Notes from Afganistan

[Carl Harrod]

Here is a link to an article that was in the local paper that tells a little more about the mission that the 864th Engineer Battalion is working on in Afaganistan.

http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/story/5196101p-4722355c.html

[Carl Harrod]

Here is a very nice tribute to the two soldiers (1Lt Walker and Sgt Davis).  It may take a while to load, but I think it is worth it.

http://www.heaterfamily.com/TEST/Memorial.html

[Carl Harrod]

Notes From Afghanistan - 25 SEP 05
Date: Sun, 25 Sep 2005 10:07:05 +0000
 
Dear Family & Friends,

It's a blessing to have a bit of a break, to see the majority of my Soldiers in one place, and to take time to reflect on what we did and what we are preparing to do.  I haven't had the luxury of seeing even half of my Soldiers in one place at one time in the past.  We've been spread out for months and on 27 SEP 05 I'll have a chance to see nearly three-quarters of them at KAF.  We're preparing for an awards ceremony to recognize many of the superior performers during the last six months and to present combat awards.  The commanding general, Major General Jason Kamiya, will present the awards.

Last night I even had a "Hail & [no] Farewell."  We routinely have one of these casual dinners every six to eight weeks in the United States but haven't had one here since the second month of our tour because we weren't together and didn't have anyone leaving. While we're deployed no one is allowed to depart the unit except for emergency situations.  It's a fun event to recognize new people and say good-bye but it's also a time for me to speak to all the officers and senior NCOs.  Now that we're half way in our deployment I wanted to make it clear that I'm not impressed by what we've done.  I want them to run full speed to the finish line in March 2006.  I explained "there's only one competition in America where you get a prize for coming in first place at the half-way mark - it's the Iditarod in Alaska - and in case you haven't figured it out, this isn't Alaska!"  I've watched units come in excited and full of energy only to loose momentum and have the unit that replaces them look around and ask if anything was done for the last few months.  We'll finish at full speed and make our Nation proud.

During this week I had a chance to see on the new road projects we'll be working on.  It's a relatively flat section of road, 80 km long, with long open terrain for a large portion of it but one very large mountain pass that separates the open areas.  As you can guess, the Taliban like to make attacks in the mountain areas and we have some very rough areas ahead: very tight switchbacks, narrow mountain passes, and logistical challenges.  Cap this off with the fact that we'll be racing against the weather.  If we don't get to the pass by snowfall I may have a unit isolated on the far side of the pass, which will be a transportation nightmare.  Of course this gives me a new opportunity to travel on the roads and in the air to see each of the different projects. 

We're also preparing to chance the task organization of engineer companies.  Near the beginning of December I'll be getting back my B Company from Task Force Wildcat and I'll release C Company, 926th Engineer Battalion.  I can't wait to get the Soldiers from my B Company back.  I took command in January 2005 and deployed 60 days later.  Other than two visits, I haven't had a chance to work with them at all because they've been attached to another unit.  The Soldiers of B Company are great and they've made a huge impact on Eastern Afghanistan.  I purposely sent B Company to the east because I know they have the strength and maturity for independent operations.  Instead of them coming to us, we'll be coming to them as we reset our forces in the east, closer to Pakistan.

Each week that passes the food becomes a bit more tiring.  Kellogg, Brown, and Root (KBR) provide the contracted food service in the main locations like KAF but in the remote FOBs we prepare and serve food way we did when I came in the Army.  Although the food selection is good and no one goes hungry, there's little flavor.  Growing up with Italian dishes made by my mother and carried on by my wife make the KBR chow very bland.  I don't have any complains except that I'm looking forward to some dishes made with love and spice.  We also get ice cream bars pretty often except that all of them arrive expired 2-10 months ago.  In the US the freshness date meant things were thrown out - here it means "Serve to Soldiers, they'll eat anything." 

