Soldiers keep supplies moving in Afghanistan

Photo By Master Sgt. Mark Burrell | A U.S. Air Force C-130 Hercules aircraft sits in the on the tarmac after U.S. Army Pfc. Ardell D. Harris, a transportation management coordinator from St. Louis, assigned to 339th Movement Control Team, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division, Task Force Bastogne, loads it with supplies at Jalalabad Airfield, eastern Afghanistan's Nangarhar Province March 31. Jalalabad Airfield is an essential stop for equipment and troops being pushed out to the front lines for Operation Enduring Freedom.  

NANGARHAR PROVINCE, AFGHANISTAN

04.02.2011

Story by Sgt. 1st Class Mark Burrell 

Combined Joint Task Force 101

NANGARHAR PROVINCE, Afghanistan – At Jalalabad Airfield on Forward Operating Base Fenty, it never stops. Planes come and go delivering troops and cargo.

For the Soldiers assigned to 339th Movement Control Team attached to 1st Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division, Task Force Bastogne, this is their life. They ensure troops and cargo get to their destinations.

"It's actually very important because a lot of times things come in that need to be expedited to personnel that need it," said U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Robert A. Reffitt, 339th MCT noncommissioned officer in charge. "Sometimes there are people waiting on the runway, 'Is my cargo here? Is my cargo here?'"

Planes of all sorts, from C-130s Hercules to Cessnas, land day and night into Nangarhar Province's Jalalabad Airfield. If the cargo or troops are delayed, it could be detrimental to troops on the front lines fighting in one of Afghanistan's most dangerous areas, explained Reffitt, a native of Manhattan, Kan.

"Now I got this and it goes forward, but who is it going to?" said Reffitt about cargo lined up in the loading yard. "And it just sits there, and you have to figure it out. You just keep putting the pieces of the puzzle together and eventually somebody gets that package. So you got to just keep working on it and eventually you'll get a point of contact."

One of their main customers is the TF Bastogne’s 426th Brigade Support Battalion, 1st BCT, 101st Airborne Div.

"There're parts coming in all the time; it never stops," said U.S. Army Pvt. Kathryn M. Carell, an automated logistical supply specialist assigned to Company A, 426th BSB. "That’s why we're open 24/7. It's always busy over there, there's always stuff to pick up and always stuff to process."

Almost every day, a member from her company comes into the yard to keep supplies moving in and out.

"If a truck breaks down or a weapon malfunctions, we need to get repair equipment," said Carell, an Acton, Mass., native. "Anything from uniforms they may need or vehicle parts, we have customers on and off the forward operating bases."

As TF Bastogne is preparing to leave after a yearlong deployment, a new unit, part of the 25th Infantry Division, is starting to filter in. With a new unit comes more planes carrying more equipment that needs to get sorted said Carell.

"Some of the 25th Inf. Div. already has cargo here. We're just trying to keep things moving," said Reffitt. "This is what I chase all day - who owns what and who does it go to."

As another plane roars into the yard, workers scramble to push the equipment out of the belly of a C-130 and then load new equipment.

Pilots yell out what they have and hand over manifest sheets as hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of equipment rolls by.

The most important part is making sure it's the right equipment, said U.S. Army Pfc. Ardell D. Harris, a transportation management coordinator from St. Louis, assigned to 339th MCT.

"There're some really valuable things. We get million dollar cameras in and robots that the explosive ordinance disposal guys use," added Harris. "If it's not tracked right and processed right, there's a lot of trouble that can come about."

Harris, a U.S. Army Reserve soldier, is a security guard back home and knows about keeping a vigilant eye.

"I have to make sure that people aren't picking up the wrong things," explained Harris. "We haven't had any problems of people stealing, but I've had people pick up the wrong packages and I've had to intervene."

Harris observes and counts each of the pallets that are loaded and unloaded from the planes.

Even though he's not in combat with the enemy, he said he understands the importance of their mission.

"I feel like I'm playing a big part in the role that's going on here, because I'm getting stuff to guys that actually need it," said Harris. "Whatever comes my way, I just try to deal with it day to day … I would love to be home, but I'm serving my country and that's one of the greatest things you can do for America."

Throughout the day, troops come into the yard to claim their equipment and move it on down the line. Essential supplies get pushed out to help fight the insurgency and the yard empties.

"At the end of the day you look down at your yard and say, 'I've gotten a lot of stuff cleared out,'" said Reffitt. "Then you come in the morning and it's all filled up again. It all just starts over again."

• Date Taken: 04.02.2011
• Date Posted: 04.01.2011 17:48
• Story ID: 68119
• Location: NANGARHAR PROVINCE, AF