INDCJournal: Headed Out <i><b>(UPDATED)</b></i>

« "Anatomy of a Tribal Revolt" | Main | "We like you!" (UPDATED) »

August 29, 2007

Headed Out (UPDATED)

Posted by Bill

I'm off to Kuwait tomorrow, followed by a brief stop in Baghdad and then Fallujah. "Space Available" military travel could take 2-4 days, so expect posting from Iraq to start early next week.

UPDATE (9/3, 10:31 AM Eastern US, 6:32 Baghdad): I'm in Baghdad, having run the "Summer Space-A Military Travel Endurance Gauntlet" and emerged victorious, if damaged. Back in January the process was slow and annoying, but eminently tolerable.

Add toting around 100+ lbs. of gear in 110-120 degrees to the mix, and you've got something closer to casual torture by mischievous gods. The intricate bureaucratic insanities, face-melting heat and apathetic contractors form the perfect storm of bad travel.

"No sleeping!" in the air-conditioned MWR tent, whereas the air-conditioning in the billets is broken. Signs admonish travelers to remove bags and refrain from getting comfortable because "This tent is not a waiting room!", twenty feet from a sign reading ... "Waiting Room." A contractor tells a group of imploring travelers "I don't give a crap [where your passport is], the new company that starts today took my job", while many of the passports sit in a bin next to him. Best response from a soldier on his way out: "We're fellow Americans trying to get home, you should care."

This heat is more intense than anything I experienced growing up in Florida, and adds a whole new dimension to the war as you realize what Americans and Iraqis endure during summer seasons of the conflict. Walking in full E-Interceptor body armor and rifle plates makes one fuss and gripe until achieving the embarrassed relativism that you're not wearing it during an hours-long dismounted patrol through the streets of Baghdad. Most every day, for a 15-month deployment.

And getting assigned to bake in a tent with broken air-conditioning when you haven't slept in 24 hours is unwelcome news, but it pales in comparison to facing regular summer black-outs as an Iraqi living in Baghdad.

But the embed travel process had its inevitable highlight in the short Blackhawk ride from Baghdad International Airport to the Green Zone. This time, it was at night. A slight change in the engine's whine and your stomach's protest are the only warnings as the keyed up aircraft floats effortlessly into the air. Hot summer air buffets your face from the open window. The helicopter hugs the ground, skimming several hundred feet above neatly aligned palm groves and an industrial sector of the city, until the pilot ups speed and altitude as part of the anti-pattern pattern designed to discourage ground fire. A twin aircraft takes position 45 degrees to the left-rear, a moving blankness in the inky blue, half-moon-lit night. A mini black-out rolls over a few city blocks below, the lights snapping out and flickering back to life a few seconds later. Sharp banks alternate views of ground and sky, until the ride ends with the Blackhawk touching down like an insect on a leaf. God, I love that part.

I'm flying to Fallujah tonight to start a 3 day Civil Affairs embed early tomorrow morning. Pieces to follow.

UPDATE: Altitude edited for accuracy.

Posted by Bill at August 29, 2007 10:02 PM | TrackBack (0)

Trackback Pings

TrackBack URL for this entry:
http://www.indcjournal.com/cgi-bin/mt/dafrules/tapaz.cgi/2990

Comments

Good luck Bill. Stay safe. Train those baby blues on the facts and bring them back to us.
Thanks for doing this. I very much look forward to your reports.

Posted by: Babs at August 30, 2007 08:27 AM

Thank you for going again...Stay safe!

Posted by: Agnieszka at August 30, 2007 11:07 AM

Bring us the truth, Bill. If you get to COP Viking, look up only son, FastLaneFlash, who is with 3rd ID in support of Marine RCT6. He returned to Iraq on Saturday from leave. If it hits the fan, stay close to him; he's the best gunner there. Wish I could join you. You're in our prayers, along with the other great Americans there. Victory!

Posted by: twolaneflash at August 30, 2007 12:53 PM

Godpseed, again.

Posted by: Big Mac w/ an Egg at August 30, 2007 04:16 PM

I have endless respect for you few who are going out there despite the risks to do real, honest journalism. I look forward to your reports.
Keep safe.

Posted by: Steve at August 31, 2007 12:15 AM

G-d speed to you mate.

May your journey be safe and surrounded in kindred spirit of all fellow Americans that support this mission in the global war on terror.

Posted by: thehumanBeanAZ at August 31, 2007 02:03 PM

Stay safe, looking forward to your reports.
Goodspeed

Posted by: Mrs G at September 3, 2007 11:11 AM

Godspeed, Bill.

Posted by: Steve the LLamabutcher at September 3, 2007 03:19 PM

Welcome back to the show.

Posted by: LMC at September 3, 2007 11:45 PM

If it's not too much to ask, could you try to get the country fixed before you leave this time?

Posted by: TallDave at September 4, 2007 02:05 PM

This is probably a great time to mention Jessica Alba is in Toronto for the film festival and to shoot a movie. She was spotted at a specialty Italian grocery store near my place. So my plan is to do some celebrity stalking, get my picture taken with her and explain how you are her biggest fan but currently in Iraq so I will have to do as a "runner up" kind of a deal.

Posted by: Flea at September 4, 2007 07:13 PM