7-101 Eagle Lift Ledger

THE EAGLE LIFT

LEDGER

Second Edition

May 1st, 2011 1LT Kelly Barton,

Executive Editor

Hello again to all of our Families and friends. I hope you are enjoying the great spring weather at home and that your children enjoyed the spring break from school. We are experiencing spring here in Af-ghanistan as well, and in addition to the increasing temperatures, spring in Afghanistan also means that it’s time for the annual poppy harvest. Most of you probably are aware that the majority of rural Af-ghans make their living by farming, and poppies are one of the plants that thrive in this climate, originally brought to the region by Genghis Khan in the 13th Century. The poppies are processed to create Opium, which results in over 75% of the world’s illegal heroin. In Western society we think this is wrong; rural farmers here simply view it as a way to make a living and provide for their Families. This is one of the many dilemmas here in Afghanistan. It’s bad to have illegal drugs produced, but if we destroy the farmer’s crop, then we have just created someone who is willing to work for the insurgents and be paid for planting roadside bombs. Only time will tell what the right strategy is, or should have been.

Regardless of strategy or policy, our Soldiers continue to work hard every day to provide the best avia-tion support possible to our brothers on the ground. Many of Ft. Campbell’s Brigade Combat Teams are redeploying over the next couple of months, and our CH-47 aircrews were able to pick-up these Sol-diers from remote outposts to start their journey home. Speaking of journeys home, in April we bid farewell to MAJ Chris Stallings and his wife, Megan. They are moving to North Carolina in May, where they will serve as Professors of Military Science at Duke and the University of North Carolina. Chris did a tremendous job for the Task Force as the Operations Officer, and we wish them both well. With Chris leaving, we welcome MAJ Kevin McHugh, his wife Angela, and boys Sebastian and Nicholas. Kevin is joining us from the Brigade staff, so his Family is already settled in Clarksville.

Last month the Army released two promotion selection lists. We were fortunate to have seven Staff Ser-geants selected for promotion to Sergeant First Class, and 18 Lieutenants selected for promotion to Cap-tain; congratulations to all of these deserving officers and noncommissioned officers.

On April 25th, our Australian partners invited several of us to join them for their ANZAC Day cere-mony, which is the National day of remembrance for both Australia and New Zealand. “ANZAC” stands for the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps, who fought at Gallipoli in World War I, and lost over 10,000 men during this eight month campaign. The ceremony is held at dawn to commemo-rate the early morning shore landings at Gallipoli in 1915. ANZAC Day now more broadly represents all who have served and died for their countries, similar to our Memorial Day in May. We were honored to participate in their sunrise “stand to” in memory of our fallen com-rades.

I hope you’ll enjoy this second edition of The Ledger. Thanks again to all of you for all you do in support of your Soldier, this Task Force, and our Nations.

Sincerely, Scott Gerblick Task Force Commander

Commander’s Corner

Greetings to all from the CSM’s foxhole,

Well, another edition of the Battalion news letter means another month in the books for our deploy-ment. The Soldiers of the Task Force have been busy the past month and will continue to be with the coming of the spring weather. I am proud of the professionalism, safety, and hard work of every Soldier in the Task Force. That does not come by accident; I believe a big part of our success comes from the awesome support we are receiving from the Families and Friends back home.

Our Soldiers receive hundreds of boxes and letters from all over the world weekly. We have been adopted by several organizations as a Task Force and every Company has sponsors as well. Adopt-A-US-Soldier, Holy Joe’s Coffee, Project Frontlines-Kandahar, schools, and numerous individuals have sent books, DVD’s, magazines, games, and snacks to our Soldiers and we cannot thank you enough! The mo-rale of our Soldiers is a vital aspect to making sure the mission get’s accomplished and we bring all our Soldiers home safely.

The morale of our Families and Friends can be just as important as our Soldiers’! To help, Task Force Eagle Lift has opened an official open forum “Facebook Page.” The page can be reached by logging into your Facebook Account and searching for “Eagle Lift, 7-101 Aviation Regiment.” Once you get to our page, all you have to do is select “Like” and you will be added to our list. Pictures, videos, and infor-mation will be added periodically to the page for your enjoyment. Because of operation security (OPSEC) and representation of the Task Force, there will be restrictions and limitations on what infor-mation can and will be allowed to be displayed. The Chain of Command also asks that if your comments are not positive in nature, please don’t post them on the Facebook page.

Last month our Task Force was represented by two of our Soldiers at the Brigade Soldier and NCO of the Quarter board. This competition consisted of a written test, hands on test, and a board appearance in front of five CSM’s and a 1SG. Both our Soldiers did an outstanding job in representing themselves and our Task Force. Sergeant Josh C. Miller of Charlie Company, 1-214th MEDEVAC (Germany) took top honors and was named NCO of the Quarter, 2nd Quarter, Fiscal Year 2011. SPC Matthew J. Unger, Delta Company, 7-101 AVN finished the competition within the top three of the very close Soldier of the Quarter.

Thanks again for all the support eve-ryone has given and will continue to give our great Task Force Soldiers. “Heroes are not only found on the battlefield….they serve proudly from our homes”.