There are also some highlights in the chow hall, I like to remember the names of the KBR employees and call them by name when I see them.  I met Frank several months ago and he enjoys our light conversation but in August he saw me limping and asked what happened.  I told him and his face grew somber.  I haven't seen Frank in a few weeks but finally saw him a few nights ago.  He went home on leave and came back refreshed.  When he saw me he immediately stuck his hand in his pocket and pulled out a set of rosary beads and two prayer cards from his home church where his mother had them blessed by his priest (he had been carrying them for several days in Afghanistan until he saw me).  He told his mother what happened to me and he wanted to bring back the beads so I knew his family was praying for me.  I was touched and couldn't thank him enough for his thoughtfulness.  Somehow the bland chow didn't seem that bad that night.

I pray for all of you often as we continue the mission here.

All my best,

Paul

LTC Paul M. Paolozzi
Commander, Task Force Pacemaker
Kandahar Air Field, Afghanistan

[Carl Harrod]

Sun, 2 Oct 2005 10:17:54 +0000

Dear Family & Friends,

It's remarkable that our fall weather still has not begun.  October still has highs in the 90s here in Kandahar with much lower temperatures in the locations we plan to move to in the east.  We still haven't had one drop of ran in Kandahar since the last week of April.  Every day brings bright sunshine with no clouds with only our prayers for just a bit of rain.  I'm sure in the next few months the rain will begin coupled with winter snows in the mountains and I'll be wishing I was in Kandahar with days filled with cloudless sunshine.  I included a picture of the ground here - it breaks into tile-like chunks that are as solid as kiln dried clay.

The Commanding General of Operation Enduring Freedom, Major General Kamiya was our special guest at an award ceremony we had on the 27th of September.  He wanted to present awards to my Soldiers for combat, wounds received, and meritorious achievement (overall 109 awards).  Overall it was a great event to recognize the efforts that I've been writing to you about for the last six months.  Our Army recently decided to add a badge to the list of awards to recognize Soldiers who aren't infantry who engage the enemy or are engaged by the enemy in direct combat.  Forty-seven of the new Combat Action Badges were first awarded in Afghanistan to my Soldiers in this formation.  I received the Purple Heart for wounds, the Army Commendation Medal, and the Combat Action Badge. 

Today I returned from two days in Baghram.  My Command Sergeant Major and I attended a commanders' conference to discuss the important topics of the deployment.  It's a quarterly two-day event that gives us an azimuth check on operations, intelligence, senior-level planning, and Soldier issues.  I enjoy just getting away for two days to be with the other senior leaders.  We had a BBQ last night complete with the small packages of Heinz Ketchup.  I haven't had American Ketchup since March so it tasted like a slice of home.  We get Middle Eastern ketchup that has a bold vinegar taste but it tastes horrible (an insult to American beef). I asked the cooks if I could have a bag of the ketchup packets to take back to KAF and they offered the whole box.  Yes, I took it - all 1000 packets, for a total of 20 pounds of ketchup.  That should last me at least a week (just kidding).

Going to Baghram has its drawbacks too.  I like going there and I like leaving too.  It's crowded and filled with Soldiers who never get off the base.  We all serve in our own way and make contributions but I'm much more comfortable being on the road eating dirt sandwiches with my Soldiers as they carve road into the Afghan terrain.  Two days of Baghram is a belly-full and I was happy to get back. 

It's interesting to study the motives of our enemy: some fight for religious reasons, some fight purely for monetary rewards, and some here fight for warlordism (come on my turf and I'll fight you no matter who you are).  We tend to lump the enemy all together and treat them the same.  Not understanding why they fight leaves us fighting with not much of an end.  We need to affect the hateful madras centers (most are in Pakistan) with a clear understanding of why we are here, cut off the financial support and give other opportunities to those motivated by money, and integrate the warlords into the legitimate governmental organizations such as the Army and the Police.  It's a long term job but not much has changed in Afghanistan in several centuries but we're doing our best while we're here.

This week is the first week to be over the hump.  We're officially closer to going home than arriving here.  Part of the planning conference included redeployment home operations.  Frankly, I can't wait.

