Veteran leadership from TF Blackhawk guides patrol in Bermal district

Written by U.S. Army Sgt. William Begley, RC-East PAO Tuesday, 13 March 2012

PAKTIKA PROVINCE, Afghanistan – Soldiers from Company C, 2nd Battalion, 28th Infantry Regiment, 172nd Infantry Brigade, Task Force Blackhawk, set up a traffic control point in the Bermel district, March 9. The Soldiers used the TCP to gather biometric data on military aged Afghan men. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. William Begley, 11th Public Affairs Detachment)

 

 

 

 

PAKTIKA PROVINCE, Afghanistan – Soldiers from Company C, 2nd Battalion, 28th Infantry Regiment, 172nd Infantry Brigade, Task Force Blackhawk, prepared their mine resistant ambush protected vehicles for a mounted patrol in Bermal District, March 9.

Their mission according to U.S. Army 1st Lt. Andrew Addis, a native of Aiken, S.C., was to establish traffic control points, collect biometric data, meet with the Afghan Local Police, and gather information about insurgent activity.

 Located at the foot of a mountain range along the Pakistan border the Bermal district has several trails going out of the mountains, which have been used in the past by insurgents to smuggle weapons.

U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Heath McLaughlin, a native of Cherokee, Iowa, and a platoon sergeant with more than 19 years in the Army, was happy to make it through the day without incident.

“It went well. We didn’t take any contact but we got a lot of people enrolled in our biometric database,” said McLaughlin. “We set a goal of enrolling fifty people before we went out and we exceeded that number.”

While the TCP was busy gathering data, Addis and McLaughlin visited an ALP outpost.

“We found out information about another safe haven for insurgents,” said Addis. “We also asked if they needed any supplies or if there was anything we could do for them.”

After rolling up the TCP, the patrol made its way to a medrassa or a Muslim school. Earlier in the year, a man caught trying to set up an IED was captured coming from the school.

While Addis and McLaughlin gathered information from the school, the other Soldiers set up another TCP and continued to gather biometric data. One of those Soldiers was U.S. Army Spc. Michael Miller.

Miller, a native of Melbourne, Fla., has done this task for most of the deployment and enjoys his job for a variety of reasons.

“I like it because I get to interact with the local population and still get to go out with my platoon,” said Miller. “Most of the population is very cooperative and they are glad we are here. They often invite me in for tea and want to show me their appreciation.”

Before the sun went down on a day that forecasted the coming of spring, the patrol returned to Forward Operating Base Boris with valuable information and a much larger database.

“What we did today allows us to build a background of the area,” said McLaughlin. “That’s what we are trying to do here is to be able to paint an accurate picture of what’s going on here for the unit who is coming in to replace us.”