JP Thomas

Task Force CSM

The CSM’s Foxhole

CMD Group Photos

HHC — Fighting Griffins

deployment, but has quickly

become recognized as a part of

the HHC team. I welcomed the

chance to keep such a

professional in the organization

for a few more years.

April also marked the

passage of our first 60-days in

theater, and with that milestone

came the Physical Fitness Test.

Whether home or deployed,

Griffins know they will be expected

to maintain the Army‘s fitness

standards. Still, the change in

temperature and altitude

surprised a few, and it is fast

becoming a company standard to

leave last night‘s dinner on the

side of the road during the 2-mile

run. All part of the job.

In closing, I want to thank

the FRG volunteers who showered

us with boxes of cookies this past

month. We now have a table set-

up where all Griffins can find FRG

goodies, regardless of what shift

or section they work in. They look

forward to seeing what surprise

you have planned for them next

month.

- CPT Gabe Morris

Griffin 6

April has welcomed us

with an agreeable change in

climate. Spring weather in

Kandahar has replaced the

torrential deluge that welcomed

us upon our arrival with moderate

temperatures and the occasional,

light rain shower. In fact, the rain

seems to be timed just

right…enough to keep the dust

down every few days or so.

Though the day‘s heat has risen a

few times – enough to remind us

all of the summer to come - I

would go so far as to call the past

month pleasant and comfortable.

However, First Sergeant Ruebush

is still wearing the fleece jacket

everyday. I think it‘s grafted to his

skin.

Your Soldiers are now well

settled into their routines, and

have steadily transformed the

surrounding area into Griffin

Country. Our predecessors from

Task Force Shadow had only just

recently moved into these new

work areas, and while it is

amazing to think about all the

hard work and effort that went

into getting this area ready for us,

it is even more amazing – to me –

to watch the Griffins sculpt their

work areas into spaces of their

own. Much work remains to be

done, but our real estate is

shaping up nicely.

One of the Griffins who

made a real impact on our

surroundings is SPC Roberto Diaz,

our resident Chaplain assistant

and the proprietor of the First Cup

Coffee Shop we have here on

Mustang Ramp. Recently, the

First Cup underwent major

renovations to upgrade the

entertainment and

communications options for our

Soldiers. During these

renovations, Roberto emerged as

in invaluable part of the

construction team and his

carpentry skills did not go

unnoticed by his peers. Soon, he

was receiving requests from all

directions to build desks, shelves,

tables, and benches. These

furniture requests were

occasionally for the work areas,

but many more were to improve

the living quarters of our Soldiers.

In the tight confines the Griffins

are living in, Roberto‘s handiwork

has made off-duty hours quite

comfortable for many. I find

encouragement in Soldiers who

are willing to selflessly share their

talents.

Another member of HHC

who has stood-out this month is

SPC Rosemary Bedgood, of the S6

shop. She has earned a

reputation for ensuring that

maximum effort is put into every

project she touches. Rosemary‘s

peers look up to her, seek her

advice, and recently chose her to

lead the day shift during a

temporary absence of their NCO.

Not only does she strive for

excellence in the work place, but

she is also currently taking three

college classes in addition to her

S6 duties. I truly appreciate the

example she sets for all.

SGT Justin Faucher, from

the S2 section, reenlisted this past

month. Keeping quality Non-

Commissioned Officers in the

Army is possibly the best way to

uphold the standards and improve

the Army for tomorrow‘s Soldiers,

and Justin is one such NCO. He

joined the Griffins just prior to

April Showers and Stellar Soldiers

May 2011

Griffins of Note:

SPC Roberto DIaz

SPC Rosemary Bedgood

SGT Justin Faucher

FRG Volunteers

May 2011

Our Soldiers in Pictures

HHC — Fighting Griffins

PFC Smith, hand CPL Mahoney this paper, but make it look ―natural.‖ EPIC FAIL!

The Griffin FRG Table (after the cookies disappeared) 1SG Ruebush representin‘ the 419, still rockin‘ the fleece.

You are here •

Happy Birthday, SSG Frehill!

SPC Diaz asking the usual: ―Where‘s my money!‖

SPC Bedgood wasting time

drawing cartoons of the S6

OIC and NCOIC.

A CO Rude Dogs

to the waist with pink

balloons. The result was

a rather unproductive

day. Well played, SPC

Horn…

As always, we appreciate

all of the continued

support. We cannot

succeed without you.

Best wishes,

Ben Seipel

Commander A/7-101

―Rude Dogs‖

Friends and Families,

Our second month has come and

gone here on Kandahar Airfield.

Despite an official end to the

deployment ―honeymoon period,‖

the Rude Dogs continue to press

on with positive attitudes and

commitment to getting the job

done. When not working hard

flying generals, fixing aircraft, and

chasing MEDEVAC crews across

southern Afghanistan, several

company members have taken on

hobbies oriented around improving

our living conditions.

The primary focus of these comfort

-enhancing endeavors has been

our Command Post (CP) and our

company mascot, the 18-

passenger van, formerly known as

Policía. Despite 1LT Wes Emery‘s

prediction last month that Policía

might win the war in Afghanistan,

the powers at be decided that

Kandahar was perhaps not ready

for ‗la furgoneta de la Policía.‘ For

now, our redacted van continues to

serve as a primary crew

chief mover and morale

improver.