All my best,

Paul

LTC Paul M. Paolozzi
Commander, Task Force Pacemaker
Kandahar Air Field, Afghanistan

[Carl Harrod]

Notes From Afghanistan - 9 OCT 05
Date: Sun, 9 Oct 2005 11:17:36 +0000

Dear Family & Friends,

Seven Soldiers fire three volleys into the air, bagpipes start playing "Amazing Grace," and the flag-draped casket carried by eight paratroopers marches by my position.  We render last honors to the four fallen paratroopers killed this week in combat and pray this will be the last but realistically know there will be more ceremonies in the future.  2005 is now the year with the greatest amount of American wounded and killed in Operation Enduring Freedom.  Although I've attended several ramp ceremonies, it's still hard to quietly hold back the emotion as the casket enters the aircraft.  Looking at a casket is somber but seeing one with a flag on it contains special significance - this Soldier died defending our Nation and world-wide freedom.  It's permanent and has a bitter sting that we've experienced too many times since we've arrived in March.  One of my fellow commanders came over to my position after his fallen Soldiers were placed onto the aircraft and said "Paul, I never wanted to join your club." He hadn't had any Soldiers killed in combat up to that point and sadly joined a group that has more included than hoping they don't join.  The ceremony last week honored five aviators.  They died when they're CH-47 Chinook was shot down by and RPG.  It was especially hard to watch the Nevada National Guardsmen carry their friends that they've know since kindergarten onto the aircraft.  I pray don't have to be in the honor party ever again.  [It's called a ramp ceremony because we do it at the ramp of an Air Force aircraft that will carry the body of the fallen Soldier back to his or her family in the United States]

On Monday I was interviewed on live National Radio in front of an audience of 1.2 million people.  The broadcast was a part of "America at Night" with Kate Delaney.  I'm not sure who's listening to the radio at the wee hours of the morning but I enjoyed speaking about what we're doing in Afghanistan.  Frankly, I think there are several news sources looking for the "good news" stories that make the American people feel good about what were doing over here.  We're ready to meet the enemy and defeat him in close combat but those opportunities aren't presented very often because you can't sneak up and shoot the enemy in a bulldozer.  Engineers make a lasting impact on the Nation and how people are connected and we've been contacted several times to tell the story.

During mid-week I was invited to attend a high-level meeting of the North Atlantic Council (NAC) of NATO.  The whole council of 26 ambassadors came to Kandahar to survey where the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) would be taking over the operation in Afghanistan.  American forces will shift to the southeast quarter and continue the fight in OEF where the enemy contact is more likely.  Although I didn't speak during the working luncheon, I was honored to be there to get the same brief and hear their questions as they spoke about the military interests of NATO.

The following night I was invited to Task Force Storm (the aviators) Combat Dining-in.  It's normally a formal military event complete with large quantities of alcohol consumed.  Drinking alcohol in the combat theater is against standing regulations so TF Storm improvised.  The aviation TF and my TF have had a great relationship and I was honored to attend with my CSM.  The evening came complete with Germany party hats, plastic beer mugs, and good company.  Events such as this really add to the special time we're having in this desolate country.  During the night I met several other TF commanders from the east that I haven't met yet.  When I grew up my name was quickly recognized because of my father's business, now my family name is recognized in Afghanistan because my unit builds quality roads - FAST.  Many times I heard "Oh, you're the commander of the guys who built that enormous road so quickly - great job - what are you doing next?"

Our weather is starting to feel very nice.  High temperatures in Kandahar hover in the low 90s and evening temps get no lower than 62.  It's very comfortable but I know it's going to change soon.

I've included a few construction photos from KAF, dining in photos, the CSM at an NCO induction ceremony, and a few of today's baptism after church.

All my best,

Paul

LTC Paul M. Paolozzi
Commander, Task Force Pacemaker
Kandahar Air Field, Afghanistan

[Carl Harrod]

Notes From Afghanistan - 16 OCT 05
Date: Mon, 17 Oct 2005 10:08:18 +0000
 
Dear Family & Friends,

A full year's worth of special events and holidays will pass by before we get home.  Today is my son Aaron's Birthday, he's 16 today, a licensed driver, and now on the fast road to more than just driving a car.  I look forward to seeing my family in person and celebrating some past events and forthcoming activities.  Hopefully at the end of next month I'll be able to take some leave.

