Protecting the force

Photo By Sgt. 1st Class Phillip Valentine | U.S. Army Sgt. Jason Hemmelgarn the quick reaction force noncommissioned officer in charge, gives a convoy brief to Soldiers March 16, 2013 before traveling to the Kandahar Transit Yard, in Kandahar province, Afghanistan. The 1487th Transportation Company manages the transit yard, which is a screening area for delivery vehicles before they arrive at the Kandahar Airfield entry control point. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Phillip Valentine/Released)  

AFGHANISTAN

03.16.2013

Story by Sgt. Phillip Valentine 

311th Expeditionary Sustainment Command   

KANDAHAR AIRFIELD, Afghanistan — Before delivery vehicles come onto this base, they must first come through soldiers of the 1487th Transportation Company and the Kandahar Transit Yard.

Soldiers assigned to the 1487th, an Army Reserve unit from Ohio, insure delivery vehicles that proceed to KAF are thoroughly inspected and free of possible dangers.

“We act as a buffer to make sure that bad things don’t happen,” said Staff Sgt. Jason Marlow, a Cincinnati native and shift leader at the KTY. “We are the frontline of KAF.”

Delivery vehicles that enter the KTY are X-rayed then parked. The drivers dismount; go through a full body scan, their paperwork checked and biometrics checked with an eye scan. The trucks, while awaiting their drivers return, are once again searched by an explosive-sniffing dog.

Sgt. Zachary Ford from Ashland, Ohio, over watches the body scan process and controls movement to the next station. He said he is trying to learn the Pashto language to help expedite and ease the process.

“They have a greater respect for us if they see us trying to speak their language,” said Ford. He loves working at the KTY and enjoys the interaction with drivers from different nations.

The KTY has the capability of holding approximately 500 trucks and when the 1487th took over the yard, they made changes to better the operations and increase soldier safety.

“We revamped the whole process and made everything as mobile as possible,” said Marlow. “If something goes wrong, we can get out quickly.” Marlow also said they re-organized the yard to make it more efficient in entry and exit procedures.

The mission tasked to the 1487th was one that they did not intend to take charge of. Initially, the unit was tasked to perform convoy operations, but they have embraced the new mission with enthusiasm.

Sgt. Jason Hemmelgarn of Versailles, Ohio, is the quick reaction force noncommissioned officer in charge, and a high school baseball coach back in Ohio. He makes sure the vital supplies, personnel, and equipment make it safely back and forth from KAF and the KTY. The QRF also has the responsibility to rapidly deploy to secure the yard in case of an enemy attack. While that is the primary mission of the QRF, they also help out processing trucks and the drivers that make a visit to the site.

“We are doing real well and staying motivated,” said Hemmelgarn. “We are doing a job and doing it right, for the American people as well as the Afghan people.”

• Date Taken: 03.16.2013
• Date Posted: 03.18.2013 09:45
• Story ID: 103641
• Location: AF