Eric Kroiss, Ryan

Munsterman, Ian Reid, and

several others commenced

with renovating the

crewmember lounge of the

CP this month. The

construction team added a

phone booth, food pantry,

and even made room for an

extra couch. As the year

goes on, we hope to

continue our expansions to

include a spacious back

porch… I mean ―fire exit.‖

Of course, April cannot

begin without a few

obligatory April Fools

pranks. The most notable

of which, courtesy of SPC

Kayleigh Horn, was 1SG

Josh McCarley and I

discovering our office filled

May 2011

A CO Rude Dogs Photos

B 7-101 Varsity

members making the next steps in life and the army.

All of Varsity would like to thank you for your continued support

from home. Till we all meet again!

CPT Perry, Thomas S.

SFC Walters, Eric

Greetings to the Varsity Families,

SFC Walters and I write to you with good news about

our Company. We remain busy and working hard on a daily

basis. Our company is still split into 3 sections, and will remain

so, for the duration of the deployment.

Things have not yet slowed down, which has allowed

for us to continue our lives. Days continue to roll on as we

continue to merge and grow as an organization. Quickly

bringing the new individuals into our family and becoming

closer than we have been before. Although only a few months

into this rotation, we are already settled and working like a well

oiled machine. Our company continues to make everything look

effortless and flawless.

These days, day time crews have officially switched over

more to training flights. Our crews continue to astound the chain of

command by becoming full crewmembers quickly. The pilots also

continue to grow and work hard. Our missions during day have

slowly died down, but what few we have of course we perform

topnotch.

CPT Miller continues to lead our DSRW crews through their

tough missions. Sadly, I do report he will soon be leaving our family

to go be with HHC. We also will be saying farewell to CW3

Westerling as he moves to D Company for a new adventure and

milestone in his career. Our best wishes for a successful next step in

both their careers follow as they have been and always will be part

of Varsity.

I am also pleased to announce the much anticipated

promotion of John Wilson. On 01APR11 he was promoted from CW2

to CW3. Congratulations are in order for all three of our Varsity

01May11 Marks The start of Month 4 in Afghanistan!

May 2011 Varsity May update.

Continue on page 2

Awards

The Eagle Lift Ledger

B Co. 7-101 Births

Congratulations are

in order for the

Bryan family.

1SG Bryan wel-

comed a healthy

baby boy into the

world at 1640 on

13APR11. He was

19.5 inches and

weighed 8.2 pounds.

Local Scenery

Working hard and looking good doing it!

Pleased to announce that 4 Army Achievement Medals have been awarded this month. Recipients are as follows:

SPC Jennifer Snedecker

SPC Billy Gerard

SPC Willi Rueda

SSG Steven Caldwell

~ Thank you for your continued love and support as Varsity continues on this deployment together~

Long Days!

Where we work!

Late Nights!

Brotherly love!

C 4-101 Blackwidows

Springtime Greetings, Blackwidow Families!

Blackwidow XO here for this iteration of the Lift Ledger, as CPT Matthews is having his first daughter!

Congratulations to him and his wife, Grace, as they welcome their first special baby girl, Nora, into the world! She

was born April 8th at seven pounds, 14 ounces, and 20 inches long. He‘ll be back for the next monthly update,

don‘t worry!

After another month hard at work (two down, ten to go!), the Blackwidows have made impressive

contributions as always to daily missions and operations! Their unwavering commitment to getting the job done is

awe-inspiring and always reminds me why I‘m thankful to be a part of such a remarkable group of individuals!

While we have marked floods and rain storms off the list of natural weather patterns to get through in

Afghanistan, we now are moving more into blowing dust and

rising temperatures! Whatever the situation, your Soldiers

always endure and manage to make the very best of the drastic

weather changes!

For our first time deployers, they got their deployment

patch ceremony after being in theater for greater than 30 days.

It was a milestone in their careers as well as their lives, as they

were privileged to put on the 101st Airborne Division Screaming

Eagle combat patch underneath the U.S. Flag for the first time!

I‘m sure you‘re as proud of them as we are and we couldn‘t be

happier to congratulate those ―first time‖ Families who are

supporting their Soldiers on their first deployments each and

every day. Thank you for your faithful encouragement and

support to your Soldiers!

Speaking of encouragement and support—thank you

for the letters, care packages and other various ways you keep

in touch with your Soldiers! It is always so wonderful to get

word that there is a ―MAIL CALL!‖ and that there are packages

waiting. And of course, seeing everyone open their care

packages brings a smile to everyone‘s faces! Hopefully you

know how special your Service Members feel when they open

up that letter or package, knowing that someone is thinking of

them on the other side of the world.

May 2011

VOLUME 1

Combat Patch Ceremony

This is where we work!

CW3 Lackey Promotes Justin Mix from CW2 to CW3

C 4-101 Blackwidows

While we say goodbye to one Blackwidow, we

welcome another to our family. CPT Tom Cai will be joining

the Blackwidows as the 1st Platoon Leader from Task Force

Wings. He will have a lot on his plate, but will be afforded

the distinguished opportunity to lead some of the finest

service members available in the United States Army. Also

a warm welcome to SPC Alop who is coming to us from

D/7-101! He is already a major asset to the Blackwidow

team!

