By Sgt. Kevin Stabinsky
2nd Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division Public Affairs Officer
FORWARD OPERATING BASE KALSU, Iraq – "You ready!" With two words the Ironclaw route clearance team rolls their vehicle toward the gate, ready to undertake a mission some might call crazy, yet one the combat engineers of the 3rd Battalion, 7th Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, call necessary: removing dangerous obstacles.
This unit, which earned much of its notoriety in World War II removing German obstacles and spanning harsh terrain on the Allies' march to Berlin, is earning new stripes in the deserts of Iraq.
The defensive fortifications and machine gun nests of Europe and the Pacific have been replaced by the less obvious, but equally deadly, improvised explosive device. The weapon of choice for most insurgents due to ease of construction and availability of building material, IEDs are emplaced as an obstacle to coalition forces.
The Soldiers occupying the Buffalo mine-protected vehicle show a cool demeanor that comes from experience, proper training, faith in each other and the steel, moveable fortress they occupy.
While adrenaline courses fast during missions, the vehicle trudges along. The slow pace, often sustained for hours on end, allows the Soldiers to be more alert to the possible signs of potential IEDs. It also gives the group plenty of time to form a tight bond.
So far the group has successfully dug up dozens of IEDs and IED components, including two 120-mm rounds, one gallon of homemade explosives, multiple pressure plates and more than a kilometer of command wire (used for sending the charge to the blasting cap that detonates the IED). They pride themselves on never setting one off.
During the course of the mission, the team notices a burned-out truck cab on the side of the road. They notice what appear to be wires sticking out of the busted-out windshield. Thankfully, the wires are attached to nothing, creating an air of relief in the team.
Though all the Soldiers claimed to enlist as combat engineers because it sounded exciting and they wanted the chance to work with explosives and demolitions, these life-saving missions, where they keep explosions from occurring rather than causing them, still fill them with pride.
No more potential threats or IEDs are uncovered on the mission. Still, the Soldiers who will follow on the trails these engineers blaze can drive with less worry, knowing their path has been cleared.