The heavy equipment transporter in Iraq

Courtesy Photo | 296th Transportation Company from Brookhaven, Miss. maneuvers their Heavy Equipment Transport through a serpentine course that replicates driving through some of the smaller roadways within the Baghdad area. The 296th TC falls under the 260th Combat Sustainment Support Battalion, 96th Sustainment Brigade, 13th Sustainment Command (Expeditionary).  

BAGHDAD, IRAQ

12.14.2009

Courtesy Story

13th Armored Corps Sustainment Command (13th ESC)

CAMP LIBERTY, Iraq — The Heavy Equipment Transporter slowly and deliberately weaves back and forth between the barriers and cones down the dark and dusty road as its operator gains familiarity and experience with the giant vehicular system that plays a vital role in the U.S. Army's current responsible drawdown of forces in Iraq today.

The behemoths creak and squeal as they carry large vehicles and heavy loads through the 296th Transportation Company's training lanes. Staff Sgt. Kenneth Hannah of Jacksonville, Florida, is the noncommissioned officer in charge of the HET training lanes. He observes, instructs, and executes training for the equipment operators of 296th TC, an Army Reserve Transportation Company currently deployed in Iraq. The HET operators transport vehicles throughout Iraq, and according to Maj. Ralph Arrington, the 296th TC's company commander from Brookhaven, Miss., they will continue to move vehicles to various locations for continued operations and to assist with the Army's responsible drawdown plan, moving vehicles to staging areas where they get sent back to the United States or other Army areas of operation.

1st Lt. James Posey is a Hattiesburg, Miss. resident and the officer in charge of the 296th HET training program. He coordinates with several other units on Camp Liberty to get different vehicles out to the training event.

"Other units offer support for the HET operators by providing opportunities to practice winching and tying-down vehicles such as Mine Resistant Ambush Protected and Stryker vehicles," Posey said.

Staff Sgt. Hannah watches closely as the operators use heavy chains and tools to tie-down and secure vehicles on the HET trailers.

"Using different vehicles and load configurations in training provides the operators much needed experience for when they travel throughout Iraq maneuvering various types of loads and equipment. Every type of vehicle gets tied-down in a specific way by the operators and affects the operation of the HET system," said Hannah. He ensures that the 296th TC HET operators know how each type of vehicle affects the operators' driving. "The M1A1 Abrams tanks give the HET trailers a lower center of gravity but create large blind spots that the operators must learn to compensate for. MRAP vehicles raise the center of gravity of the trailers, causing the operators to be more cautious when driving around corners or on uneven roadways." Staff Sgt. Hannah instructs and corrects the operators while they train in both daylight and the blinding darkness of moonless nights.

Hannah and Posey work on training scenarios for the HET operators that vary each day and night. Some nights the operators practice a serpentine weave through cones and/or barriers and on others they practice backing the monstrous systems straight down a long, bumpy, and dusty road. Hannah said that the operators learn the difference between driving a HET system with independently turning wheels, called bogies, compared to a normal trailer with static axles and wheels. "A HET drives more like a car than a regular trailer."

The extreme width of a HET trailer causes many issues as operators drive down some of the narrow roads and checkpoints throughout Iraq. Hannah ensures the operators know to drive slow and cautiously around turns and through checkpoints despite often transporting equipment on a tight schedule. "It is important that HET operators transport equipment safely and quickly," said Lt. Col. Robert Dixon, the commander for the 260th CSSB and a Frankfort, Ind. native. Dixon usually tells troops, "Slow is smooth and smooth is fast."

• Date Taken: 12.14.2009
• Date Posted: 12.14.2009 09:43
• Story ID: 42728
• Location: BAGHDAD, IQ