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By Spc. Jay Venturini
316th Expeditionary Sustainment Command
LOGISTICS SUPPORT AREA ANACONDA, Iraq – Service members deployed to Iraq can do without many things that would be taken for granted in the United States. However, there are some basic necessities that are critical for mission success, such has have an fully operational weapon.
That is where the small arms support center comes in. The centers only job is to keep weapons operational and service members mission ready.
"We service between 80 and 100 weapons per week," said Ms. Zola Steele, SASC site manager. "We service any kind of weapon a servicemembers is currently using in theater to include mounts and mortars and even some foreign weapons."
The shop provides support to all services and one for one exchange for Soldiers when a weapon is damaged beyond repair.
No matter the reason for the weapon being brought in, every aspect of the weapon is thoroughly examined and checked for defaults. No weapon will leave the shop until it is 100 percent mission ready.
"We owe it to service members that go outside the wire to ensure their weapons are completely mission ready," said Jeff Price, SASC weapons inspector. "And if we can't repair the one they give us, we will give them a bran new one."
Most repairs are simple and can be done with in 30 minutes to an hour while the service member waits in the waiting room.
The shop also has over 1,800 items in stock for service members to grab in a pinch. These items include everything from a firing pin retaining pin for an M-16A2 assault rifle to a barrel for a 50 caliber machine gun.
The most common weapon in need of service is the 50 cal. due to the attention to detail needed to operate properly.
"Soldiers have to ensure that the head space and timing is correct on the 50 cal. I can not stress that enough," said Steele. "We have had so many cases of Soldiers not properly setting it and having it blow up on them."
For those weapons that are too damaged to be repaired at the center, they are sent to Anniston Army Depot, Alabama, where they are either repaired there or melted down to make bran new weapons. Either way, once the weapons are mission capable they are shipped directly back to the various theaters of operation.
Even with all the advancements in safety in body armor and vehicles most would agree that there is nothing that will keep the service members safer outside the wire than a fully operational weapon.
With that in mind the SASC staff has dedicated themselves to getting the service members fully serviceable weapons in a timely and efficient manner.
"Our only goal is to provide support to the war fighter and ensure that when they walk out our door their weapon is in the best condition it can be," said Steele. "It is a job we take very seriously because how well we do our job could be the difference between life and death for the Soldiers in harms way."
| Date Taken: | 03.10.2008 |
| Date Posted: | 03.10.2008 10:21 |
| Story ID: | 17177 |
| Location: | BALAD, IQ |
| Web Views: | 505 |
| Downloads: | 435 |
This work, Small arms repair shop keeping weapons operational, by SGT Jason Venturini, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
