A true partnership

“Oh my god. I’m going to fly right out the back of this thing,” I thought. On jell-o legs I clung for dear life to what I termed the ‘oh sh&t’ handle the gunner pointed out, braced myself against the tug of the wind and snapped picture after picture out the back of the Osprey as we zipped across Helmand province.

Not quite a helicopter and not quite a traditional airplane, the Marine-owned V-22 Osprey is something I soon learned was a very cool aircraft. When I told my co-workers what I’d be traveling in, they were pretty envious, so I was expecting something pretty neat and the Osprey definitely didn’t let me down. Operating as a helicopter when taking off and when making vertical landings, the Osprey can convert mid-air to a turboprop aircraft for faster and more fuel-efficient flight; it also allows the aircraft to perform rolling take-off and landings. When the aircraft makes the change, it almost feels like it stops completely and you get the brief moment of weightlessness, followed by a powerful surge, where, if you happen to be standing on the edge of the gunner platform, you feel like you’re going to be sucked right off. I wasn’t sure if I was more worried about me, or my very-expensive camera, flying out.

The purpose of our visit was for Gen. William Caldwell IV, commander of NATO Training Mission – Afghanistan, to get a better picture of how the Marines in the south were partnering with the Afghan National Police. Our journey took us from Camp Leatherneck to Forward Operating Base Delhi in Garmsir district of Helmand Province to Delaram where a unit of Afghan National Auxiliary Police live and work.

One of the biggest goals of NATO Training Mission is get the Afghan National Security Forces up and running so they can train and equip their own forces and secure their own country. So far, more attention, time and money has been spent on the Afghan National Army and they are far more capable than their police counterparts, something that has been noticed and mentors and trainers are working alongside the police to bring them up to speed. This pairing up is exactly what the Marines of 2nd Battalion, 2nd Marines out of Camp Lejune, N.C., are doing in the south of Afghanistan.

At FOB Delhi, the Marines have created a police mentoring team (PMT) that is embedded with the ANP, living and working alongside them. This, they found, has been successful and plans are underway to create more PMT’s at the police district centers. The police and the local population see that the Marines are in it with them; they are living in the same conditions, they are training the police hands-on and are eating, sleeping and patrolling together and this, more than anything, has had a positive effect on the reception U.S. forces have received. The police recruits see that we are here to help them, we won’t abandon them and that we’re trying to improve security in their country, now and for a lifetime. But let me tell you friends, I will NEVER complain about deployed conditions ever again. These Marines are tough – it was 85 degrees at 10 a.m. and as I ran around taking pictures in my body armor, I thought I was going to pass out. These guys live with no air conditioning, no dining facility where someone else makes the food, no real toilet that flushes and hot water with the turn of a knob. They are truly hard-core.

As the Marines and the ANP took us on a tour through the village outside FOB Delhi, it wasn’t obvious at first (I was too busy keeping the sweat out of my eyes) but soon I noticed that there were no women around. I saw two girls, too young to be in burqa’s, but other than that, nary a woman in sight. It was something I had gotten used to on my last deployment to Afghanistan, where I traveled to rural provincial areas like Teg Ab, Panjshir and Sharana, but in Kabul it’s quite common to see women walking around, both in burqa and in more western-style dress of jeans and dresses, with a simple scarf over their hair. Also noticeable was a less-friendly atmosphere; the people, while not hostile, were definitely less open and quick to interact with us as we walked through the town, even the children, who were curious but didn’t come up to us like usual. When one of the interpreters came up to me and quietly suggested I put something over my hair, I complied, although I don’t like wearing a hat when shooting; the brim always hits the camera.

In addition to the PMT station where the Marines live and work with the police, we saw their Operational Coordination Center-District, which is essentially an operations center where the Afghan police can communicate emergency situations around their district; and the Afghan National Auxiliary Police station, where again, Marines are working side-by-side with the Afghan forces.

Overall, despite the heat, it was a good trip. It’s also interesting to see other parts of the country and get a feel for how different life is for the people here in the rural and urban areas, and to see what progress has been made by our efforts. I only wish there was some way to show the Afghan people that we don’t want to make them into America and we don’t want to be in their country permanently, but we just want to leave them a country that is safer, more stable and secure, where they can live and work in peace, and have a future other than poverty and violence. We just want to give them a chance.

Best of the best ...

I’ve flown on UH-60 Blackhawk and CH-47 Chinook helicopters all over Afghanistan but never on a Russian Mi-17. I wasn’t sure quite what to expect, but the clean, large and roomy interior wasn’t exactly what I had pictured.

Today, I was assigned to cover Lt. Gen. William Caldwell’s visit to the Afghan National Army commandos at Camp Morehead. The purpose of our visit was to see the newest class of commandos graduate – this would be the 7th Kandak (the Afghan equivalent of a company) to graduate since the first class on July 28, 2007 – as well as see an awards presentation.