We will FINALLY be getting internet in our rooms

within the next month—which should help you all stay

connected a little bit easier. We‘re so glad that there is

an internet company helping out with the wiring in our

infamous ―RLBs‖ (the name of the type of rooms we live

in), after two months of being here already.

Congratulations to several Service Members who

have been promoted recently! Their hard work,

dedication, and determination to reach the next level is

an inspiration to all others! Among those promoted

while overseas include:

CW3 Mix

CW3 Chain

CW2 Williams

SPC Dunn

SPC Chambers

PFC Horton

Also in order is congratulations to the Ramos

and

Hatley families who have children graduating high school! A

job well done to those families and best wishes to those hard

working students!

Even though we‘re always working over here, 1SG

Barber made sure we got a much-needed break by

coordinating to get food for a cookout! What a great time

and opportunity to relax and sit back for a little while. We‘re

lucky to have such a great 1SG to keep an eye out on his

troops!

We are very sad to say goodbye to one member of

the Blackwidow family, CPT Dave Washington, who is on his

way to Task Force Wings to serve in a staff position there.

Dave was one of our hardest workers and demonstrated

unmatched motivation in taking care of the Blackwidows that

he was leading. Dave will be greatly missed, but we wish him

the very best of luck at his gaining unit.

Thank you, Dave, for everything that you have done for the

Blackwidows! You are an inspiration to us all!

1SG Barber Promotes Dunn and Chambers to SPC!

It’s time for some fun! 1SG Barber and SGT Ramos cooking for us!

Time for a no notice exam?! Standards section scheming!

D CO Dragons

Amazingly, it is already time to provide another update on our activities over

here. Time is going by quickly! Last month, 22 March, we conducted a patch

ceremony for those Soldiers that are performing duties for the first time in a

combat zone. We have 65 Soldiers within the company that were able to take part

in this ceremony, honoring the tradition and importance of the 101st throughout

history and current events. The Shoulder Sleeve Insignia-Former Wartime Service as

it is officially known is the unit patch that is worn on ones right arm. The high

number of first time deployers can be a sign of inexperience and lack of ability. To

date that is far from the case, every Soldier has excelled in each job that they

perform on a daily basis and are facilitating the success of the Task Force and the

therefore the war fight with the work they do.

We have a few Soldiers that are still to come over, but are fully established

and continuing to support a high operational tempo day in and day out. The

remaining Soldiers coming out from the rear detachment will provide further depth

and flexibility for everyone within the company. In addition to the added personnel

will be R&R to boost morale. Probably the second most important event, aside from

redeployment, that everyone looks forward to and counts down to is Rest and

Recuperation (R&R). April is opening season for the R&R block and will continue

until mid November. This consists of 15 days of NON chargeable leave that begins

once they are stateside and ends when they arrive at their departure airport.

Dragon 6

Another Month Down!

May 2011

Promotions

Eagle Lift Ledger

Company Soldier of the Month Board

SGT O‘Brien

SPC Unger (Also won the new

BN Soldier of the month board)

Promoted Soldiers include:

SPC Ponce

Taking Care of business and munching down on Girl Scout

cookies.

~ Thank you for your continued love and support for our Dragon Soldiers ~

Anything you need, I

can build it.

Way too happy to be

reading the paper.

Can‟t stop this guy

from smiling.

How do I turn this

thing on?

The “NO Worries” Update May 2011 VOLUME 1, ISSUE 2

Friends and Families,

Greetings from Kandahar Airfield! Month two is complete and we‟ve settled into our daily routines nicely. Morale

remains very high and you should be extremely proud of the work that your Soldiers are doing. Every day they carry out

one of the most demanding mission sets and they are doing it with distinction. Whether it‟s fulfilling an emergency

refuel request for a MEDEVAC mission, issuing out weapons and night vision goggles to aircrews, preparing meals for the

Special Forces community, or changing an engine or a tire. They are demonstrating high standards, and your support at

home allows them to do it.

May‟s theme is “Change”. I, CPT Kinsey and my Family, will be leaving the Iron Dogs to become the Battalion‟s S-4.

To me, my departure is bitter-sweet. Bitter in the sense that I‟m leaving the best Forward Support Company in the Army,

but sweet because it brings new challenges, increased responsibility, and career progression. My thanks go out to all

the Soldiers and Families of Echo Company, past and present. Your professionalism and generosity during my time here

has been far beyond my expectations. I will never forget the Iron Dogs! In line with this month‟s theme, we also bid

farewell to CPT Diercks and his Family. CPT Diercks is scheduled to change-out in early May and fortunately he won‟t be

traveling far; assuming command of Task Force Fighting‟s, Alpha Company. During CPT Diercks‟ tenure, he was

responsible for making us successful at OEF. Train-up included three Battalion Situational Training Exercises, two

rotations of Off-Post Training at Ft. Bliss, Pre-deployment Training, Deployment, and the

assumption and execution of the actual mission here in Kandahar. His contributions

are countless and we thank CPT Diercks for his leadership and dedication given to the

Iron Dogs and 7th Battalion. We wish you and your Family continued success as you

begin your next rendezvous with destiny.

