Mosul Technical Control Facility closure

Photo By Sgt. Amber McLamb | First Lt. Corey Glass, OIC, and Staff Sgt. Brandon Bell, NCOIC, discuss clean-up after the first TCF closure in Iraq history.  

MOSUL, IRAQ

09.13.2011

Story by Spc. Amber McLamb 

50th Signal Battalion (Expeditionary)

MOSUL, Iraq -- It has been almost a decade since United States military operations began in Iraq and now the long awaited closure has started. This closure is a piece of history in which the 50th Signal Battalion (Expeditionary) is a part of by ceasing all strategic communications and replacing them with tactical communications. In order for strategic communications to come to an end soldiers must close the Technical Control Facility for each site that will not be an “Enduring Site”, which is a site run by Department of the State after United States forces have left Iraq.

TCFs are run by soldiers and civilians who ensure that communications are provided throughout their area of operations. Now that the United States is withdrawing its forces from Iraq we must now cease communications. The first TCF closure occurred on Forward Operating Base Diamondback, Mosul, located in the northern province of Ninewa. This closure was conducted by Bravo Company “Red Bulls” 2nd Platoon, 1st Lt. Corey A. Glass, Site officer-in-charge, and Staff Sgt. Brandon Bell, site non-commissioned officer-in-charge. The platoon has a total of 24 soldiers with 18 Civilians by their side to lend a hand. Included in these numbers are Sgt. Dustin Cramner, TCF NCOIC, Ralph Chambliss, TCF Lead, and Justin Dickerson, Sang Huynh, and Spc. Andrew Dunn, TCF technicians.

The TCF closure lasted 72 hours including the initial “flipping the switch off”, which ceased all strategic communications, moving the facility ups, taking servers down, moving racks, wiping down all equipment before packing it in the containers, and degaussing hard drives that can no longer be used. Soldiers worked diligently, yet at a high rate of speed to get the mission accomplished. The soldiers also had to ensure that the equipment was put into the right containers and that all serial numbers matched.

Spc. Steven Scott, Supply NCOIC, kept his hand receipts on hand and compared numbers with Glass to ensure that all equipment was accounted for and being positioned in the proper places. Glass praised Scott by stating that he was one of the most professional and organized soldiers that he has had under his supervision and that he cannot wait for him to become a non-commissioned officer.

After the TCF Closure completed, I asked Staff Sgt. Bell his position on being a part of history and handing Iraq over to its citizens, he stated, “The history of the world is the memory of the past experiences of humans around the world, in which those experiences have been preserved, largely in written records. These are the types of events that my sons are going to read and learn about in history class when they get older, and they will tell their friends, ‘My daddy was there. He is my hero, and I want to be like him when I grow up’. That is what means the most to me – my sons looking up to me as their hero or that person they want to be when they grow up. It feels good to be a part of something so major that has not been done before. We are building a standard for all the other TCFs that 50th oversees [50th has a total of 11 sites], a model for the Soldiers after us to follow. We were given this mission; we had some big shoes to fill, but I never had a doubt in my mind that my Lt.’s and my Soldiers’ performance would be nothing less than remarkable. While here I was able to experience the satisfaction of being able to provide communications to my brothers and sisters on the frontline by producing a bridge for seriously important information to be exchanged in order to execute key missions for Operation NEW DAWN. As far as us handing Iraq back to their people, I feel it has been a long time coming. I understand we have made some monumental accomplishments for Iraq. I also feel that after almost a decade, we have spent way too much time, money, and lives of fallen soldiers during this whole Iraq rendezvous. It has been real, but sometimes you just have to let go. We can use the money we spend here in Iraq on our own people, educations, and our own country’s poverty.” He then finished it off with a quote from an unknown author that made an impression on him, “War never determines who is right, war only determines who is left.”

I also had a chance to sit down with the exuberating 1st Lt. Glass to talk about his position on being a part of Operation New Dawn. He told me, “I am honored to be a part of Operation New Dawn because it is a non-conventional mission that allows a lot of room for leaders to share ideas and collectively establish standard operating procedures that will likely be used for similar operations Army-wide in the near future. In doing so, I am forced to operate at a greater capacity that requires heightened senses, swifter thinking, and a never die spirit. Consistently operating in this manner has helped me to develop habits which ultimately became standards. These standards have been adapted by my soldiers in Mosul, resulting in overall better soldiers. Leading good soldiers on a historic mission is something I find great pleasure and pride in doing and believe it’s something any lieutenant should be proud of”.

• Date Taken: 09.13.2011
• Date Posted: 09.13.2011 09:15
• Story ID: 76939
• Location: MOSUL, IQ