During the last week we've been very busy addressing the issues we knew we had planned and responding quickly to the events we didn't have planned.  Last night and six nights earlier we received in-coming fire at KAF.  The attack almost a week ago didn't injure anyone but it did damage two aircraft.  The attack last nigh landed in a subcompound on KAF but only lightly injured one Soldier.  We've been blessed so far in that we haven't had anyone killed by the rockets and mortars - all marked "to whom it may concern."  There's no telling where these indirect attacks will land and no one enjoys being smooshed into a concrete bunker during the middle of the night.  There's something eerie about hearing the wailing siren in the middle of the night.  It brings back memories of hearing the SCUD alerts in the Gulf War in '91 except that once the sirens go off here all of the rounds are complete.  In 1991 when the sirens went off it meant the rockets were about to arrive but we didn't know where.   

In addition to our unexpected rocket and mortar attacks  my Task Force received a Warning Order (WARNO) to be ready to deploy to Pakistan in 96 hours.  Everyone looked forward to getting everything ready for a three day convoy through the historic Khyber Pass into Pakistan to help millions of people in need of heavy construction equipment.  No military unit in Afghanistan has more or larger equipment than I do.  My Soldiers went into action working into the night to repair every piece of equipment, pack connexs, and prepare to load out for a change of mission.  Disappointingly we were told two days later we would not go.  The presence of American combat troops crossing into Pakistan was more than the three governments could handle, regardless of the human tragedy involved.  Our presence could make the Musharif Government look weak and generate some of the more militant population to revolt.  I explained to my Task Force that we wouldn't be going in a large formation and received quite a few disappointed looks.  Our battalion motto of "Aliquid Expectavit" or Latin for "Anything Expected" seemed so applicable.  I translate it more appropriately to "We're ready, bring it on!"

Instead of going to Pakistan we're resuming our previous course to build two new roads.  My companies are starting to depart in large groups to the remote FOBs eager to begin the final chapter of their deployment in Afghanistan.  It's sad to see them go; we've had quite a few Task Force wide events include a Task Force Run, awards ceremony, several formations, and unit social events.  I've included some of the photos from the run.  Since we've been here no unit has had a run this large.  I heard quite a few moans and groans that some of the units not accustomed to formation running, after several months of construction, would unable to keep up.  They all did fine and after the run I spoke to all the Soldiers congratulating them on their successes thus far.  I even received a few comments from Soldiers explaining how much they enjoyed having our unit wake up the whole post with our enormous presence and cadence calling.  It's good to be bold at times.

My final comments come from an Infantry company commander and his first sergeant - "The road allows us to quickly interdict the enemy and now gives the people in the remote areas between Kandahar and Tarin Kowt the opportunity to come to Kandahar in less than three hours when it took them more than a full day before.  People in the isolated areas that have never been to Kandahar can now see what's available to them so they can improve their lives."  It was great to hear from our infantry brothers who use the road how important the road is to them as the fight the enemy and the local people as they improve their lives.  It couldn't be a better reward.

My God Bless all of you,
Paul

[Carl Harrod]

Notes From Afghanistan - 23 OCT 05
Date: Sun, 23 Oct 2005 09:17:13 +0000
 
Dear Family & Friends,

It felt great to get back on the project site.  It's been almost a month since we closed down all road operations to Tarin Kowt and now we're back in full swing - working the road from Qualat to Shinkay across a large mountain pass and creating a FOB out of a small outpost in Sharana.  Soon after we create all of the living arrangements in Sharana we'll begin the Sharana to Gardez Road.  It's another road that will connect two provincial capitols and increase the amount of interaction between provinces that rarely work together.  The best way to bolster the morale of my Soldiers is to give them a though job that they came into the Army to do and then let them do their very best.  Soldiers will always complain a bit but all of us enjoy a good challenge.

