1st MAW supports joint bilateral jump

Photo By Tech. Sgt. Kentavist Brackin | Cambodian soldiers make their way to the ground after jumping from the back of a KC-130J Hercules from VMGR-152 during the Operation Angkor Sentinel Friendship Parachute Jump July 18.  

PHNOM PENH, CAMBODIA, OKINAWA, JAPAN

07.18.2010

Story by Lance Cpl. Kentavist Brackin 

III Marine Expeditionary Force   

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia - More than 100 Marines and U.S. Soldiers along with Royal Cambodian Armed Forces personnel participated in Operation Angkor Sentinel Friendship Parachute Jump July 17-18.

The Marines from Marine Aerial Refueler Transport Squadron 152, Marine Aircraft Group 36, 1st Marine Aircraft Wing, III Marine Expeditionary Force provided aviation support with the KC-130J that was used to transport the troops to the drop zone.

Grant and his Marines transported the U.S. Army jump masters, riggers and equipment to Cambodia on the KC-130J Hercules which was later used to conduct the jumps.

According to Capt. Ben Grant, a weapons and tactics instructor with VMGR-152, our mission in the exercise "was a small part of the greater effort for U.S./Cambodian relations."

The squadron’s participation in operations like these contributes to 1st MAW's high level of readiness.

"This is the second time in the history of Cambodia that the United States and the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces have jumped together," said Army Sgt. Maj. Gary W. Barnes, the operations non-commissioned officer for the 97th Troop Command, Special Operation Airborne Command, a Utah-based Army National Guard unit. The first time U.S. and Cambodian forces jumped together was in February.

Approximately 30 members of the RCAF participated in the static line jump while the remaining jumpers consisted of soldiers from the 97th Troop Command and 1st Battalion, 1st Special Forces Airborne from Okinawa.

There were some difficulties encountered during the exercise such as weather and communication but nothing that couldn’t be worked around because of thorough initial planning between the Marines, U.S. Army personnel and RCAF, according to Grant. Army and RCAF personnel in full jump gear had to wait several hours for rain, winds and low clouds to pass before beginning the exercise.

"The weather didn’t want to play along during the first day of drops," said Staff Sgt. Alex Kientz, a loadmaster for the KC-130J from VMGR-152, but they were lucky to be able to successfully complete the mission.

Communicating with each other was also a challenge overcome by U.S. personnel and the RCAF, according to Army Cpl. Jose A. Ortaga, a human resources specialist with the 97th Troop Command.

Communication played a vital part of safety on the aircraft where Marines and soldiers had to ensure that RCAF personnel understood when and where to be when attempting a static line jump.

Anywhere from 10 to 14 jumpers had to proceed out the back of the aircraft in a 14-second period once the green light to go flashed. The jumpers also had to be wary of wind calls given to them by the jumpmaster.

"When you are trying to get that many guys off [the plane] in 14 seconds there isn’t really anytime for pausing or hesitation," said Kientz.

A combination of translating and hand signals was utilized between the U.S. Army and RCAF jumpmasters to ensure Cambodian jumpers understood what was going on.

"Fortunately for us the hands and arm signals used by us are very similar to the ones used by Cambodians during flight operations, so we were able to conduct exercises without any major problems," Barnes said.

"This has been very interesting and a nice experience for us [RCAF]," said 2nd Lt. Khuth Sokhom, a jump master for the RCAF. "We were able to observe and learn a lot during this exercise despite communication barriers. We hope that the Marines will be able to do this exercise in the future so that we may share our experience."

• Date Taken: 07.18.2010
• Date Posted: 07.27.2010 18:38
• Story ID: 53512
• Location: PHNOM PENH, CAMBODIA, OKINAWA, JP