An official website of the United States government
A .mil website belongs to an official U.S. Department of Defense organization in the United States.
A lock (lock ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .mil website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Rock Solid Warrior

  • Published
  • 424th Medium Truck Detachment
SOUTHWEST ASIA --  Staff Sgt. Adam Niblock 

Staff Sgt.
Adam Niblock

424th Medium Truck Detachment

Home unit/base: 100th Air Refueling Wing, Royal Air Force Mildenhall 


How does your job differ in a deployed environment vs. at home station? The difference is like night and day in many ways and yet is very similar in others. While deployed, specifically in this deployment, the experience in getting to work with our sister services is a dramatic difference. Getting used to the terms company, battalion, brigade and etc. and getting in the Army mind set has been a huge difference. At home station, it is all about getting the planes off the ground and here it is all about getting cargo to all the troops up north in Iraq so they can get their mission accomplished. Doing the job here you can really see the difference that you are making to the troops downrange.

At home station it is a 7- 4 work hours. Here it is 24-7 work hours, whenever the cargo needs to get moved. Also, at home station you aren't getting shot at and having people try to blow you up. You never know what the next inch on the roads over here brings.

How many times have you deployed and how is this one unique? This is my second deployment. My first was to the United Arab Emirates. It was back in 2003 as the war was getting started.

This one is unique because I work for the Army and don't directly support the Air Force mission. We drive thousands of miles on the road in Iraq delivering cargo to various bases in Iraq. We see and experience many things over here that many Air Force personnel do not experience. It can honestly be scary.

How do you support the mission here? We support the mission by driving Army M-915 tractor trailers to various bases in Iraq delivering cargo. We travel all over the roads running the possibility that an IED, roadside bomb, small arms fire or many other enemy actions can be taken against our convoy. We transport cargo that allows Army units to rotate in and out of Iraq so that the mission can be continued.