CAMP BONDSTEEL, Kosovo - The sturdy rubber wheels of the UH-60 Black Hawk lightly bounced on the green grass of the hilltop landing zone. The Black Hawk came to a brief stop, long enough for the new 56-year-old commanding general of the California Army National Guard to spring from his seat and dash to his position like he was fresh out of infantry school.
"That was the most fun I've had since I was a captain," said Maj. Gen. John S. Harrel as the helicopters launched back into the Kosovo sky. The fun he was referring to was the nap-of-the-earth flight he just got done, riding with the pilots of Task Force Arctic Eagle, where the Alaska National Guard aviators hugged the tree-tops, crested mountain summits and then dropped into valleys to trace their every curve.
The quick flight, which would have taken two hours if driven in a High Mobility Multi-purpose Wheeled Vehicle (HMMWV/ Humvee), was certainly one way to cut down on time during the general's short visit to the Balkans region. Harrel came the 6,400 miles to see how his 1,100 "Golden State" Soldiers were doing. California's 40th Infantry Division makes up the bulk of the Multi-National Task Force, KFOR 11 forces, based out of Camp Bondsteel, who is tasked to keep the peace in the eastern sector of the country. On a hilltop in a rural mountainous region near the Serbian border it was Task Force Nightstalker's turn to show the general what they had learned during their deployment since arriving in February.
Lt. Col. Dirk Levy's 1st Battalion, 184th Infantry Regiment troops, headquartered out of Modesto, greeted the two-star and led him on a patrol through a farming community, a wood-cutting operation and gave him a chance to interact with locals along the way. The patrol's leader, 1st Lt. Richard Stack, a network technician at Helix Charter High School in La Mesa, Calif., introduced him to a farmer who had issues with neighbors recently but with the help of KFOR was able to resolve it without resorting to violence.
"Walking around and meeting those people today you could tell they had a better piece of mind than in years past. They feel secure and you can see that they appreciate the work we are doing," said Harrel.
"It was real important to show our general the area of operations we work in," said Stack, who lives in San Diego. "For him to come out here is a good eye-opener to see what we walk everyday."
The patrol covered a lot of ground and Stack had enough time to explain how their operations have developed and discuss the lessons they have learned. Harrel was more than inquisitive as he was comparing the situation now to when he was the Commanding General of Multi-National Brigade-East, KFOR 6B, from August 2005 to January 2006.
"Visiting the troops here was very important to me. It gives the Soldiers a chance to show you what they do by the numbers. You can tell how proud they are of what they have accomplished," said Harrel. "I am too."
| Date Taken: | 06.09.2009 |
| Date Posted: | 07.29.2009 03:31 |
| Story ID: | 36925 |
| Location: | CAMP BONDSTEEL, ZZ |
| Web Views: | 136 |
| Downloads: | 113 |
This work, Commander of the California Army National Guard patrols with his troops, by MSG Paul Wade, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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