Officer gets his first look at Afghanistan
The sounds of war awoke me out of a restless slumber. Rattling my eardrums, my mind raced trying to place the sound which disturbed my first night of sleep in Afghanistan. A vehicle borne improvised-explosive-device (VBIED) had exploded within ¼ mile of our base in Kabul. It was a familiar sound as I had witnessed a few VBIED's in Iraq.
As the din of the explosion receded, I lay on my bunk searching for a sense of feeling — a sense of fear — a sense of urgency — something to stir me into action — nothing. I was back into the mix — back to war, and I knew I was not in danger. I rolled over and went back to sleep.
Welcome to Afghanistan. After a 31-hour journey that included several layovers, I arrived in Afghanistan, and so begins my year tour in another war-torn country. As we circled Kabul, the Air Force C-5 Galaxy entered into a tight spiral — it was a graceful maneuver by a huge aircraft, designed to try and reduce the chance of being shot out of the sky by a surface-to-air missile — apparently still a threat in this neck of the woods.
The large plane thundered into the final turn and touched down with surprising grace — the brakes were applied and we began to taxi off the runway. The rear ramp dropped and the passengers inside the plane were greeted to stunning views of the rugged mountains which ring Kabul and form the valley where the capital city sits at about 6,000 feet high.
A few peaks still were capped with snow. But for the most part, the mountains were bare, brown and imposing. A prelude of things to come? Our base was about 5 miles from the airport, so we were loaded onto old Russian helicopters and flown to our base. Screaming above the ground at about 100 feet (the lower you are, the less chance someone has time to aim a rocket-propelled grenade at you), the back ramp of the copter was open and I got my first glance at the people of Afghanistan.
Granted this was a mere snapshot of the country as a whole — but, as in Iraq, I can honestly say abject poverty is the best description of the area I saw. Mud-walled compounds packed together forming a geographical maze which even the most seasoned explorer would have difficulty navigating.
Children played in garbage. Adults engaged in various forms of commerce, with small shops dotting the roads. I imagine the people along the flight path are used to having helicopters buzz their homes. Even with the noise, people stopped to watch our movement and many waved and smiled. It was reassuring to see such actions.
I am currently located on a base in Kabul and my team is preparing to move to our area of operations. Please note I cannot provide names of specific locations we are going to, but I will try to provide general locations and descriptions of the terrain, people and events which transpire.
The current base is like most other Forward Operating Bases (FOB) one would find in Iraq or Afghanistan. In our case, it is a former Soviet base left over from their invasion of Afghanistan with a recent deep influence of Americana. KBR provides a majority of the life support and we have access to phones, Internet, a gym, a post exchange and several fast-food outlets.
Additionally, most of the permanent party lives in 8-man buildings with air conditioning. Bathroom and shower facilities are provided in air-conditioned trailers. Hey — we can't fight any war without air conditioning — ha.
The dining facility offers four meals a day and the chow is pretty good. There is an abundance of fresh offerings and each meal offers plenty of American comfort food. I would say there is almost too much choice. Considering how much food is laid out during each meal, it is almost obscene the amount one could gorge on. The military wants soldiers to find comfort in food — but do soldiers really need four different choices of fresh ice cream at lunch or dinner? Or, six different types of meat at breakfast?
I don't know — you don't have to eat it if you don't want to. But considering how many people are struggling mere feet from our defensive walls, it makes you wonder if all the effort and expense needed to transport so much food into each base is worth it. As I prepare to move back to the front lines of the president's global war on terror, I can honestly say I feel no fear.
I do not undertake the next year lightly. But as a veteran and someone who has survived death in combat, I just know mentally I am ready for the events which will surely transpire. My well of courage will have to run deep, but I am going to do all I can not to let down those who will count on me both here and at home.
Capt. Aaron Bert
Capt. Aaron Bert, of Seattle is serving as an armor officer with the Washington National Guard in Afghanistan. Bert, who left for Afghanistan in mid-March, is on leave from his job as Emergency Management manager for the Seattle Department of Parks and Recreation.Bert, 35, re-enlisted in the Guard after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. From 2004-05, he served in Iraq, where his unit fought alongside Iraqi security forces and he was awarded a Bronze Star. A native of Olympia who now lives in Seattle, Bert has served in the military 15 years. He has two children.
He'll be sending dispatches to The Times whenever he's near a computer.