We look forward to having CPT Blake

Jenkins, his wife, Mica, and their 7.5-

month old, Riley, join the Echo Company

Family. We will celebrate the time-

honored-tradition of the Change of

Command and this time of change with a

company BBQ. We‟ll be sure to share the

pictures. No Worries!

-CPT Kinsey and 1SG Simington

―Outside the CP‖

1SG Ronnie Simington

CPT Brian D. Diercks

CPT Mark L. Kinsey

CONGRATULATIONS!

ANNIVERSARIES

SGT Mapes–16 Apr 05

CPL Bayliss-6 May 07

SGT Woolbright–18 May 08

1SG Simington 26 May 94

BIRTHDAYS

SGT Bradley– 6 Apr

PFC Hedgecough– 12 Apr

PFC Udas– 14 Apr

PFC IVY– 27 Apr

PFC Love- 28 Apr

SPC Ortiz– 29 Apr

PFC Eguizabal– 29 Apr

1LT Harold– 30 Apr

SPC Moorman– 24 May

SGT Foley– 26 May

SPC Patno– 29 May

IRON DOG COINS

CPT Kinsey

SPC Conatser

SPC Esqueda

PROMOTIONS

CPT Kinsey

PFC Yaw

PFC Davis

SFC PROMOTION LIST

SSG Page

SSG Newman

1LT Eyster receives the

101st Combat Patch from TF

Commander, LTC Gerblick

New Headquaters for IRON-

DOG REFUEL. Built entirely

by IRONDOG hands!

M978– Fuel Tanker

As Always, SPC Smith having

way too much fun!

Distribution Platoon Page 2

Hello Distribution Family! When I think of this Platoon, the first words that come to mind are dedication, and adapta-

bility. Everyone here has been tirelessly dedicated to the mission, working over 12 hours every day to ensure the mission

gets accomplished. Whenever problems arise we quickly adapt and improve. When faced with the problem of an exces-

sively small work area, they set to work building a new office. PFC Fox and SPC Patno have personally devoted over 300

man hours a piece to see this project completed. And it has been done entirely by hand by this Platoon.

Your Soldiers set records for the months of March and April by issuing over 60% more fuel than the same time last

year. Other unit commanders to include the Battalion Commander and even a three-star general have expressed their

gratitude for the support this platoon is providing to the war.

None of this would be possible without you at home. Whether it is through emails, letters, packages, prayers, phone

calls, or taking care of the home, everyday it becomes clearer to me that we couldn‟t do this without you. Because of you

we remain dedicated until we all come home. Thank you!

1LT Eyster and SSG Fournier

“I don‟t know how your guys do it but they show up ready to fuel the moment

we pull our aircraft home. When you‟ve been flying for a while it really boosts

your spirits to have timely and efficient support. Please tell your Soldiers

thank you on behalf of me and all my crews!” - Flight Company Commander

Talking about IRONDOGs Refuel Support

SPC Conatser saves the day

Maintenance Platoon Page 3

SGT Hamacher paying close

attention during an EO brief

The birthday boys enjoying

their party!

SSG Aulet enjoying the air

conditioning while he takes a

load off

Motor Pool Pirate Platoon - YARR

With 11 scheduled services needing to be completed, the battalion‟s fleet of ground vehicles requiring regular services

and of course the M978 HEMMT‟s playing a vital role in the battalion‟s mission, the motor pool had its hands full this

month. The Pirate Platoon came through with flying colors as it always does, keeping the

ground vehicles maintained properly and having the highest readiness rate in the bri-

gade. Despite being tasked out on multiple details throughout the course of the month,

the Pirate Platoon ensured the ground maintenance mission was met. Whether it was

switching a forklift tire, replacing a HUMVEE half shaft, or sending reports to SARSS the

Pirate Platoon exceeded expectations, keeping the num-

ber of reportable deficiencies to a minimum. Three

birthdays were celebrated in true Pirate Platoon style,

with much cheering, jeering and excitement. The Sol-

diers are enthusiastically looking forward to the chal-

lenges of the upcoming month. YARR!

1LT Harold and SFC Reel

PV2 Yaw working on a leaky

HEMMT.

F CO Buccaneers

May 2011

Congratulations to:

SSG Kilpatrick

SPC Grimes

On their re-enlistments

SSG Altman

SPC Hardy

SPC Eaton

On their promo-tions

SPC Hardy

SPC Roberts

On their Certificates Of Achievement

SPC Jones

PFC Brown

On receiving the Task Force Com-manders coin

Hello Buccaneer families, greetings from Southern Afghanistan and all your loved ones. We are up and running in Wolverine and limited operations in Kan-dahar. You should be extremely proud of the work that your Soldiers are doing, whether it’s calling a disoriented pilot down out of bad weather, quickly gaining

their rating to better supplement the overall ATC mission or ordering and repair-ing the parts and equipment that enables them to do their job. Every day they embark on one of the most unselfish jobs in the Army. It is their exclusive be-hind the scenes actions that keep this Task Force flying safely and expeditiously.