A large group of commando’s, and one in particular, had helped put down the Taliban attack in Kabul on Monday. These commando’s had graduated on Dec. 31, 2009, and just over two weeks later, they did exactly what they were trained to do – kick some ass.

After the main group of 929 trainees graduated, trading in their green and black berets for those of the elite red that identify them as commando, the Afghan National Army Chief of Staff, Gen. Bismillah Khan Mohammadi, called forth 1st Lt. Mumtaz from the 6th Kandak to be recognized.

Looking like, as my co-worker Petty Officer 2nd Class Hall said, an Afghan version of Jean Claude-Van Dam, Lieutenant Mumtaz was quiet and humble as he accepted his decoration – a first class Barya, similar to an U.S. achievement medal. During the multiple-pronged strategy that made up Monday’s complex attack on the capital, Lieutenant Mumtaz shot and killed a suicide bomber before he could detonate his vest.

During my short time in Kabul, I have witnessed other Afghan security forces graduations and training, and I can say that without a doubt, these forces displayed a strength and discipline I had yet to see. Their 12-week training course is modeled after the U.S. Army Ranger training; in fact, Army Rangers deploy and embed with the commando trainees, living and working with them, instilling their values of discipline and endurance. I spoke with the Task Force Morehead commander and several trainers and they all had the same thing to say – these commando’s are the best of the best.

It was clear to see, from the pride on the faces of the graduates, and the way that they responded to Monday’s attack, that the Rangers training had paid off, and as the commando forces continue to grow, it can mean nothing but good things for the future of Afghanistan.

The journey begins ....

From the beginning, I knew that this deployment would be an interesting experience. Things were rapidly evolving in Afghanistan, from leadershipto organization, and the information being passed on was changing daily. From the time I received my initial deployment notification in September until the time I actually landed at Manas Air Base, Kyrgyzstan, in January, the transition hub for Afghanistan deployers, my deployment had changed five times. Although this was my second time to Afghanistan, and my second JET or in-lieu of tasking, I knew things would be much different than the first time around.

Upon landing at Bagram Air Base our group of about 20 Public Affairs personnel learned there was a flight leaving for Kabul International Airport in less than 12 hours. We were determined to be on the flight; having spent several days in Manas waiting on our luggage to arrive, two days getting from Norfolk to Manas and five weeks at Combat Skills Training in Ft. Dix, N.J. the, "Are we there yet?" feeling was running high. Since the flight show time was relatively close to our arrival time, we were given the direction to stay close by the passenger terminal, so our options included the dining facility, the USO and transient restroom facilities. Already sleep deprived, some decided to just hit the coffee pot and stay up all night, while others curled up wherever there was a space - on benches, chairs and floors. I was somewhere in between. I went for food, used the morale computers to send a few e-mails and decided to take a shower. During my previous deployment and from this travel experience, I learned it was always best to eat and take a shower whenever the opportunity presented itself as you never knew when your next chance would be. Slightly refreshed, I sat down to watch a movie and promptly fell asleep.

That two hours of sleep got me through the next day of travel to Kabul International Airport, Camp Phoenix and then, finally, to Camp Eggers. Another Air Force public affairs member was traveling with me, and as the Army convoy carrying us and our combined 14 bags of luggage dropped us off at the gates of Camp Eggers, we just looked at each other and laughed. It was just getting dark, we didn't know where we were or how we were going to get in touch with our points of contact, move our gear or find a place to sleep forthe night. It was one of those classic "so there we were" moments.

Luckily, the gate guards let us call the PA shop, who promptly showed up with enough people to carry our luggage to the office. It was a whirlwind of movement and within two hours, we'd had dinner, picked up our inprocessing paperwork, got assigned a room and were shown around the camp. My travel partner and I both were lucky enough to get a room in the brand new lodging, complete with a real door and indoor bathrooms. For those military folks who've had to get dressed and walk through the freezing cold in the middle of the night to get to the bathrooms, all the while cursing the fact that you drank water after 7 p.m., you understand how glorious this is.

Understandably, my co-workers who had to live in transient tents for weeks were a little jealous. I had been forwarned that living space was tight so I was prepared for the possibility of tent living but it was just the luck of the draw. So, on day two of my stay at Camp Eggers, I'm beginning to learn the ropes of a joint NATO Training Mission and our role here in Kabul. For me, our mission here is a new concept in military journalism; instead of covering the U.S. military and our efforts in Afghanistan, we highlight the progress the Afghan's are making in learning to govern and discipline themselves and their development as a nation. Both are vital topics, and so while my official capacity is to focus on Afghanistan, I hope to use this forum as a way to share what our team of 20 plus photographers, broadcasters and journalists are doing here, along with those serving with us in Afghanistan and Iraq. What we do, as media professionals, is important, but even more so are the efforts of our fellow military members.