I had a humorous Article-15 appeal this week.  In the military, company commanders are authorized to administer Non-judicial punishment under Article 15 of the Uniformed Code of Military Justice.  One of my company commanders punished a Soldier for leaving his weapon unsecured three times in open locations.  The first two times the Soldier was counseled and orally reprimanded.  The third time the commander had enough and administered what I thought to be light punishment.  The Soldier then decided to appeal the commander's decision to me, the next higher level commander.  I reviewed the punishment, decided that the commander was fair and within his bounds, and that I would not overturn the decision of the company commander.  Instead of just denying it I asked the Soldier to report to me so I could explain my reasoning.  Before I spoke I allowed the Soldier to bring any additional evidence to show why I should overturn the company commander.  He explained several times how he was normally responsible, that these were isolated incidents, and he was being singled-out.  After I listened to him I then started to explain my reasoning for upholding the company commander's punishment.  While I was speaking, the Soldier started breaking out in a sweat, seemed very nervous, and finally couldn't control his anxiousness any longer.  He asked to be excused from the proceeding.  I asked why and his response was, "Sir, I forgot my weapon in the bathroom."  I excused him, paused for a brief moment after he left, and then couldn't help but burst out laughing.  This Soldier was trying to make a point that he was being singled-out for leaving his weapon unsecured yet during the proceeding he did the same thing.  When he returned (he left it in a bathroom in another building) I briefly looked at him and asked "Do we need to continue this?"  He sheepishly said "no."  There's a first for everything.

I passed a bit of a personal milestone this week.  I turned 40 on 17 October.  Thank you all for your birthday e-mail wishes and cards.  My senior NCOs and officers had a special dinner for me to include a beautiful cake to include a musical candle.  The Afghani bakery that made it translated "over the hill" to "over the hump" in the cake writing. Although the cake looked nice, its taste left much to be desired.   Rae Ann to the rescue; on 18 OCT I received a big box complete with a yellow cake, tub of chocolate frosting, small plates, napkins, forks, and a plastic knife.  I iced the cake and brought it to dinner the next night.  Needless to say, it disappeared in seconds after dinner - each of us had two pieces.  It was the best tasting cake I've had in years.  Rae Ann froze it at home after taking it from the oven, wrapped it several times, and then sent the frosting separately.   The last time she did this I was in Kosovo in 2001 - same cake, different year.  Simple things seem to mean the most.

The officers of the unit recall our departure ceremony where I was quoted to say "I had a brief moment of pity for the insurgent fool enough to attack my Soldiers."  They decided to twist that into the old "Mr. T" line that always starts with "I pity the fool..."  One of my gifts was a caricature of me with Mr. T features.  It proudly hangs in my office in KAF. 

I did quite a bit of driving this week.  I wanted to travel with one of my large convoys going east to ensure Soldiers see me in the same convoy with them, sharing the risk of driving the roads where the enemy knows we transit.  It took us 11.5 hours to go from Kandahar to Ghazni.  The following morning it took us 8.5 hours to go from Ghazni into our new FOB at Sharana.  Twenty hours in a car is bad but 20 hours in body armor inside a Humvee is back-breaking.  When we arrived in Ghazni the first night my route clearance team came from Sharana to guide us into the new FOB the following morning.  As the came up to meet us they detected four IEDs: three 107mm rockets buried in the ground and one Italian plastic anti-tank mine.  The rockets would have delivered serious damage but the mine would have ripped any of my vehicles apart.  Thank God the route clearance team did their job with such professionalism; plastic anti-tank mines are very hard to find.  Each time I take one of these large movements I breathe a sigh of relief we made another one without a Soldier wounded.

Not a day goes by where I don't think of enjoying relaxing conversation with each of you in a more pleasant location.  I never want to wish a day away but I do look forward to a rapid return to my family.  It appears that I'll be able to take leave near the end of November for two weeks.  I pray nothing changes so I can take a bit of a break with my family.

I included a few photos of the convoy, our new home in Sharana from my helicopter seat (doors open), the birthday, and FOB construction.

Happy Birthday Dad!  He's "over 40" again today.  I wish I was there to celebrate his special day.

