1st Sustainment Brigade

Story by 2nd Lt. Mark Degen

By 2nd Lt. Mark Degen
1st Sustainment Brigade

CAMP LIBERTY, Iraq - On any given night in Baghdad, U.S. Soldiers transport supplies and equipment via military convoy from large compounds to forward operating bases. These convoys must be escorted by a convoy security element, and that role is shared by one platoon of the 317th Maintenance Company from Bamburg, Germany. These are Soldiers whose sole job is to escort and protect convoys filled with supplies from the dangers outside of the camp. It is a dangerous job, and the road to mastering the technique is a long and arduous journey.

The 46 Soldiers from the 317th Maintenance Company, 553rd Combat Sustainment Support Battalion, 1st Sustainment Brigade comprise two convoy security elements and perform these convoy missions, also known as deliberate combat logistics patrols, or DCLP, several times each week.

The process of creating a security element is one of long days in the vehicles and many long nights on the road learning and perfecting the necessary skills to accomplish these missions. For the Soldiers of this newly created security element team, training began in Germany with the study of tactics, techniques, and procedures from previous deployments. Then the training picked up when the unit arrived in Kuwait and conducted a two-week transition period there to become acclimatized. This began with the familiarization of vehicles that are used to escort trucks. The armored security vehicle, or ASV, and the mine resistant ambush protected, or MRAP vehicle are the main trucks used. Since these vehicles are new and being fielded directly in Iraq, it was a steep learning curve for these Soldiers during that two-week timeframe.

Training continued in Kuwait with several weapons ranges, where Soldiers qualified on the M2 Browning Machine Gun and the MK-19 Grenade Launcher. These weapons were fired from both vehicle platforms; they are the main firepower on both types of gun truck. After several long days of reviewing tactics and techniques of convoy security, the section culminated their training with several mock convoys. These were designed to give every Soldier an idea of what to expect when on the roads of Iraq.

Next, the section moved from Kuwait to Camp Liberty in Baghdad, Iraq, where they entered into the most important phase of the journey, on the job training. The 46 Soldiers of the security section began learning from subject matter experts who had spent the last nine months on the roads of Baghdad. No time was wasted since there were only two weeks in which to learn everything we needed to know in order to conduct operations independently. The training was fast and furious. Soldiers learned the best order in which to arrange vehicles, how to maximize communication on the radio, how to operate counter-improvised explosive device, or C-IED, weapons, and the intricacies of each route. Planning is critical to the successful execution of any DCLP. Prior to each mission the section was briefed on the route, recent enemy activity, and response procedures in case of an attack. And when the planning was done, it was time to hit the road.

Since the U.S. Army established itself at a number of bases in and around Baghdad, it is imperative that the flow of supplies and equipment to war fighters at the lowest level is not interrupted. The DCLP section of the 317th Maintenance Company helps to accomplish just that.

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