Rakkasans assist Afghan army with inspections and training

January 30, 2013

By Spc. Brian J. Smith Dutton (FORSCOM)

  • KHOWST PROVINCE, Afghanistan - Spc. Jose Corona, a fueler assigned to Distribution Platoon, Company G, 3rd Battalion, 320th Field Artillery Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team "Rakkasans," 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), peers into the valley below using advanced optics on his rifle while providing security during a partnership mission in Qalandar District, Afghanistan, Jan. 8, 2013. The mission was conducted to check on an Afghan National Army combat outpost to assess its security and fortification standards while also conducting training on the Browning .50 calibre machine gun. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Brian Smith-Dutton, Task Force 3/101 Public Affairs)

    Rakkasans assist Afghan army with inspections and training

    KHOWST PROVINCE, Afghanistan - Spc. Jose Corona, a fueler assigned to Distribution Platoon, Company G, 3rd Battalion, 320th Field Artillery Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team "Rakkasans," 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), peers into the valley...

  • KHOWST PROVINCE, Afghanistan - Spc. Jose Corona, a fueler assigned to Distribution Platoon, Company G, 3rd Battalion, 320th Field Artillery Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team "Rakkasans," 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), peers into the valley below using advanced optics on his rifle while providing security during a partnership mission in Qalandar District, Afghanistan, Jan. 8, 2013. The mission was conducted to check on an Afghan National Army combat outpost to assess its security and fortification standards while also conducting training on the Browning .50 calibre machine gun. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Brian Smith-Dutton, Task Force 3/101 Public Affairs)

    Rakkasans assist Afghan army with inspections and training

    KHOWST PROVINCE, Afghanistan - Spc. Jose Corona, a fueler assigned to Distribution Platoon, Company G, 3rd Battalion, 320th Field Artillery Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team "Rakkasans," 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), peers into the valley...

  • KHOWST PROVINCE, Afghanistan - Sgt. 1st Class Christopher Fairley (right), a platoon sergeant, and Sgt. Wally Halt (left), a squad leader, both assigned to Distribution Platoon, Company G, 3rd Battalion, 320th Field Artillery Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team "Rakkasans," 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), scout the area before conducting a dismounted patrol around an Afghan National Army combat outpost in Qalandar District, Afghanistan, Jan. 8, 2013. The mission was conducted to check on the ANA combat outpost to assess its security and fortification standards while also conducting training on the Browning .50 calibre machine gun. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Brian Smith-Dutton, Task Force 3/101 Public Affairs)

    Rakkasans assist Afghan army with inspections and training

    KHOWST PROVINCE, Afghanistan - Sgt. 1st Class Christopher Fairley (right), a platoon sergeant, and Sgt. Wally Halt (left), a squad leader, both assigned to Distribution Platoon, Company G, 3rd Battalion, 320th Field Artillery Regiment, 3rd Brigade...

  • KHOWST PROVINCE, Afghanistan - Spc. Zachary Nattrass, a vehicle gunner assigned to Distribution Platoon, Company G, 3rd Battalion, 320th Field Artillery Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team "Rakkasans," 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), conducts a class on safety and proper usage of the M2 Browning .50 calibre machine gun for Afghan National Army soldiers in Qalandar District, Afghanistan, Jan. 8, 2013. The class was held in conjunction with a partnership mission to assist ANA forces with security in their area of operations. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Brian Smith-Dutton, Task Force 3/101 Public Affairs)

    Rakkasans assist Afghan army with inspections and training

    KHOWST PROVINCE, Afghanistan - Spc. Zachary Nattrass, a vehicle gunner assigned to Distribution Platoon, Company G, 3rd Battalion, 320th Field Artillery Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team "Rakkasans," 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), conducts a...

  • KHOWST PROVINCE, Afghanistan - Spc. Zachary Nattrass, a vehicle gunner assigned to Distribution Platoon, Company G, 3rd Battalion, 320th Field Artillery Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team "Rakkasans," 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), conducts a class on safety and proper usage of the M2 Browning .50 calibre machine gun for Afghan National Army soldiers in Qalandar District, Afghanistan, Jan. 8, 2013. The class was held in conjunction with a partnership mission to assist ANA forces with security in their area of operations. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Brian Smith-Dutton, Task Force 3/101 Public Affairs)

    Rakkasans assist Afghan army with inspections and training

    KHOWST PROVINCE, Afghanistan - Spc. Zachary Nattrass, a vehicle gunner assigned to Distribution Platoon, Company G, 3rd Battalion, 320th Field Artillery Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team "Rakkasans," 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), conducts a...