I’m here to tell you that they are doing it with professionalism and excellence with a smile on their face and good humor in their voice. That’s what I’m told by the multitude of aviators I know that fly in and out of FOB Wolverine. All this great work is only possible through your continued support of the entire

Buccaneer family, and for that we thank you.

This deployment is the first for many of our Soldiers with the 101st Airborne Di-vision and thus a combat patch ceremony was conducted at FOB Wolverine for all those Soldiers who had never deployed from the 101st. As seen in many of the pictures it is a fairly simple ceremony but rich in tradition and meaning. They have been officially recognized as Veterans of Foreign Wars now. This month we would like to point out numerous individual accomplishments and or pro-gressions in your Soldiers’ careers. SSG Kilpatrick and SPC Grimes both re-enlisted this month and will continue their service to the force. We have also had our share of promotions since the deployment began. We would like to con-gratulate SSG Altman, SPC Hardy and SPC Eaton for their recent successes. In Wolverine quite a few of our Soldiers were recognized for doing a great job. SPC Hardy and SPC Roberts received a Certificate of Achievement for exemplary duty performance while SPC Jones and PFC Brown were awarded the Task Force Commander’s Coin for their exceptional performance in guiding an air-craft under duress safely back to the ground. Congratulations to these Soldiers for their performance, as it is well deserved.

Things continue to go well here at KAF and at Wolverine. Your loved ones truly miss you on a daily basis and find the small comforts from your mail and chats they have with you. We are also looking forward to the upcoming births of the newest members to the Buccaneer family, so please share your pictures of all those new little ones so we can share them with everyone here. Thank you again

for all your continued support and we look forward to hearing from you soon.

Buccaneer 6

F CO Buccaneers Photos

SSG Kilpatrick Re-enlistment Ceremony…......CONGRATS SSG Kilpatrick after the ceremony…...Can you say INDEF!!!

FOB Wolverine combat patch ceremony. SPC Roberts awarded his combat patch by WO1 Sanchez and 1SG Varner.

Panoramic view of Kandahar at sunset.

ARCTIC AIRMAIL Chronicles of a displaced MEDEVAC Company

90 Days In…

Things have been fast and furious since our getting settled in comfy, cozy southern Afghanistan. The missions come when they come, regardless of weather or time of day/night, and they don’t come when...well, when Pedro, our Air Force Pavehawk brethren decide to get a little bit of MEDEVAC prac-tice. But hey, if we’re going to be the Varsity team, somebody’s gotta fill the shoes of J.V. and so far, they’re excelling at the task. All joking aside, things have been going well for all and major progress has been made. We’ve capitalized on the knowledge left to us by the departing unit C. Co. 6-101 “Shadow Dustoff” and have made the mission our

own. As we continue our daily routines, some of us have found new routines to settle into. Congratula-tions are due to the many aircrew members who have been recently integrated into the flying side of MEDEVAC operations. Newly progressed members of our family include… CW2 Dusty Niu, the giant gin-ger, who has (as of this writing) made it from a ground zero “noob” to a readiness level 1 (RL1)

Day/Night pilot. Compliments also go out to our newest crewchief to make the cut, PFC John Sparks. He now holds the coveted status of RL1 Day/Night/NVG and is ready to start pulling MEDEVAC duty. Up-and-coming stars to the progression arena include front-seaters 1LT(P) Phillip Walker and 1LT(P) Nicholas Pot-ter, and for back-seaters PFC David Stokes and PFC Bradley Cline...best of luck to you gentle-men, make us proud!

The promotion system has been kind to our MEDEVAC family this month as many of

“When I have your wounded…” Doing what we do best!

CW2 Dusty Niu...always ready.

PFC John Sparks a.k.a. “Sparky” even acts like he’s crewing in the van. Yup, clear forward left, rear bumper clear left.

our folks have been advanced to the next level. SGT William Burgdorf has joined the NCO Corps on April 1st as did CPL’s Brett Schlieve and Carlos Alvarez on March 1st. PFC Michael Gibbs has moved up to SPC and PV2 Michael Merino is now our newest PFC. On track to become NCO’s are current promotion board at-tendees SPC’s Jonathan Wills, Andrew Herndon, and Sara Nichols. On another positive note, PV2 William “Trey” Ressler will soon be released from his extra duty and will finally be allowed to shower and consume more than a glass of water and a crust of bread per day (gasps of concern fill the room) just kidding. In all actuality,

he will be finished be-fore you read this and will make his way back on to the duty schedule in true dedicated crew-chief fashion...welcome back buddy!

The training has been great, but on mission is where it all comes together and the training becomes real-life. Thanks to all our trainers for all you do! On that note, we recently completed the all new and improved Aircrew Coordination Training - Enhanced (ACT-E) and lemme be the first one to tell you, I feel enhanced, it’s great! A tip of the ol’ top hat goes to CW2 Greg Love for the wonderful presentation and slide show. Now, my at-tention turns to all the wifeys and hubbys out there...since we over here are all “enhanced” and stuff, you can no longer get irritated when we’re riding shotgun in the car with you and we call “clear left, clear right” or “brakes” at an intersection. That part of our psyche is ingrained with uncor-

ruptible data now and you can’t get mad at us, them’s the rules.

