Photo By 1st Sgt. Brent Williams | Spc. Justin Burdette, an infantryman from Palm Bay, Fla., assigned to Company B, 4th...... read more read more
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By Staff Sgt. Brent Williams
1st Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, Public Affairs Office
FORWARD OPERATING BASE FALCON, Iraq – The vital mission of protecting the Iraqi populace, helping foster the ever-growing economy of the area and assisting the local Iraqi security forces as they strive to provide a stable environment for the local area, falls squarely upon the shoulders of the 1st Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, Multi-National Division-Baghdad Soldiers based at the forward operating base.
And protecting these Soldiers so they can carry out their vital mission falls squarely upon the Soldiers assigned to the Raider Brigade's Base Defense Operations Center.
The Soldiers diligently scour the perimeter, looking for any discrepancy that might signal danger; Soldiers remain poised and ready in the towers that look down from the lofty walls that surround their gated community.
It's more than guard duty in a small room, near the brigade tactical operations center, where a select group of Soldiers from across MND-B provide the first line of defense for the more than 5,000 men and women serving and working at Forward Operating Base Falcon in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.
The overall mission of the Raider Brigade's BDOC is to protect the base and its Soldiers from any threat the enemy may present, 24 hours per day, seven days per week, explained 1st Sgt. Reuben Tull, BDOC non-commissioned officer in charge, Headquarters and Headquarters Detachment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division.
"A Soldier up in the towers – that's our first line of defense," he said.
The center uses a wide array of modern technology and equipment, employing day and night vision camera systems and the counter-rocket, artillery and mortar radars and systems to maintain a 24-hour surveillance of the base perimeter in support of the base defenses, said Tull, a 23-year Army veteran, who hails from Fayetteville, N.C.
Sgt. Andrew Hanks, BDOC Operations NCOIC, HHD, 1st BCT, 4th Inf. Div., supervises the day-to-day operations of the center and ensures the surveillance equipment remains operational around the clock in addition to maintaining the radio communications between the guard towers, the main gates to the FOB and the BDOC.
The Soldiers performing the BDOC operations have a variety of duties that are performed daily, said Hanks. "Among their myriad duties include the responsibility for clearing the marksmanship range in addition to assessing and responding to safety and security issues on the FOB."
The BDOC uses modern force protection measures, including long range acoustic devices, phraselators, and automated camera systems that can identify potential threats with an extreme measure of accuracy, he explained.
The technology the Soldiers employ is used to assist the fire effects coordinators during counter-fire missions to determine points of origin and points of impact for incoming indirect fire, explained Hanks, who hails from Gatesville, Texas.
The BDOC also controls the FOB's Quick Reaction Force, which can quickly dispatch Soldiers to identify potential terrorist threats or to deal with potential emergencies, he added.
The QRF conducts regular patrols around the FOB, inspects vehicles parked alongside major roads surrounding the base and investigates potential enemy threats to deter attacks against the Raider Soldiers of the 1st BCT, said Hanks, who is currently serving his third deployment to Iraq.
"The majority of the Soldiers have been doing pretty good," said Staff Sgt. Lamont Hicks, an infantryman from Fontana, Calif., assigned to HHD, 1st BCT. "They remain pretty active as far as scanning their areas and calling things up due to the location."
"The [tower guards] are the Soldiers out on the line, making sure there are no possible threats to the FOB, making sure no one jumps over the walls, tracking to make sure there are no attacks," Hicks said. "They are the first line of defense against threats such as the [improvised-rocket assisted munitions]."
It is Hicks primary responsibility to keep the Sergeants of the Guard and the Soldiers conducting tower guard informed on the latest intelligence to help counter any potential attack.
"We also conduct visual inspections to make sure the Soldiers are in the proper uniform ... and make sure they are ready to do their job 100 percent, 24 hours per day, seven days per week," he explained.
In addition to maintaining the base defenses, the Soldiers of the BDOC continue to improve upon the base defenses to ensure that the FOB defense remains strong, said Tull.
Tull and his senior NCOs worked for months at the start of the deployment to fortify the base defenses and strengthen the line for the Soldiers who maintain a vigilant presence to secure the base.
"We built new weapons mounts from scratch to provide a secure platform for the crew-serve weapons in the towers," he said. "We worked for nearly two months building [rocket-propelled grenades] baskets, metal frames with HESCO basket wiring and sandbags to provide additional protection to the Soldiers in the towers."
The BDOC routinely conducts drills to rehearse actions and to ensure that the Soldiers and units who maintain the FOB defenses are prepared for any type of attack.
The modern equipment used by the Soldiers fulfills a very important piece of the base defenses, said Pfc. Nick Scott, an Avenger crewmember assigned to Headquarters and Headquarters Battery, 2nd Battalion, 44th Air Defense Artillery Regiment, part of the 101st Airborne Division, out of Fort Campbell, Ky., attached to the 1st BCT, 4th Inf. Div.
"I catch rounds before they impact the base," said Scott, who hails from Toledo, Ohio. "My work, observing the radar, can potentially save lives – if I am not doing my job, somebody could die."
Their actions are seeing substantial success as direct and indirect attacks against the FOB are at an all time low, said Tull.
The biggest challenge for the Soldiers of the BDOC lies in keeping the Soldiers on guard duty proficient on their weapons and keeping them ready, at all times, to react to any potential challenge, added Tull.
"We're just trying to maintain a standard," Tull said. "Every unit has a different standard, and right now our biggest challenge is Soldiers coming out of their uniforms."
The BDOC Soldiers said they are pleased that there is a lull in the levels of violence, with attacks currently at an all time low, but they remain vigilant in safeguarding their fellow Soldiers on base so they can perform their vital missions.
They also said the reduction in violence is due to the line units of the Raider BCT and the Iraqi security forces, who ensure that attacks remain low as they continue to aggressively pursue the enemy and find weapons caches. Their mission, they added, is to make sure they have a safe environment to return to.
| Date Taken: | 08.29.2008 |
| Date Posted: | 08.29.2008 04:09 |
| Story ID: | 22989 |
| Location: | BAGHDAD, IQ |
| Web Views: | 459 |
| Downloads: | 261 |
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