Bronze Star with V device [December 5 2005]

DVIDS
By Tech Sgt. Pamela Anderson, 332 AEW Public Affairs
The Dec. 5 convoy mission was business as usual for members of the 732nd Expeditionary Logistics Readiness Squadron, Detachment 2632. The line of about 20 vehicles was making its way back from Forward Operating Base Speicher hauling supplies for Kellogg Brown and Root, carefully maneuvering through Iraqi towns and watching for the unexpected on or near the roads ahead.

A standard convoy is made up of about 30 vehicles, five of which are gun trucks that are positioned in the lead, at the rear and evenly between the supply trucks making up the rest of the convoy. “It was a pretty uneventful trip,” said Staff Sgt. Christopher Willson, 732 ELRS, Det. 2632 assistant convoy commander. “We had stopped for a possible IED earlier and that delayed us about two hours while we waited for (the Explosive Ordnance Disposal team) to come out and clear it.”

Once the convoy got the call to proceed, they made their way toward Balad Air Base and just as they crossed the underpass south of the downtown Balad market, they found themselves under attack.

The lead gun truck had already passed through the “kill zone” when shots were heard by those following behind him.

“The convoy exited 62A and I immediately heard gunshots,” said Airman 1st Class Christian Jackson, 732 ELRS vehicle operator, who was the gunner on Gun Truck Two, which was vehicle number six in the convoy. “I looked left with my (night vision goggles) and saw numerous people firing weapons from about 50-75 yards off in the field. I turned my .50 cal that direction and began to fire back.”

About five vehicles back, in Gun Truck Three, Airman 1st Class Nicole O’Hara, 732 ELRS gunner, noticed tracer rounds coming from Gun Truck Two just as her troop commander, Sergeant Willson, tapped her leg and let her know that he had heard about enemy fire from the left via the radio.

“I then saw the area where Jackson was firing and saw the tracers being fired back at our convoy,” Airman O’Hara said. “I zeroed in on the area through my NVGs and started laying down suppressive fire. Sergeant Willson tapped on my leg again and tried to tell me that we had contact from the right also but I couldn’t hear him over the engine, the weapons and the wind. All I heard was “get down” so I continued to lay suppressive fire to the left side as I lay as low as possible in my turret without obstructing my view.”

Airmen Jackson and O’Hara continued to engage the enemy as the convoy continued to move through the kill zone at speeds of about 50 mph in hopes of avoiding more direct fire and any injury to its crew members.

“Everything happened in a matter of a minute, but it seemed like an hour,” said Sergeant Willson. The convoy traveled about a mile and a half outside the kill zone before pulling over and assessing the damage. Two KBR drivers were injured, three vehicles were damaged and one destroyed but when all was said and done, the convoy crew counted themselves lucky.

The enemy can’t count itself as lucky. After the dust settled, Airmen Jackson and O’Hara were credited with killing all of the attacking insurgents.

Coming to terms with that reality hasn’t been too difficult for either Airmen because they both said they were doing what they needed to do to protect their own.

“They shot at us first and were trying to take the lives of the people I work with,” said Airman O’Hara. “We’ve been through so much, we’re like a family and I would do anything to protect my family.”

The 732nd ELRS will standdown in a ceremony Tuesday. While the mission of the ELRS is coming to an end, they will leave behind a legacy of courage under fire.

Senior Airman Nicole O’Hara, 1st Security Forces Squadron entry controller, greets President George W. Bush on his arrival here May 13 2007. The president and his wife, first lady Laura Bush, landed at Langley and then boarded Marine One to attend America’s Anniversary Weekend at Jamestown. (U.S. Air Force photo/Senior Airman Tabitha Kuykendall)