Читать книгу Weapon of Choice: The Operations of U.S. Army Special Forces in Afghanistan - Combat Studies Institute - Страница 26

SSG Mark Parsons (pseudonym), a 528th SOSB food service specialist, had been on joint exercises and was familiar with what the Air Force brought. Parsons found his dining facility equipment among the scattered pallets and set to work. Unforeseen problems were the fuel-contaminated soil, trash dumps everywhere, abandoned Soviet equipment relics, and snakes. The emergence of a cobra from a temporary latrine area got everyone’s attention. Still, SSG Parsons had a mess hall operating in one week instead of the anticipated three weeks. Hot “real” food boosted camp morale 100 percent. That single meal per day was the highlight of some very long days as well as a welcome relief from the constant diet of meals, ready to eat (MREs).

A combat soldier’s most valuable tools are his weapon and his ammunition. The 528th SOSB’s soldiers quickly learned that their most valuable items were the lumber and forklift that had accompanied them from Fort Bragg. The foresight of carrying plywood, 2-x-4 lumber, and other construction material paid big dividends for A Company. These building materials were quickly turned into tent floors and walls to enclose latrines. The forklift moved pallets of equipment that arrived daily on U.S. Air Force aircraft, the sea/land containers that became a warehouse, and mountains of abandoned Soviet equipment and trash to clear space to accommodate the growing numbers of SOF personnel at Camp Freedom. The forklift operator became one of the most sought-after soldiers on the encampment by anyone who needed something moved.