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Slingloading Equipment for Redeployment |  |
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Posted on 01/11/2004 8:01:47 AM PST by Ragtime Cowgirl
The mighty, mighty sling load operation itself
MOSUL, Iraq – On a remote mountaintop in northern Iraq, 10 miles east of the town of Tall Afar, soldiers are getting ready to leave their outpost and join fellow soldiers in Mosul. They’re doing it the way soldiers in the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) have been doing it for years – by air.
Soldiers from Bravo Company and Headquarters and Headquarters Company (HHC), 501st Signal Battalion, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) set up a retransmission site eight months ago on a mountain close to Highway One to boost communications between convoys and unit headquarters, said Sgt. Lyle Follmer, radio team chief, HHC, 501st Signal Battalion.
Due to the nature of their job, the soldiers had to find the area with the best reception. That area ended up being on a mountain that is almost inaccessible by driven vehicles, said Capt. Brian North, commander, B Co. 501st Signal Battalion.
Many convoys were coming under attack from ambushes and improvised explosive devices (IEDs). By setting up the retransmission site as an FM radio relay to extend the division’s communications abilities, the soldiers of the 501st Signal Battalion were able to keep vital lines of communication open between soldiers on the road and reinforcements at bases, thereby saving lives.
“The attacks (on soldiers) continued, but the deaths ceased,” Follmer said. “Not another soldier has died since we’ve been out here.”
After eight months of living on a barren, rocky mountain, the soldiers’ mission ended. So they packed up and left. But leaving wasn’t as easy as loading up the back of a High Mobility Multi-Wheeled Vehicle (HMMWV) and driving away.
That’s where two UH-47 Chinook helicopters came in. In three trips the large helicopters carried four HMMWVs, two with Remote Access Units attached to them, as well as a generator, and fuel and water containers. The equipment was attached to hooks on the underbelly of the helicopters. Smaller items such as a refrigerator, large-screen TV, air conditioning unit and boxes of Meals Ready to Eat (MREs) were loaded inside the birds.
“(The Chinooks carried) everything the soldiers required to live up here for seven or eight months,” North said.
A team of eight soldiers from the 501st arrived at the retransmission site the night before the move. They worked together to prepare and rig the loads for transportation. They had to place nets underneath all the heavy equipment and vehicles and make sure that the ropes that would allow the loads to be carried by the helicopters (called sling legs) would be able to support the weight of the loads.
“It wasn’t a hard job because I had plenty of time and squared away people to help me out,” said Staff Sgt. David Burnam, extension section sergeant, B Co. 501st Signal Battalion.
To slingload the equipment soldiers had to hook it up using rings connected to the sling legs. The helicopters slowly lowered to within a few feet of the ground allowing the soldiers to make the attachment as quickly as they could. Then the birds took off eastward.
Once they arrived at Mosul Airfield, soldiers called “line-of-sight operators” signaled to the pilots where to release the loads and land.
“I pretty much ground guide them in just like you would a HMMWV,” said Spc. Jason Cubero, line of sight operator team chief, B Co. 501st Signal Battalion. Once all the soldiers and equipment landed at the airfield, the operation was complete.
“This is one of those great things we get to do in an air assault division,” North said. “There’s (noncommissioned officers) taking charge and soldiers doing their jobs.”
The soldiers are satisfied with the job they’ve done while here in Iraq, but they’re ready to return to their friends and family.
“The mission’s over and we’re getting ready to redeploy,” Follmer said. “I’m looking forward to being with my loved ones again.”
8 Signal Battalion Soldiers Move From Mountaintop ~ DoD | 1/08/04 | Spc. Joshua Hutcheson
| Rank | Location | Receipts | Donors/Avg | Freepers/Avg | Monthlies | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 45 | North Dakota | 65.00 |
1 |
65.00 |
28 |
2.32 |
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Slingloading Equipment for Redeployment | |
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