All my best,

Paul

LTC Paul M. Paolozzi
Commander, Task Force Pacemaker
Kandahar Air Field, Afghanistan

[Carl Harrod]

Notes From Afghanistan - 30 OCT 05
Date: Sun, 30 Oct 2005 11:05:28 +0000
 
Dear Family & Friends,

The road building machine is in full swing and the vertical constructions teams continue to move forward at a rapid pace.  Now instead of just being on KAF I get the chance to see Pacemaker Soldiers working in Sharana and FOB Sweeney.  Last week I enjoyed a few days with the teams in Sharana and this week I spent four days in FOB Sweeney so I could see the B-hut construction, road building, and maintenance teams.  Sweeney is a busy location.  It's commanded by an infantry company commander with approximately 150 Afghan National Army (ANA) Soldiers.  Now that my 160 engineers arrived we've almost overwhelmed the place.  The vertical platoons started construction of 18 B-huts for living areas, a new mess hall, and several additional structures to support the infantry.  Members of Charlie Company have had to run their own FOB for the last eight months with all of the less desirable duties too: burning feces from the latrines, guard duty, KP, and general FOB maintenance.  The Infantry hires local contract labor to do many of the daily tasks and has asked that my engineers stay completely focused on engineer tasks.  Obviously, Soldiers who get to build structures all day long are very happy and love FOB Sweeney because they get to do what they came into the Army to do.  It's a very strong symbiotic relationship.  While I was visiting I spent a full day working with one of the squads on the roof of a B-hut.  After eight hours of carpentry I was exhausted and happy that I had to cut the day short because of my staff meeting.  The Soldiers work no less than 13 hours with a half hour for lunch and two breaks during the day.  One of my surveyors mentioned that night "Sir, I've never seen you working like that before.  For an old guy you can hang on the rafters just like the young guys."  I didn't tell him I'd be sore in the morning, I just smiled and said "thanks allot." I didn't know if I just received a slam or a compliment.  Either way I had a great time and enjoyed the company of Soldiers while showing that I had a bit of carpentry skill.

Sweeney is also the location where our next road begins - just 30 miles from the Pakistan border.  The Charlie Company earthmovers and the Equipment Platoon from the Headquarters Company are task organized to attack the third section of this road that leads into the Dab Pass and then toward the Ring Road.  I drove the whole road with the Charlie Company commander so I could see each foot of where my Soldiers would be working.  It's one thing to fly over it in a helicopter and quite another thing to ride each mile of it so you truly know the path of the road.  In recent months we've had several IEDs, direct fire engagements, and many attacks on the ANA in the same pass so when we transit the area we like to have as much firepower as possible.  We're racing against time and weather on this mission.  If we don't get the road and bridge done in time the weather may close the pass and I'll have a full company's worth of equipment stuck on the wrong side.  The borrow pits that we find along the route are plentiful and make an excellent sub base course for traffic here in Afghanistan.  Several of the Soldiers comment that it's a quick moving project as long as the borrow materials, maintenance teams, and parts/tires hold out.  Tires get chewed up like no place I've ever seen.

It's enjoyable to eat dinner at FOB Sweeney.  Both groups of my Soldiers come into the same location - some covered head to toe in dirt from a full day on the road and the others sun drenched and sweating from 13 hours on a ladder swinging a hammer.  All of them talk as if they're having the best time of their deployment even if they're so far from home.  It's quite a collection of characters that love to do their job but are eager to see their families.

FOB Sweeney comes with a few other friends too.  They have three camp dogs and one kitten.  The kitten keeps mice out of the living quarters and the dogs just seem to hang around the mess hall and entertain the Soldiers.  You can quickly tell who grew up with pets and who's afraid of dogs.  We're also accompanied by the ANA.  They have their own mess hall and worship areas.  I ventured into their bread baking area and asked for a few flats.  The bread makers were amused that an American would ask for their bread and took pictures of something so simple as baking bread in an oven buried in the ground - something they've done since the time of Christ.  They flatten the dough on a flat pan and then throw in against the wall of the oven in the ground.  The dough sticks to the wall, cooks, and then is picked off by long metal tongs for placement on a cooling mat or into the hands of an ignorant American officer taking pictures.  Ouch, it tasted great.

We're now 9.5 hours ahead of the East Coast and 12.5 hours ahead of the West Coast.

...until next week.

