Task Force Long Knife slices through deployment

Photo By Darriel Swatts | Sgt. Edwin Rodriguez, a wheeled vehicle mechanic and welder for Echo Company, 1-140th Aviation, cuts a steel beam with an arc welder at the mechanic shop located on Joint Base Balad, Iraq, May 5, 2011.  

JOINT BASE BALAD, IRAQ

05.10.2011

Story by Spc. Darriel Swatts 

40th Combat Aviation Brigade

JOINT BASE BALAD, Iraq – The soldiers of the 1st Assault Helicopter Battalion, 140th Aviation Regiment, based out of Los Alamitos, Calif., are nearing the end of a busy, yearlong deployment to Iraq in support of Operation New Dawn.

The approximately 350 soldiers of the 1-140 AHB, are in the final stretch of their tour in Iraq and are gearing up to head home mid-summer.

“Each and every one of my soldiers, I’m proud of them,” said Troy Eck, the command sergeant major for the 1-140, and a native of Mentone, Calif. “They are all citizen soldiers from all walks of life and all different backgrounds, coming together as a task force and completing the mission.”

The battalion is part of the California Army National Guard, and is known as Task Force Long Knife. It falls under the 40th Combat Aviation Brigade. Most of the battalion’s soldiers are from California, augmented by a company from the Alaska National Guard’s 1st Battalion, 207th Aviation Regiment.

The soldiers of the 1-140 arrived in Iraq late October of 2010. The unit controls about 30 UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters and about 20 fixed wing aircraft. Its soldiers have been tasked to fly the command staff of United States Forces-Iraq, operate two Forward Arming and Refueling Points and provide direct support to the Combined Joint Special Operations Task Force, as well as other tasks. The battalion performs its mission while operating from three bases from Baghdad to as far north as Mosul.

One company in the battalion is responsible for flying distinguished visitors who have visited the country over the last year, including Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Michael Mullen and Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi, among others.

“As soon as we arrived in country we hit the ground running,” said Maj. Jeff Sibley, operations officer for the 1-140, and a native of San Clemente, Calif. “It was a seamless transition between us and our predecessors and we often get compliments from outside sources praising us for how well we operate.”

When the 1-140th first came into theater, it fell under the command of the active duty Army’s 1st Combat Aviation Brigade, out of Fort Riley, Kan. About halfway through the 1-140th’s deployment, the 1st CAB returned home and the battalion fell under the 40th CAB, which is headquartered in Fresno, Calif., not far from the 1-140th’s home in Los Alamitos.

“Having the 40th CAB come in and take the reins was a nice familiarity,” said Sibley. “We already knew them from back home and we already have such a rich history of working together. It was a great morale boost.”

Despite having to shift gears mid-deployment with the introduction of a new command group, the 1-140th hasn’t missed a beat in their operations.

“The soldiers of this task force have been absolutely phenomenal in getting this mission done,” said Lt. Col. Jeffery Holliday, battalion commander for the 1-140th, and a Milpitas, Calif. native. “They are working extremely long hours, often 12 to 14 hours a day, and they come back and do it the next day with the same great mindset of getting the mission done.”

“My soldiers give it their all,” said Sgt. 1st Class Shawn Winstead, maintenance platoon sergeant for Echo Company, 1-140th, and a Canyon Lake, Calif., native. “We support a larger element than we are designed to take care of. We’re taking care of more than a battalion; we take care of an entire task force and we’re extremely proficient at it.”

The pilots of the 1-140th are knocking on the door of 20,000 hours of total flight time and are averaging more than 2,000 hours of flight time a month. And, with this amount of flying, keeping the helicopters in the air requires plenty of fuel.

“So far we have distributed more than 2 million gallons of fuel,” said 1st Lt. Jacob White, distribution platoon leader for Echo Company, 1-140th, and a Fresno, Calif. native. “And since the pilots’ missions happen at all time of the day and night, my soldiers sustain 24-hour operations and are always ready to accomplish the mission. These soldiers are some of the best people I’ve ever worked with.”

With all the soldiers of the 1-140th working seamlessly together, they have never dropped a mission since they arrived in theater, Holliday said.

“These soldiers have taken the National Guard mentality of one weekend a month, two weeks a year and have turned it into a full-time job,” said Eck. “They have rocked the entire time we have been mobilized, and now that we are nearing the completion of our mission, I know for a fact that all of our soldiers can’t wait to get home and be with the ones they love.”

• Date Taken: 05.10.2011
• Date Posted: 05.20.2011 05:02
• Story ID: 70735
• Location: JOINT BASE BALAD, IQ