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April 05, 2006

I Sense a Disturbance in the Force

Cmdr. Jon Winters was startled last May to see his name on top of the short list to be deployed for seven months to Iraq.

It was unusual because he was on shore duty in Pensacola -- traditionally meant to give sailors a reprieve from deployment and a time to catch up with family or further their education.

But as the war in Iraq enters its third year, the Navy is sending more sailors to help out on the ground, Winters among them.

It was a different life for the 25-year veteran: reporting to an Army colonel; carrying an AK-47 even during chow; and learning a new lingo.

...The Navy has sent sailors, called individual augmentees, to Iraq since the war began. But in recent months, that number has spiked to an all-time high. Navy spokesman Lt. Trey Brown said the 4,000 sailors serving on the ground in Iraq will total 5,000 by the year's end.

"We are at our highest numbers since Iraqi Freedom, and we are continuing to grow," he said. "The Navy is looking at this from a total force structure to see who is available that has the right skill sets that is being asked by the military."

...Recently, more than a handful of instructors were sent to Iraq at one time. Some students who fail the flight program because of medical conditions, for example, are given the option of going to Iraq on ground missions instead of leaving the Navy.


Be all that you can be, huh? They sure need a lot of bodies to keep that well-oiled "Army of One" crap going. (Jeffs? Meet any squid conscripts in desert cammie while you were there?)

Posted by tree hugging sister at April 5, 2006 01:29 PM

Comments

Quite a few, THS, although not a lot of individuals. A fair number of the individuals were pulling security (ground and water); I processed through the deployment station with them. A fair number of units, like the medical teams, although I am hazy if those were ad hoc teams, or small teams augmented by individuals. Still, they did good work.

And the Seabees are really being tasked, individually (especially the officers for construction and contract management) and by unit.

Posted by: The_Real_JeffS at April 5, 2006 01:36 PM

The Army just wants to share the wealth THS, wouldn't want the Navy to miss out.

JeffS-What's with the AK-47 reference? I didn't think any of our guys were issued them.

Posted by: Dave E. at April 5, 2006 02:14 PM

Can't say for sure, Dave, but AK47s and ammo are plentiful in Iraq, and they are used by some people outside the Iraqi Army/police. Not a problem, technically, if the weapon has been worked over by a competent armorer, and the ammo isn't the crap Hussein stockpiled (real cheap stuff, I'm told, fair for training, lousy for combat).

Operationally......not everyone is authorized a "long gun". I carried a pistol myself, and would have preferred an M4 carbine, or even an M16. But I expect that some local commanders have authorized their people to carry AK47s under certain circumstances, subject to conditions.

It does make sense to use what you have, rather than complain about requisitions not being approved. Although I expect some people at higher echelons are having conniptions ("That just isn't the way things are done, old chap!"). Boo hoo.

Posted by: The_Real_JeffS at April 5, 2006 02:31 PM

JeffS-Yeah, I've heard that they are everywhere in Iraq. I just haven't heard of any of our guys using them so I was wondering if it's new information to me or if this is another example of a reporter who is clueless about the US military.

Posted by: Dave E. at April 5, 2006 07:09 PM

I vote 'clueless'.

Posted by: tree hugging sister at April 5, 2006 10:38 PM