LTC Paul M. Paolozzi
Commander, Task Force Pacemaker
Kandahar Air Field, Afghanistan

[Carl Harrod]

Notes From Afghanistan - 6 NOV 05
Date: Sun, 6 Nov 2005 05:30:34 +0000
 
Dear Family & Friends,

We're in the middle of the holidays.  No, not the Christian holidays but the Muslim ones.  It seems as if very little gets done during Ramadan or the feasting period afterward.  The Afghan people are very industrious and waste nothing but when the holiday period arrives most work comes to a near halt. 

We have several projects in Sharana contracted by local Afghan companies using Afghan construction techniques.  We've tried to blend the best of Western construction techniques with the time-tested skills of the Afghan culture - it's an interesting blend.  Most Afghan craftsmen in our region are very unskilled with woodworking.  There are so few trees that they just don't get the experience.  Conversely, they're very skilled in masonry and earthwork.  They've shaped clay into every shape possible and use it almost all construction in most regions in Afghanistan.   

I had another visit from my brigade commander this week.  He really enjoys coming to see my Task Force because there's so much going on and my Soldiers really work harder than any unit I've seen before.  He gets to leave his headquarters, be away from the telephones, e-mail, and routine trappings of an office so he can see hard-work engineers working in the dirt or on vertical construction - how could a profession get any better?  He enjoys coming to visit me and I enjoy going to visit my companies just as I'm going to do this afternoon.  I should be gone for another six days.  Somehow childhood activities of using Tonka toys and building crude tree forts seemed to have had a profound effect on me; not much has changed except now we have those who would enslave others with their thinking trying to kill my Soldiers while we enjoy our construction missions.

The IED and mine threat is surging at this time of the year.  Most of the Taliban and AQ cells use this period to get their final attacks in before the weather is unsupportive.  Roads harden in the freezing weather and combat operations at high elevations make the enemy opportunity for attacks less frequent.  Frankly, after stationing in Alaska, bring on the cold weather if it means there's less of a chance my Soldiers will receive an attack during their construction.  My route clearance teams equipped with South African vehicles have done a great job of finding not only the new IEDs that the enemy emplace to attack us while working but several old Soviet-era mines in the road.  The old mines never actuated but if prompted properly will explode.  Each day they take pictures of explosive treasure they find in the roads, all placed to ensure we don't succeed in our mission to connect the Afghan people.

We're now in the period of our deployment when commanders start going on leave.  No commander wants to go on leave before the majority of their Soldiers have had a chance.  Now that we've had over seven months here we're seeing commanders take a break.   I'm optimistic that I'll be able to come home in the last week of November.

I'll include a few pictures of me with my B-hut building squad.  When I came back to FOB Sweeney with my commander I collected the squad for a picture and gave each of them a Task Force coin.  I think they enjoyed me being with them almost as much as I enjoyed working on site.  I'll also include a picture of the tires we remove from our heavy equipment after they run on the rugged roads of Afghanistan. I also inserted a picture of an Afghan "cookie." When I first saw it I thought it was an ant-tank mine.  One of our translator's mother made it for us.  It tasted like a rock but we all smiled and told him how delicious it was.  I didn't think it was a good idea to share the truth at this point.  There's also a picture of Chaplain Beauchamp giving a blessing and word from the Bible before we went through the mountain pass.  We really appreciated the 173rd Airborne Chaplain taking the time to share his message with us and pray with us before we again went into harms way.

I should be back in KAF on Sunday next week - until then...

All my best,

Paul

LTC Paul M. Paolozzi
Commander, Task Force Pacemaker
Kandahar Air Field, Afghanistan

[Carl Harrod]

Notes From Afghanistan - 13 NOV 05
Date: Sun, 13 Nov 2005 09:41:09 +0000

Dear Family & Friends,

Another dynamic week passes in Afghanistan.  Immediately after writing last week I rode a Blackhawk helicopter to Sharana to see the vertical and now horizontal construction in the east.    It's a constant routine of working ahead of the weather so we don't have freezing water lines before we can put them in the ground.  It sounds like a simple task of digging and burying but after digging six inches of ground we run into rock.  My Soldiers end up using jack-hammers to get into the ground below the frost level.

