BAGHDAD, Iraq -- Seven Task Force 38 Soldiers acted as liaison officers here at Camp Victory during the unit's approximate one-year deployment in support of Operation Iraq Freedom.
"It's important because the coordination that has to happen between general officers and their staff with our operations is key to mission success," said Army Lt. Col. Mark Coplen, Austin, Texas, a corps combat aviation brigade liaison officer. "It's coordination between the people who want the support to the people who provide the support."
As the, Multi-National Corps - Iraq, which is now United States Forces – Iraq, I Corps and III Corps combat aviation brigade, Task Force 38, flew general officers, VIPs and other troops throughout Iraq.
"There are more than 40 general officers who we support," said Coplen, who has been on duty here since August. "We are the first to be asked [to support an air mission] every time."
According to Coplen, if Task Force 38 could not support the request, the liaison team then asked other aviation units in division-level commands in Iraq for assistance.
Due to mission requirements three of the Soldiers moved on to other jobs and late in the deployment the Baghdad liaison team consisted of individual ready reserve Soldier Coplen, and Indiana National Guard Soldiers: Maj. Rob Marszalek, Master Sgt. Wayne Leuthold and Staff Sgt. Chris Jenks.
"We bend over backwards to help people out, not just VIPs but regular Joes too," said Leuthold, Lafayette, Ind., a corps combat aviation brigade liaison Soldier.
Leuthold likened their job to firefighters who extinguish fires.
"We're firefighters. We take care of issues throughout the day. We deal directly with planning officers to make sure all issues pertaining to their [general officer] flights are addressed," said Leuthold. "It's really like putting out fires with all the cancellations, changes and additions. Some days are slow, and some we're just pulling our hair out."
Yet those flight changes for the generals, VIPs and troops were competently and efficiently taken in stride.
"They are our customers so we got to provide a high level of service of taking care of our customers," said Leuthold, who started the liaison job in September.
The Task Force 38 Baghdad liaison team worked at the Al Faw palace in the joint operations center, the mission control area for United States Forces - Iraq.
"We're the direct line between the generals and the combat aviation brigade," said Marszalek, Griffith, Ind., who rotated into the liaison job in March. "Because the generals need someone to talk to, know, modify or change the status of their flights."
According to Marszalek in addition to being the direct link from general officer staffs to Task Force 38, the Baghdad liaison crew had other jobs too.
"We're responsible for the main website where people check flights, check adds and delete requests," said Marszalek. "We're also the joint operations center point of contact for all corps CAB operations. Anytime JOC personnel need something that pertains to Task Force 38, they come through us, the liaison office."
The Baghdad liaison Soldiers worked as a single unit and did what it took to complete their mission.
"It's a team concept here to get the job done, staying past a scheduled shift or coming in early," said Leuthold.
When new Soldiers rotated into the Baghdad liaison position, the existing team worked together to teach those Soldiers the obligations of the job.
"I got him squared away," said Leuthold of the team's newest Soldier, Jenks.
Jenks admitted some trepidation when he moved from the air mission request team at JBB to working as a liaison at USF-I headquarters.
"Well when I was told I would be moving down here, several things had popped into my head. One of them being, 'I can't screw this up,'" said Jenks of Huntington, Ind. "Then I thought about how cool it would be to work in the palace and see what Saddam's lifestyle was like before the war."
According to the military's tour script, the Al Faw Palace is one of 89 Saddam Hussein had while he was in power, and its construction was completed prior to Desert Storm.
However Jenks said working in the palace, around general officers hasn't fazed the Baghdad team's newest member, and he found his previous job and his new job very similar.
"I have found that being a liaison is much like working as a non-commissioned officer in the air mission request cell [at JBB]," Jenks said.
While the Task Force 38 team integrated new Soldiers, they also worked well together with their bigger team, the people who worked in the JOC.
One of the JOC battle captains praised the Task Force 38 Soldiers for their hard work.
"The guys I deal with on a regular basis are good dudes. They're on top of their game," said Chief Warrant Officer 2 Steve Hatcher, an active duty Army aviator from Enterprise, Ala. "They know their job well, and they have the ability to make the changes we need right there."
| Date Taken: |
05.03.2010 |
| Date Posted: |
05.03.2010 06:17 |
| Story ID: |
49028 |
| Location: |
BAGHDAD, IQ |
| Web Views: |
353 |
| Downloads: |
287 |
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This work, Task Force 38 liaison Soldiers coordinate flights for mission success, by MSG Jeff Lowry, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