Life has been good for us so far and it seems like things are flowing much more smoothly now that we’re figuring out more and more by the day. Mail comes regularly and is a HUGE morale booster...unless it’s a bill of course. Chow has been terrible since the beginning and is terrible now but when you’d rather eat nothing than eat at the chow hall, it’s amazing how fast you slim down! Some have used this to their advantage and have begun wearing the Army Combat Shirt a.k.a. “Sexy Shirt.” It

“Ursula...come in Ursula!” SPC Michael Gibbs running the radios

like a pro.

Crewchief PV2 William “Trey” Ressler counting down the days to freedom.

The audience sits mesmerized, hanging on every word CW2 Greg Love says.

of a material that is much cooler and wicks away sweat while still being flight-approved...AWESOME!! Some can pull it off, some can’t. If there is any confusion on what category you fall into, ask yourself these two questions: Is my “sexy shirt” so tight it looks as if it’s painted on? And: “Do people often ask me if my “sexy shirt” is a “shmedium?” If you find yourself answering “yes” to either of these questions, either your “sexy shirt” is too small, you’re

too big, or both. Problem solved.

With the arrival of April comes the beginning of a much awaited event, the beginning of R&R leave. We’ve sent 3 people on leave already and my sources say we have another 5 slotted for taking leave this month. I’ll take up a little space here to answer some common questions flowing around. The leave time is 15 days of non-chargeable leave to any location the Soldier wants to go and there is no cost for the round-trip plane tickets (for the Soldier

only.) The 15 day countdown does not start the day they leave here but the day they get to their final location. Sometimes it

only takes a few days to get to the destination but sometimes it can take upwards of 5-6 days and this is nothing the Soldier can change, it’s all based upon the avail-ability of aircraft. During travel, communication can be difficult and sometimes phones/computers are available and other times they’re not. Once the Soldier hits US soil, depending on layovers and con-nection times, it is usually easier to call home to coordinate pick up times/locations, etc. from the airport. Hopefully this will answer some questions and put some worries to rest so the prospect of R&R leave is an enjoyable and relaxing thing to look forward to, not a stressful time of “what-ifs.”

As our mission drives on, we appreciate all you do back home. Things are hard with two people around to divvy things up but with only one there to manage the household and children, your dedica-tion is not taken for granted!

SGT Sean Pritchard and SSG Drexel Miller II putting the “SEXY” in Sexy Shirt!!

“I’m too sexy for my shirt too sexy yeah!”

SSG Rob “Doc” Marchetti apparently has no problem with low self-esteem .

C-130 Getting ready to load up with troops heading out on R & R

“We love you and miss you Dad!” The Grove kids from L to R: Emma,

Josiah, Elijah, and Jenna.

Big Happenings in April:

Birthdays

April 3rd - CW3 Josh Parker

April 9th - SGT Wesley Price

April 15th - SPC Richard Collier

April 16th - PFC Jonathan Chapman

April 20th - SSG Stephon Flynn

April 23rd - SSG Lorenzo Owens

April 26th - SPC Michael Gibbs

April 28th - CW2 Daniel Page

April 29th - CW2 Alan Harty

Anniversaries April 1st - Scott & Jamie Macke April 1st - Chris & Marla Roach April 5th - Brad Cline & Corrie Owens April 7th - George & Yasmine Thompson April 13th - Joey & Angelica Ybarra April 18th - Matthew & Alexa Grove April 27th - Nicholas & Ashley Potter April 28th - Jacob & Thulan Christensen April 29th - Sean & Trisha Pritchard

Until next time…

THANK YOU FOR ALL YOU DO!!

CW2 Matthew J. Grove

DUSTOFF pilot and newsletter-writer-guy Luke the Dog says, “Woof!”

B CO 1-171 The Voyagers

Birthdays

1LT MANRIQUEZ

SGT BUENO

SSG ALVAREZ

SGT SAPOLU

CW2 TAKENAKA

SGT LANIAS

SSG MANUEL

SGT KAOHU

CW3 KERR

SSG RANIS

CW2 BEEDE

SPC BAILEYMANOI

SPC TUAOLO

SPC TAYLOR

May 2011

the energy, perseverance

and drive demonstrated

during the first session of

Key Leader CrossFit. We‘re

excited to participate in the

next event and for the

newcomers to the program

to add to the ―fun.‖

Mahalo to all of you for your

love and continued support.

The stories of our families

coming together and being

there for each other back

home continue to keep our

spirits high. Participation in

the FRG meetings and

events are great

opportunities for this, so

thank you for sharing your

time and talents; we could

not be as successful as a

Voyager team and family

without you. Until next

time, take good care.

Voyagers!

Aloha Family and Friends,

I hope that time is just flying

by as quickly for you as it

has been for us over the past

month. Staying busy with

work and making productive

use of ―down-time‖ are both

key, and having great

company also helps as well.

We have definitely been on

the upswing as far as flying

goes, as we have already

flown more hours during the

last 30-day period than the

previous. That said, our

pilots and crew chiefs have a

great opportunity to progress

to become pilots-in-

command and flight

engineers in the near future.