Before we begin our next road from Sharana to Gardez I wanted to ensure that we had solid political support from the provincial and local level.  I had a very good meeting with Governor Mengal, the deputy Governor, the Mayor of Sharana, and the owner of the only radio station in town.  I brought members of my staff to discuss the issues surrounding our activities in the Paktika Province and how we would be initially restricting traffic but in the long run providing a much better road to Gardez.  The Governor is a refined gentleman with a respectable command of the English language but still uses a translator to ensure he doesn't embarrass himself.  This means no sidebar conversations in English because every word is understood.   The meeting was very productive and concluded with us taking the Mayor in one of my armored vehicles to ensure that the bypass road we wanted to use was an acceptable route for the heavy equipment.  Instead of just taking about the route the Mayor went with us and even offered to show us the borrow pits in the area.  I think we're going to have a very good relationship with the local leaders. 

Governor Mengal is noted to be a politically savvy leader who has a respectable chance of following President Karazai in the Afghan Executive Office.  I enjoyed his company and told him I look forward to building a strong road and an even stronger relationships in his province.  The next step is to get the Afghan National Army Soldiers incorporated with my Soldiers on this road to put the Afghan presence in road building.

Since my Task Force took over many of the duties at FOB Sharana we've noted some problems.  One of the biggest issues in a high elevation location is the use of fuel during the winter and now it's especially important because my heavy equipment tends to use fuel at a rate never experienced at this location.  One of my captains couldn't figure out why we were using so much fuel and not even filling our enormous bladders.  The 5000 gal locally contracted fuel trucks came with Army seals intact so no one checked the amount of fuel, they just inserted it into the bladder.  What he found was that the 5000 gal truck drivers were skimming 60-70% of the fuel out of the truck without tampering with the seals.  Bottom line, the Afghan contractors were stealing more than half of the fuel from each truck.  I instructed my leaders to immediately take the keys from the truck drivers, impound the trucks, and only pay them for what they delivered.  This had a huge impact on our fuel deliveries - many fuel trucks now won't deliver to our location for fear their half-full truck will be impounded.  The American taxpayer in me is very tight with each dollar.  We have a criminal investigation team investigating the situation and I expect we'll get reliable operators in the near future.

I traveled 8.5 hours this week on our next road.  We went to a school to deliver humanitarian supplies to the principal.  Many of the notebooks and pens you provided went directly into his hands for use in the schools.  We also brought food, winter coats, sandals, and girls' clothing.  He was thrilled and wanted us to come into the school but I didn't have much time.  I ensured that he knew that the sandals and much of the clothing was sent by American families who wanted to honor my driver, SGT Davis's last request in a letter.  The principal was very humbled and wrote all of this information his notebook.  He assured me that if anyone put explosives in the road he would tell us to ensure we were protected.  It's nice to make an impact one heart at a time.  At the conclusion of our meeting to gathered the children and told them to study hard and listen to their headmaster.

As I traveled from Sharana to Baghram Air Field it seemed as if the helicopter was capable of time travel.  We flew over homes made with the same techniques used in the Biblical era near Sharana, moved to a semi-medieval era, further shifted to a semi-modern area with two-story structures interlaced with steel and lumber, and finally a 20th Century area with some western construction and cell phone towers.  It's remarkable to see such a difference in a 1.5 hour flight.  No, there's nothing similar to a 21st Century US city.  Most areas are struggling to get the simplest developments such as electricity and running water.

I'm somewhat amused with some of my Soldiers.  The cold-weather gear is already in use and many from southern states and Hawaii are already freezing.  I have many senior NCOs in my Hawaiian unit who will experience their first snow and true winter.  I still walk around with the same gear I did in the summer and wonder how my guys will survive in the middle of the winter.  At times I think it's more of a mindset and less cold temperatures.  I think we'll all have to adjust a bit.

[Note: I lost my whole contact list and e-mail box during the period of 5-12 NOV while I was away from KAF.  If you sent an e-mail during this period, please resend.]

All my best,

Paul

LTC Paul M. Paolozzi
Commander, Task Force Pacemaker
Kandahar Air Field, Afghanistan