Monument dedication culminates effort of embedded American advisors

BAGRAM AIR FIELD, AFGHANISTAN

05.14.2009

Story by Tech. Sgt. Jason Lake 

455th Air Expeditionary Wing   

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BAGRAM AIR FIELD, Afghanistan -- More than 250 U.S. service members and Afghan security forces celebrated seven years of military cooperation during a monument dedication ceremony at Camp Blackhorse, May 14.

The ceremony also culminated the efforts of nearly 20 Airmen, Soldiers and Sailors who have embedded with the 5th Kandak (Battalion) as training advisors.

"This monument represents hope ... a hope that future generations of Afghan Soldiers and citizens will see the sacrifices and commitments made by both the Afghan and American military working together," Maj. Brian Freeman said before hundreds of Afghan national army and policemen who have come to know his training team stationed just outside the capital of Kabul. "It represents a hope that one day any person can travel to Afghanistan without guns or weapons and walk in downtown Kabul [with] a true feeling of safety and security."

For the past year, the team has provided combat support and counter-insurgency training to more than 430 Afghan soldiers within the Afghan national army.

"We've built an exceptional working relationship with our Afghan counterparts," Maj. Freeman explained. "We respect each other's culture and religion and have many opportunities to share ideas, thoughts and similarities. The military-to-military relationship is awesome and my Kandak commander counterpart really appreciates how we are mentoring his officers and NCOs."

The 18 Airmen on the team come from various specialties ranging from maintenance and logistics to medical and communications.

"It's a job none of us Airmen have ever done before," the major said.

"We are mentoring a combat service support battalion that consists of logistics, transportation, maintenance, communications, medical and headquarters staff functions. We do all these types of missions in the Air Force, but the unique part is [Airmen] mentoring Afghan army soldiers in a combat zone."

The team has spent its fair share of missions outside the wire, sometimes even sleeping between convoy vehicles in remote areas of the country.

"Most of our team has more than 150 convoys and 3,000 miles under their belts," said Maj. Freeman, who directs tactical operations as the convoy commander. "On many occasions, our team has lived in arduous conditions - pulling dismounted security, interacting with the local population, eating MREs for days at a time and not getting a bath for five or six days. We're all pretty good at convoying now and we certainly know and respect the dangers of convoying in Afghanistan."

The Airmen have also gotten proficient at calling for artillery, medical evacuations and close air support missions in case the team makes contact with insurgents.

Lt. Col. Robert Fournier, who assumed command of the new 855th Air Expeditionary Squadron earlier this month, also attended the dedication to witness the accomplishments of his newly assigned Airmen.

"I was honored the invitation to attend the monument dedication and impressed by the professionalism and dedication shown by both our Airmen and the Afghan national army," Col. Fournier explained.

"The most inspiring thing I witnessed was the true camaraderie and genuine friendship that has developed between the people of both nations. I wish all Americans could have seen what we saw. They would be proud of their men and women in uniform and would share our hope for the future of this country."

The monument dedication ceremony marked a bittersweet moment for Major Freeman as he wrapped up his one-year deployment and prepared to return home a few days later.

"A lot of work has been done between the 5th Kandak soldiers and our team," he said. "The cooperation that we have built is truly a brotherhood that is forged day-by-day - especially when we are working collectively on missions that serve the same cause ... the future of Afghanistan."