The 340th Quartermaster Company found itself serving during one of the most difficult phases of the war. They came to Iraq in October 2004, months after the successful 2003 invasion but years before the successful surge.
“Anti-Coalition forces attacked the 340th with mortars, rockets, rocket propelled grenades, Improvised Explosive Devices (IED), daisy-chained IEDs that the 340th called ‘convoy killers,’ snipers, and small arms fire. Incoming mortars came so close that they hit the shower and laundry tents at Camp Habbiniyah and FOB Corrigedor in Ar Ramadi,” recounted Captain Mark Braswell, commander of the 340th Quartermaster Company that provided crew members with gun trucks, and provided supplies as they outfitted Forward Operating Bases.
What they faced was an ever smarter enemy. Braswell shared about a battlefield formula known as METT-TC: Mission, Enemy, Time, Terrain, Troops available and Civilians on the battlefields. This formula was crucial to making decisions about fighting an ever smarter enemy. Evaluating the elements of METT-TC led to changes in daily operations, such as timing.
“The mission of providing Shower, Laundry and Clothing Renovation (SLCR) services was often affected by enemy activity. During major offensive operations, the soldiers closed down the shower tent in order to guard detainees in Ramadi. Also, the hours of the day or night (when the SLCR services were provided) changed based on missions and enemy activity.”
The greatest threat to the gun truckers of the 340th Quartermaster Company was traveling in combat logistics patrols. Early on, the enemy figured out how to create IEDs that are often made with high explosive artillery shells. They placed IEDs on road curbs or other hidden locations and waited to detonate them until vehicles or pedestrians passed by. Then the enemy expanded on IEDs by using EFPs or explosively formed projectiles. EFOs are mortar or artillery rounds and rockets that aim and propel the explosion into vehicles. They are designed to penetrate armor from a distance. The METT-TC gave decision makers a guideline for evaluating dangerous terrain.
“Sometimes, roads were closed due to attacks. Soldiers had to wait for Route Clearance teams to clear roads of any IEDs before traveling on the road,” Braswell noted. When main roads were blocked because of combat, soldiers were forced to take back roads and alternate routes and travel at unexpected times. That’s what good guidelines do: provide principles and boundaries to live by.
Thank you for providing practical operating guidelines in your word, and wisdom to keep my path straight.
“I’m giving you thirty sterling principles tested guidelines to live by. Believe me these are truths that work, and will keep you accountable to those who sent you.” (Proverbs 22:17)