward Operating Base Kunduz to conduct a two-part mission: to perform a road and bridge assessment of their planned route and to recon potential stopping sites for future operations. “We’re going to see if the road can stand military load classes and make sure that the bridges can also sustain those loads,” explained U.S. Army 1st Lt. Jason Carter with the 190th Eng. Company, 1st Platoon Leader from Clarksville, Tenn. “When finished with the route recon, we’ll do a site recon to see what assets are available when our patrols need to rest and refit.”
Conducting a bridge assessment is classic reconnaissance where accurate measurements of its dimensions will determine its usefulness to military, as well as, to civilian vehicle traffic. “I was using a laser range finder to take measurements to see what size vehicles could fit and how much weight it could take,” explained U.S. Army Spc. Eddie Branum with the 190th Eng. Company, a combat engineer from Maynardville, Tenn. “We cleared it and found nothing underneath and found some potential fording spots, if needed. The recon needed to be done, and it’s part of my job.”
Soldiers used a state of the art laser system to measure the top of the bridge, while soldiers clearing underneath turned to the old method of measuring the height and pillars with a simple measuring tape. “The Enfire system [a system of high-tech measuring equipment] eliminates the tape measure,” said U.S. Army Sgt. Jonathan Seals with 190th Eng. Company, a combat engineer from New Market, Tenn. “But instead of waiting for it to come down, we took the initiative and started measuring and sending up our readings. The bridges were fairly new. The roads systems are actually wide enough for our needs. I think we did a good recon.”
One of the platoon’s stops was at a German outpost. The commander of the outpost welcomed the route clearance patrol. “He showed us the latest enemy activity in his AO [area of operation].” Carter continued, “He said in the camp, there was room to set up housing, and hot chow would be available for my men.”
Their last stop before returning home was a FOB shared by Afghan, German and American forces. “I liked that place,” Carter concluded. “Everything was on a smaller scale, but it met all our needs. We got our trucks worked on, we ate hot chow, we slept, fueled up and left. What more could you want.”
Having patrols conduct reconnaissance allows the units to have a database of allowable weights and widths for when the operational needs arise. Additionally, establishing positive relations with the units in their operational area creates an environment of support. In the case of an emergency mission, the soldiers of 190th Eng. Company will now know the maximum size of equipment they can move and they can also coordinate with the units that operate in the area for support.
| Date Taken: | 07.29.2011 |
| Date Posted: | 10.11.2011 05:43 |
| Story ID: | 78297 |
| Location: | KUNDUZ PROVINCE, AF |
| Web Views: | 260 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
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