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KANDAHAR AIRFIELD, Afghanistan — Twelve months in the making, Task Force Arctic Wolves successfully completed their mission in southern Kandahar province and transferred authority to the incoming Task Force Arrowhead and the local Afghan National Security Forces.
Col. Todd R. Wood and Command Sgt. Maj. Bernie Knight, commander and senior enlisted adviser of Task Force Arctic Wolves, cased the unit colors and transferred their responsibilities to Col. Chuck Webster and Command Sgt. Maj. Samuel Murphy, commander and senior enlisted advisor of Task Force Arrowhead. 1st Brigade, 205th Atal Corps, commanded by Brigadier Gen. Ahmed Habibi, hosted the ceremony at Camp Hero, Kandahar province, Afghanistan, April 19, 2012.
The soldiers of the 1st Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division that made up Task Arctic Wolves deployed from Fort Wainwright, Alaska to southern Afghanistan in April of last year. Their mission consisted of partnering with local ANSF in order to enable the Afghan forces to conduct independent security operations.
During their 12-month deployment, Task Force Arctic Wolves conducted more than 60 major operations in partnership with the 1/205th, Afghan National Police and Afghan Civil Order Police, resulting in the discovery and destruction of more than 600 improvised explosive devices, 9,300 lbs. of explosives, and more than 144,000 pounds of illicit drugs. Together with their Afghan partners, Task Force Arctic Wolves conducted more than 7,500 combat patrols and reduced enemy attacks by more than 60 percent in the districts of Panjwa’i, Dand, and Daman.
Task Force Arctic Wolves enabled Afghan security forces to conduct two major complex operations; Operation Hope Hero in November 2011 and, just recently, Operation Kalak Hode II in April 2012. The operations were the first to be independently planned, coordinated and executed by Afghan National Army and Afghan police forces in southern Kandahar. In addition to these operations, ANSF conducted two Afghan independent air assault operations.
The partnership between Wood’s task force and Habibi’s 1/205th was instrumental for the sustained peace and security throughout the historically volatile district of Panjwa’i. The partnership with the local police forces in Daman and Dand enabled those Afghan forces to assume primacy in security for their districts and bring sustainable security and stability to the region, setting conditions for transition of all security operations in southern Kandahar.
During the transfer of authority ceremony at Camp Hero, district-level government leaders and security commanders commended Wood on the success of the task force and the Afghan partnership over the past 12 months.
Habibi noted the increased security in areas that were known Taliban strongholds one year ago.
“The enemy that used to have headquarters and were strong in Panjwa’i have been pushed out,” he said.
Security leaders commended the Task Force Arctic Wolves’ leadership for the successes over the past year and credited the task force for the future peace and prosperity of the region.
The ceremony represented the conclusion of the mission and partnership for Task Force Arctic Wolves, and the start of the mission and partnership for Task Force Arrowhead.
This is not just a transition between Col. Wood and Col. Webster but an example of the way ahead, said Maj. Gen. Jim Huggins, commander of the 82nd Airborne Division and International Security Assistance Forces Regional Command-South.
“This is the future,” he added.
At the conclusion of the ceremony, Wood and Knight said their goodbyes and good wishes to their Afghan partners and departed Afghanistan to reunite with more than half of the 1/25th, which have already returned to Alaska.
Over the next few weeks, the remaining soldiers of the 1/25th will redeploy to Fort Wainwright, Alaska, and join their families and loved ones back home after having completed their mission and having brought security to more than 100,000 Afghan people who have not known security or freedom in more than 30 years.
Task Force Arrowhead is expected to continue to set conditions for the transition of security operations and to prepare Afghanistan for the projected 2014 withdrawal of U.S. forces.
| Date Taken: | 04.19.2012 |
| Date Posted: | 04.20.2012 13:11 |
| Story ID: | 87075 |
| Location: | KANDAHAR AIRFIELD, AF |
| Hometown: | KANDAHAR, AF |
| Hometown: | KANDAHAR AIRFIELD, AF |
| Hometown: | KANDAHAR PROVINCE, AF |
| Hometown: | PANJWA'I DISTRICT, AF |
| Hometown: | PANJWAI DISTRICT, AF |
| Hometown: | FAIRBANKS, AK, US |
| Hometown: | WAINWRIGHT, AK, US |
| Web Views: | 759 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
This work, Arctic Wolves transfer their mission and come home, by MAJ David Mattox, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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