Joint Air Force, Army partnership leads to mission execution, success

Published Jan. 21, 2009
By Staff Sgt. Zachary Wilson
AFCENT Combat Camera News team

SOUTHWEST ASIA -- -- In late August- early September, Coalition Airmen and Soldiers teamed up to deliver an electric turbine for the hydroelectric Kajaki Dam in Helmand Province, Afghanistan, as part of Operation Oqab Tsuka, or Eagle's Summit. Nearly 4,000 ground forces supported this arduous mission while coalition air assets provided aerial cover to protect against insurgent elements.

The convoy traveled nearly 100 miles to deliver this critical equipment to aid the Afghan people.

This mission was successful as a result of the coordination between the 609th Coalition Air and Space Operations Center (CAOC) and the U.S. Army's 4th Battlefield Coordination Detachment, which is co-located in the CAOC.

As the CAOC directs air support operations such as Close Air Support (CAS), Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR), Aeromedical Evacuation (AE), resupply air drops, and other missions, the 4th BCD coordinates between the CAOC and all ground forces to ensure air support requirements are met.

"(In regard to the air component here,) we are inextricably linked," said U.S. Army Col. Kevin Felix, 4th BCD commander, who is serving a 12 month tour which began in October, and is stationed at Shaw Air Force Base, S.C. "The counter-insurgency operations environment requires us to look at this as a team sport. And this team is winning every day."

The 4th BCD is a part of U.S. Army Central, and serves as a liaison between US Air Forces Central, U.S. Central Command, and the Ground Component Commanders in both Afghanistan and Iraq. The 4th BCD facilitates the planning, coordination and execution of joint fires and effects in support of ground combat operations in the Central Command Area of Operations, according to a 4th BCD official.

The role of the 4th BCD within the CAOC is to serve as the conduit between ground forces within the two theaters in Afghanistan and Iraq and according to Brig. Gen. Lance Undhjem, the outgoing CAOC director, to "basically be the experts on all things ground."
"They clarify the requirements needed to support units on the ground as well as educate ground force commanders in-theater about what they can expect from us," said General Undhjem, who is returning to the Pentagon in his position of mobilization assistant to the Air Force Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations, Plans and Requirements. "It's a two-way flow of information between us."

While the Kajaki Dam mission was one of many examples of the teamwork in action, Colonel Felix says successes like these are accomplished every day.

"Another example was a recent mission in Afghanistan where World Food Program convoys needed to be covered," he said. "The level of air support needed on this mission was different because of the regions of the country the convoy travelled through. This type of mission requires a great amount of detail planning and coordination, beyond just establishing an air support requirement."

In a demonstration of the partnership between the Coalition air components here and the 4th BCD, Colonel Felix, who comes from the Army's Artillery branch, awarded seven members of his team and the CAOC staff, including General Undhjem and two British officers, with the Order of St. Barbara, the patron saint of artillery, in a ceremony Saturday night.

The Order of St. Barbara is an honorary military society of the United States Field Artillery. Both U.S. Marine Corps and U.S. Army field artillery personnel, along with military and civilian supporters, are eligible for membership, according to a fact sheet from Fort Sill, Oklahoma, home of U.S. Army Field Artillery.

The award is named for St. Barbara, who was killed by her father in 300 A.D., as a result of conversion to Christianity. According to legend, her father was struck down by lightening from heaven as retribution.

According to a Fort Sill fact sheet, when gunpowder made its appearance in the Western world, Saint Barbara was invoked for aid against accidents resulting from explosions--since some of the earlier artillery pieces often blew up instead of firing their projectile, Saint Barbara became the patroness of the artillerymen.

The recipients were awarded a medal by 4th BCD members in a military dining-in themed ceremony and were addressed via teleconference by both the Commander, USARCENT, LTG Lovelace, and Lt. Gen. Gary North, 9th Air Force and AFCENT commander.

"We are operating in a joint, Coalition environment and that is really how you define 'team'," Colonel Felix said. "I can't do my job without support from our sister services and our coalition brothers-in-arms."

Upon reflecting upon his acceptance into the prestigious order, General Undhjem was appreciative and proud of the accomplishments of the entire Coalition team.

"I enjoyed working so closely with the 4th BCD during my time here," the general said. "They are an integral part of our mission. We could not perform our mission effectively without the 4th BCD."

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