Operation Diablo Dragnet Links People to Government

18 July 07
By Army Sgt. Tony J. Spain
22nd Mobile Public Affairs Detachment.

KANDAHAR AIRFIELD, Afghanistan - Paratroopers with 1st Battalion, 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, conducted air assault missions as part of Operation Diablo-Dragnet the end of June.

The operation involved three different units and the help of an Islamic Republic of Afghanistan official disrupting Taliban operations around the Maiwand District located on the Helmand and Kandahar province borders.

Mohammad Zarif, a member of the National Security Directorate for the Maiwand District, served as the eyes for the governor of Helmand province and reported directly to him about the situation in the area. His presence also helped international security assistance forces bring a familiar face to local Afghans.

“We prefer to have IRoA involvement in all of our operations, especially when we have such close and constant interaction with the local populace as we did during Operation Diablo Dragnet,” said Army Capt. Don L. Cantera, Company B, 1/508th PIR commander. “Fortunately, we had the assistance of the National Security Directorate to facilitate our search.”

Operations ran smoothly for the paratroopers as they moved through the small farming villages of De Kalakhan Kalay and Garm Abak Jonubi. Zarif led the way from building to building, knocking on doors declaring that the ISAF forces were there for their safety and not to be afraid.

“After the town was deemed ‘cleared’, several mini shuras were held with local elders,” said Army 1st Lt. Daniel Capello, fire support operator, Company C, 1/508th PIR. “They came with a look of uncertainty in their eyes, but after meeting with the professional paratroopers and Mohammad Zarif they left with smiles on their faces.”

Zarif helped explain to the elders the purpose of the paratroopers’ mission and explained as long as the Taliban was able to operate in the area they would not be safe.

“The new Afghan government and ISAF forces are here to support the Afghan people,” Zarif told them.

The local elders then began discussing issues that concerned them and what ISAF could do as a link between them and the government to bring resolution. Most of the villagers were concerned about security and the potential for development in their village, which lacks proper roads, schools and medical facilities.

“Zarif was a great help in communicating our intent to the people of Maku and in facilitating a security shura with the village elders,” said Cantera. “He was very knowledgeable about security in the Maiwand area and a direct link between the local populace, ISAF and IRoA.”

After the shura, local leaders promised ISAF they would elect a representative for the village to regularly meet with government officials in the district center.

“It’s pretty clear that the future of Afghanistan rests solely on the shoulders of the Afghans,” said Army 1st Lt. Adam Werhle, Co. C., 1/508th PIR. “We were initially skeptical of having the NSD representative with us on our operation, but he turned out to be a real asset almost immediately.”

Werhle noted the keys to success in Afghanistan will be getting government representatives out to meet the people, more Afghans involved in fighting the Taliban, and a well trained Afghan national army.

Photo - Paratroopers from 1st Battalion, 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, return from a patrol in the Maywand District on the border of Kandahar and Heldman provinces in Afghanistan June 29. Photo by Spc. Matthew Littel.

British Paratroopers Train at Fort Dix for Afghanistan Deployment

3 July 07
By Eric Rutherford
115th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment.

FORT DIX, N.J. - The hand-held wind meter’s plastic cups spun rapidly in the breeze, displaying a wind speed of seven knots. Low clouds spread over Coyle Field in New Jersey’s Pine Barrens, sky-lining the Humvees and the troops working diligently at the top of the hill. A light rain pattered down.

“They should have been here ten minutes ago,” said Maj. John Meredith, speaking with a heavy Welsh accent. “There must be some sort of problem.”

Meredith, a member of the British 4th Battalion Parachute Regiment Reserve, worked with the ground crews to ensure the drop zone was prepared properly for the British paratroopers who would soon land.

The ground crew continued to take wind readings, and set up large neon orange tarps on the ground in the pattern of an “A,” while observers and medical personnel stood by.

Static crackled over a member of the crew’s hand-held radio. “We have you in sight. You are clear to jump,” he transmitted into the radio. As those on the ground looked toward the horizon, the gray aircraft floated out of the clouds like a shark stalking through murky water.

Almost as quickly as the Air Force C-130 cargo plane came into view, it was overhead, leaving four distinct contrails behind it. When it passed over the drop zone, small objects began falling from it. They fell free for a brief moment before blossoming into round canopies, dangling their human cargo as they headed for the ground. Seconds later the plane was out of sight.

Joyous yelling and laughter could be heard from the people in the parachute canopies as they descended for about 20 seconds toward the earth. The yells and the laughter came from members of the 4th Parachute Regiment Reserve. A paratrooper infantry unit that traveled from Leeds, Yorkshire, England, to Fort Dix, N.J., for two weeks of mobilization readiness training this June and July in preparation for a deployment to Afghanistan next year. The training is designed to familiarize British paratroopers with American equipment, signals and terminology.

“The training here is first class,” said Warrant Officer Doug Muirhead, the regimental sergeant major, about the unit’s opportunity to come to an American installation and train with U.S. forces. “We are getting good training, which is important for interoperability.” The two-week training that the unit, which is made up of around 400 troops from throughout Great Britain, is conducting here is comprised of low-level jump certification, weapons training and land navigation. Of the unit’s 400 troops, about 130 made the trip to America for the training.

“Trips abroad don’t come around that often, so we look forward to it. The training facilities are fantastic,” Muirhead said about his experiences training on American installations. The training mission was no small task to organize, and was assisted and planned by the 404th Civil Affairs Reserve at Fort Dix. Staff Sgt. Monica Peck said American forces helped to survey the drop zone, familiarize the British with U.S. parachutes, rig the chutes and perform safety checks.

Peck, an Army Reserve jumpmaster and civil affairs team leader from the 450th Civil Affairs Battalion out of Riverdale, Md., not only assisted with planning and set up, but also made the jump with a handful of other American Soldiers. This is not Peck’s first time working with British paratroopers. She trained with them at Fort Bragg in 1997, but was unable to jump with them, because she had to end the training to attend jumpmaster school.

“Here I am, ten years later, and it is a real honor for me to get to be the leader with this group of guys, (they are) good folks,” Peck said. The British paratroopers return home July 8, and will deploy to Afghanistan next year.

Photo - Warrant Officer First Class Jim O'Donnell wraps up his parachute to clear the drop zone after a low-level jump from an Air Force C-130 aircraft at Fort Dix, N.J. O'Donnell, from Glasgow, Scotland, is a senior permanent staff instructor for Britain's 4th Battalion Parachute Regiment Reserves. The unit is spending two weeks at Fort Dix to prepare for a mobilization to Afghanistan next year. Photo by Spc. Eric Rutherford.