‘Outlaws’ manage large scale convoys

Photo By Lt. Col. Matthew Devivo | Soldiers of the 1462nd Transportation Company, recently managed a multi-day convoy operation, which involved more than 100 trucks, to move supplies needed by troops in Afghanistan.  

CAMP ARIFJAN, KUWAIT

07.31.2012

Story by Spc. Michael Gault 

191st Combat Sustainment Support Battalion

By Sgt. Kenneth A. Fahnestock
1462nd Trans. Company

CAMP ARIFJAN, Kuwait – For the second time during their deployment here, the 1462nd Transportation Company, ‘Outlaws,’ managed a multi-day convoy operation of more than 100 trucks, moving key supplies worth more than $100 million bound for troops in Afghanistan in each of the two missions.

The first mission took place over four days in April 2012, with noncommissioned officers of the 1462nd leading convoys of up to 126 trucks between here and the Kuwait Naval Base each day. The convoy, one of the largest to travel the roads of Kuwait, transported more than 400 shipping containers without any accidents or mishaps.

The second mission, with even larger convoys of up to 139 trucks, happened in July 2012 and was even more successful, resulting in over 580 containers of essential supplies and ammunition worth in excess of $125 million being routed to and from KNB and Camp Arifjan at the end of a four-day stretch. This mission was also completed with no accidents or serious incidents. Both missions combined represented one of the largest undertakings by a single transportation company in the history of Operation Enduring Freedom.

With 1462nd personnel acting as convoy commanders, the unit was responsible for coordination with contractors, military personnel from several branches of service, and the Kuwait Ministry of the Interior to ensure each mission would proceed as planned. Additionally, they man-aged the day-to-day operations and supervised the actions of more than 200 contract personnel and soldiers supervised the actions of more than 200 contract personnel and soldiers on the first mission and over 250 on the second. This included ensuring all the workers and soldiers were fed and cared for, not an easy feat with 15 countries represented in the group of contract drivers.

At the start of a typical day during the mission, soldiers and contract drivers would arrive on site, sometimes as early as 6 a.m. Then shipping containers, most measuring in at 40-feet long by eight feet wide, would be loaded onto flatbed trailers hauled by the contractors, or “white” trucks. The white trucks would line up in a convoy with “green” trucks, or those operated by the Army, and haul containers to KNB. Once they arrived, those containers would be offloaded from the trucks and prepared to be loaded onto cargo ships, and new containers loaded onto the white trucks for trans-port back here.

“[This was] one of the biggest convoys I have ever commanded and one of the largest convoys here in Kuwait,” said Staff Sgt. Arthur Bauman, convoy commander for the July’s mission. “The AS-58 mission was a success due to the 1462nd Transportation Company’s proper planning and extreme dedication.”

The large scale of both missions and the amount of supplies to be moved meant long days and minimal rest for unit personnel, especially for the second mission when more than half of the company was not available due to being forward deployed to Afghanistan. The missions’ successful completion was considered a major achievement for the unit, which hails from Howell, Mich., and is part of the Michigan Army National Guard.

Unit personnel were recognized for their efforts and performance by Task Force Vulcan, a U.S. Navy task force working at KNB to provide security and force protection. The task force leadership presented the company with a Certificate of Achievement for their hard work and dedication. The soldiers’ performance was also lauded by unit leadership.

“I am very proud of our soldiers and their will to succeed regardless of scale of the mission,” said Master Sgt. Terry Stephens, the company operations noncommissioned officer. “Their dedication and ability to overcome obstacles proves them to be some of the finest soldiers in the Michigan National Guard.”

• Date Taken: 07.31.2012
• Date Posted: 10.20.2012 06:07
• Story ID: 96494
• Location: CAMP ARIFJAN, KW