2010020406

Photos: Airborne’s 407th BSB Delivers The Goods

By R.Gregg, The Raleigh Telegram

Thursday, February 4, 2010

PORT AU PRINCE, HAITI - The soldiers on the front lines grab a lot of the headlines sometimes, but the people that help make the Army run deserve some attention too. Without the fuel, food, and firearms that supply units deliver, any offensive would soon come to a screeching halt.

While embedded with the 82nd Airborne in the humanitarian missions in Haiti, this reporter had a chance to see firsthand how supply forces such as the 407th Brigade Support Battalion perform their duties.

The photos on the right show some scenes from one particular mission at night in Port au Prince.

The 407th, commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Matt Shatzkin of Kansas City, delivered supplies to a new field emergency hospital being set up next to the American Embassy in the downtown Port au Prince area.

American forces were setting up a treatment center next to the embassy inside of tents and a building that already had running water and power.

To help set up the medical facility rapidly, the 407th was delivering four palettes of medical supplies, food and water to the new facility.

Lt. Colonel Shatzkin said that they were going to use a relatively new piece of equipment called a Load Handling System or LHS to unload the large metal palettes called “flat racks.”

The flat racks are metal palettes that hold items that are shipped in by US Air Force planes and then returned to the Air Force after they are unloaded. (See separate article on the C-17 returning with stacks of flat racks).

In addition to the LHS system, Lt. Colonel Shatzkin said that the 407th has one container handling unit in Haiti that can deliver entire 20 foot shipping containers or even the smaller “tri-con” containers.

As the large trucks back up and drop off their loads, the soldiers then remove the supplies from the flat racks and stack them in preparation for use by the new medical facility’s team members.

According to an American Embassy worker at the scene, guards were posted to protect the supplies overnight, as the location was outside of the embassy’s gates.

The entire operation including the trip from the airport to the unloading of the vehicles and the return to base didn’t take long. By traveling at night, the 407th didn’t have to negotiate such large trucks through the busy daytime traffic.

“That’s why we do a lot of stuff at night,” said the colonel.

After they finished and were ready to leave the scene, the Lieutenant Colonel gathered up his troops in a circle and congratulated them on a job well done. Shatzkin reminded them that they are on a humanitarian mission that will save lives and help rebuild Haiti.

“You’re doing something here that you can be proud of,” said Lt. Col. Shatzkin to his team.

:: END