Fleet of Abrams arrive at Umm Qasr

Photo By Staff Sgt. Francis Horton | An M1 Abrams Battle Tank sits on a heavy equipment transport for movement north to Forward Operating Base Hammer. The Iraqi flag on the side lets onlookers know the tanks are property of the government of Iraq instead of any foreign fighting force.  

UMM QASR, IRAQ

08.07.2010

Story by Sgt. Francis Horton 

367th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment

UMM QASR, Iraq – Iraqi soldiers and police have been training under the watchful eye of coalition forces to prepare them for the duty of protecting Iraq, but training can only take you so far. The Iraqi security forces recently took their next step toward self-reliance.

“We’ve offloaded the first batch of M1 [Abrams Battle Tanks]” said Andreaus Elesky, a program manager for defense contractor General Dynamics working with the Iraqi Training and Advisory personnel at the Port of Umm Qasr.

The M1 Abrams tank is a heavily armored, highly mobile tank that entered service in 1980. It is the main battle tank of the U.S. Army and Marines and is capable of firing 105 mm high explosive rounds and 120 mm rounds. There are also three placements for heavy machine guns.

Eleven tanks and one tank recovery vehicle were delivered to the bustling northern port of Umm Qasr. Iraqi flags adorned the turrets, alerting local residents to the fact that the heavy firepower being delivered was for their own government, Elesky said.

Working with the U.S. and Iraqi governments, General Dynamics has been in the process of receiving, transporting and delivering the tanks to the Iraqis, Elesky said. Representatives of the company will train the ISF on the operation and maintenance of the tanks.

“Shipments will be coming in on a monthly basis,” Elesky said. Altogether, 140 M1 Abrams will roll to Forward Operating Base Hammer, a decommissioned U.S. Army base southeast of Baghdad occupied by Iraqi soldiers. Hammer will act as the home of the Mechanized Iraqi 9th Division. U.S.-based American United Logistics, which partnered with an Iraqi transportation company, made sure the tanks were loaded from the ship directly onto heavy equipment transport trucks, said Matthew Berger, director of logistics and transportation for AUL.

Once more tanks have been cleared for transportation, they will convoy to FOB Hammer, guarded by an Iraqi security company, Threat Management Group. American security forces will not be present at any time, Berger said.

Elesky said the first iteration of training for the Iraqis on the tanks will take place in January.

The procurement of these tanks is a major upgrade from the Russian, Yugoslavian and Chinese-made tanks to which the ISF is accustomed; as the M1 Abrams is more versatile, allowing Iraqi armor units to fight on the move.

In the past, there has been little to no maintenance management training on tanks. General Dynamics plans to change all of this by teaching Iraqi soldiers how to perform preventive maintenance, checks and services on their equipment, Elesky said

“The more sustained we make them, the quicker U.S. troops can get out of the country,” Elesky said.

While U.S. involvement in the acquisition and movement of the tanks is non-existent, future training exercises are already being planned for 2011 and beyond, Elesky said.

“We’re helping them become a better-equipped and better-trained military,” Elesky said.

Delivery of the tanks is expected to be complete by August 2011.

• Date Taken: 08.07.2010
• Date Posted: 08.11.2010 08:35
• Story ID: 54314
• Location: UMM QASR, IQ