In addition to flying, we have

been proactively preparing

for our redeployment by

conducting inventories and

organizing our containers as

well as preparing items for

―reset,‖ which is a term used

to describe the program that

the Army uses to ―reverse

the effects of combat stress

on equipment.‖ This is a

standard practice for

redeploying units, and upon

completion brings us

another step closer to going

home. However, there is still

a lot of work to get done,

and the mission will still

drive on until a proper

handover is made with our

replacements.

In the meantime, one of the

things that we have been

doing to make productive

use of our time here (in

addition to our own internal

update meetings and

opportune training), and the

latest addition to the

Voyager battle rhythm, is

Key Leader CrossFit. Led by

the newest member of our

unit, First Lieutenant Sarah

Walker, Key Leader CrossFit

is now a weekly event that is

open to all Voyagers (but

mandatory for key leaders

and staff). We have already

completed two sessions over

the past two weeks and it is

starting to gain interest,

especially with our Det-1 D

Co soldiers, who witnessed

“Aloha” Voyagers Family and Friends,

Reenlistments

SPC Justin Crane

SGT Samuel Fong

SGT Joshua Pastor

B CO 1-171 The Voyagers

Charlie Company 1-214th Aviation Regiment

Dwyer

We‟ve come a long way from life at Landstuhl.

Here in Dwyer everything is brought up a level:

-Mission load (monthly average: 116) -

Helicopter maintenance (six 40 hrs, two 120 hrs, 5 aircraft

washes, 6 engine flushes per month)

-Flight operations, -

Coffee production/strength (24 hours of constant brewing),

and Zombie Killings (current record: level 35 Call of Duty;

Nazi Zombies).

Everyday everyone does more than their part to

help out and make every mission successful. And somehow

we still manage to take time for ourselves to catch up with

family, go to a concert, and give thanks for what is impor-

tant to each of us.

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Dropping off patients at the CSH.

Born 2 minutes apart, SGT Scott Lange got to

spend time with his twin brother, LCpl Matt

Lange here in Dwyer while 3rd Battalion, 1st

Marine Division passed through.

SFC Vincent Farrell got to catch up with his

sister, MAJ Jennifer Farrell recently when

10th MTN was at Kandahar Airfield.

Marines come by often to shake hands, swap stories, check out the helicopters, and thank us

for the job we do.

Where we work.

Where we sleep.

Three crews. Med-Med Chase. Two days on, one day off. Two scoops of a

hot meal (usually something brown) for breakfast, two scoops for dinner, and an

MRE for lunch. Shower every third day. No laundry turn-in; the off duty crew does

everyone‟s laundry on Tuesdays. No Barber Shop. And the rumors are true for

bathroom facilities...there are none.

When I arrived at Edi the crews had already been established there for a

month and were comfortable in the routine. One month of no haircuts, and every-

one looked about 10 lbs thinner when I last saw them.

Any desire to send care packages to Edi?...Send toilet paper, baby wipes,

and food: TunaFish kits, EasyMac singles, Ramen noodles, Shin Bowls, anything

that can be cooked with a water boiler (we already blew up the Microwave).

Within five minutes of arrival I assumed duty. 10 minutes later we

walked to the chow hall long enough to get food, sit down and take a few bites. A

mission drops and I hear the familiar “Medevac! Medevac! Medevac!” come over

the radio. We take off running. Welcome to Edi...

Future crews can look forward to getting great practice running to the

aircraft and getting up to „Red Con One‟ with lightning speed...followed immedi-

ately by getting great practice shutting down with fury and frustration from being

stood down. Despite the rough conditions crews are keeping their spirits up and

consistently doing an amazing job.

Where we work.

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Edinburgh

Includes: 1 Degradable waste bag with gelling

agent, odor neutralizer, & decay catalyst.

1 Degradable zip-close disposable bag.

Where we sleep.

The pee tubes.

Shaving at Edi is a painful process

involving part of a broken mirror, an empty ce-

real bowl, and freezing water warmed up any

way you can manage to warm it...usually by

leaving a bottle in front of the heater for 15

minutes.

(Left) LT Terry Hill

WAG (Waste Alleviation and Gelling) Bag.

Going to the restroom is a treat every time at Edi, especially on freez-

ing mornings, or as a mission drops. #1 is an outside job involving metal

„tubes,‟ with 33% privacy. #2 is done in a wooden box...on a small plastic

seat...in a plastic bag, with 82% privacy. We‟ll never take flush toilets for

granted again.

Delaram 3 crews. Med-Med chase. 2 days on, 1 day off. 19 missions last month. Our second operating site holds promise, and in any situation, how

much you get out of it depends on how much you put into it. With a lighter mission load and smaller crew mix it is easy to come together and build as

a team. We live together, work together, and we fly together. With 24 available working hours in each and every day we fill our time out here wisely.

Pilots give each other systems classes, the Medics and the Crew Chiefs have come together to learn/practice giving IVs (among other things) to help

out with patients, and there is plenty of time and opportunity for everyone to PT.

The Delaram Originals.

View from the Delaram CP.

Inside the sleep tent.

SSG Meece unloading patients at

the STP.

SFC Albright loading a transfer to Bastion. SGT Rivera during an IED 9 line.

SFC Albright SPC Greenier CW2 Tatro CPT Goldman SPC Doll

Page 28

Brahmans’ Photos