  • KHOWST PROVINCE, Afghanistan - Spc. Zachary Nattrass, a vehicle gunner assigned to Distribution Platoon, Company G, 3rd Battalion, 320th Field Artillery Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team "Rakkasans," 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), demonstrates the proper disassembly and reassembly procedures of the M2 Bowing .50 calibre machine gun to Afghan National Army soldiers on an ANA combat outpost in Qalandar District, Afghanistan, Jan. 8, 2013. The class was held in conjunction with a partnership mission to assist ANA forces with security in their area of operations. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Brian Smith-Dutton, Task Force 3/101 Public Affairs)

    Rakkasans assist Afghan army with inspections and training

    KHOWST PROVINCE, Afghanistan - Spc. Zachary Nattrass, a vehicle gunner assigned to Distribution Platoon, Company G, 3rd Battalion, 320th Field Artillery Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team "Rakkasans," 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), demonstrates...

  • KHOWST PROVINCE, Afghanistan - Spc. Zachary Nattrass, a vehicle gunner assigned to Distribution Platoon, Company G, 3rd Battalion, 320th Field Artillery Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team "Rakkasans," 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), demonstrates the proper usage of a head space and timing gage for Afghan National Army soldiers on a M2 Browning .50 calibre machine gun at an ANA outpost in Qalandar District, Afghanistan, Jan. 8, 2013. The class was held in conjunction with a partnership mission to assist ANA forces with security in their area of operations. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Brian Smith-Dutton, Task Force 3/101 Public Affairs)

    Rakkasans assist Afghan army with inspections and training

    KHOWST PROVINCE, Afghanistan - Spc. Zachary Nattrass, a vehicle gunner assigned to Distribution Platoon, Company G, 3rd Battalion, 320th Field Artillery Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team "Rakkasans," 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), demonstrates...

  • KHOWST PROVINCE, Afghanistan - Spc. Zachary Nattrass, a vehicle gunner assigned to Distribution Platoon, Company G, 3rd Battalion, 320th Field Artillery Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team "Rakkasans," 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), demonstrates the proper usage of a head space and timing gage through an interpreter for Afghan National Army soldiers on a M2 Browning .50 calibre machine gun at an ANA outpost in Qalandar District, Afghanistan, Jan. 8, 2013. The class was held in conjunction with a partnership mission to assist ANA forces with security in their area of operations. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Brian Smith-Dutton, Task Force 3/101 Public Affairs)

    Rakkasans assist Afghan army with inspections and training

    KHOWST PROVINCE, Afghanistan - Spc. Zachary Nattrass, a vehicle gunner assigned to Distribution Platoon, Company G, 3rd Battalion, 320th Field Artillery Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team "Rakkasans," 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), demonstrates...

  • KHOWST PROVINCE, Afghanistan " A member of the Afghan National Army demonstrates the proper functions check on a M2 Bowing .50 calibre machine gun while Spc. Zachary Nattrass, a vehicle gunner assigned to Distribution Platoon, Company G, 3rd Battalion, 320th Field Artillery Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team "Rakkasans," 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), watches to ensure the soldiers are learning how to operate the weapon during a training session in Qalandar District, Afghanistan, Jan. 8, 2013. The class was held in conjunction with a partnership mission to assist ANA forces with security in their area of operations. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Brian Smith-Dutton, Task Force 3/101 Public Affairs)

    Rakkasans assist Afghan army with inspections and training

    KHOWST PROVINCE, Afghanistan " A member of the Afghan National Army demonstrates the proper functions check on a M2 Bowing .50 calibre machine gun while Spc. Zachary Nattrass, a vehicle gunner assigned to Distribution Platoon, Company G, 3rd Battalion...

Soldiers assigned to Company G, 3rd Battalion, 320th Field Artillery Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team "Rakkasans," 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), joined with the Afghan National Army's 4th Kandak, 1st Infantry Brigade, 203rd Afghan Army Corps, on a partnership support mission in Qalandar District, Khowst Province, Afghanistan, Jan. 8, 2013.

During the mission, the Rakkasans and Afghan troops visited an ANA combat outpost in order to inspect their security and structures, check their supplies and conduct training on the Browning M2 .50 calibre machine gun, a weapon donated to the Afghan troops to help secure the compound.

Spc. Zachary Nattrass, a vehicle gunner assigned to Company G, conducted the class while Sgt. 1st Class Christopher Fairley, a platoon sergeant with the company, led a foot patrol outside the compound in order to inspect the outer walls in search of any vulnerable areas for possible insurgent infiltration.

Page last updated Wed January 30th, 2013 at 00:00