1st Cavalry conduct presence patrol around FOB Fenty

By Sgt. Margaret Taylor, 129th Mobile Public Affairs DetachmentAugust 28, 2013

1st Cavalry conduct presence patrol around FOB Fenty
1 / 15 Show Caption + Hide Caption – U.S. Soldiers assigned to Bravo Troop, 4th Squadron, 9th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, attract the attention of several Afghan children during a presence patrol around Forward Operating Base Fenty in Nangarh... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
1st Cavalry conduct presence patrol around FOB Fenty
2 / 15 Show Caption + Hide Caption – U.S. Army Pfc. Stephen Godwin, a forward observer assigned to Bravo Troop, 4th Squadron, 9th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, walks down a dirt path with his team during a presence patrol around Forward Operati... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
1st Cavalry conduct presence patrol around FOB Fenty
3 / 15 Show Caption + Hide Caption – U.S. Army Pfc. Shaun Innocenti, an M249 light machine gunner assigned to Bravo Troop, 4th Squadron, 9th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, pulls security on a dirt path with his teammates during a presence patrol... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
1st Cavalry conduct presence patrol around FOB Fenty
4 / 15 Show Caption + Hide Caption – U.S. Soldiers assigned to Bravo Troop, 4th Squadron, 9th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, conduct a presence patrol around Forward Operating Base Fenty in Nangarhar Province, Afghanistan, Aug. 22, 2013. The pur... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
1st Cavalry conduct presence patrol around FOB Fenty
5 / 15 Show Caption + Hide Caption – U.S. Army Pfc. Shaun Innocenti, a squad automatic weapon gunner, assigned to Bravo Troop, 4th Squadron, 9th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division pulls security during a presence patrol around Forward Operating Base Fenty, N... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
1st Cavalry conduct presence patrol around FOB Fenty
6 / 15 Show Caption + Hide Caption – U.S. Army Pfc. Derek Southerland, radio transmitter operator assigned to Bravo Troop, 4th Squadron, 9th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, pushes through overgrown terrain during a presence patrol around Forward ... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
1st Cavalry conduct presence patrol around FOB Fenty
7 / 15 Show Caption + Hide Caption – U.S. Army Spc. Michael Mizer, a medic assigned to Bravo Troop, 4th Squadron, 9th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, poses for a photo with a local Afghan boy during a presence patrol around Forward Operating Base... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
1st Cavalry conduct presence patrol around FOB Fenty
8 / 15 Show Caption + Hide Caption – U.S. Army Pfc. Nicholas Peterson, assigned to Bravo Troop, 4th Squadron, 9th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, pulls security with his team, during a presence patrol around Forward Operating Base Fenty in Nangar... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
1st Cavalry conduct presence patrol around FOB Fenty
9 / 15 Show Caption + Hide Caption – A U.S. Soldier assigned to Bravo Troop, 4th Squadron, 9th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, is silhouetted at a security post during a presence patrol around Forward Operating Base Fenty in Nangarhar Province, A... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
1st Cavalry conduct presence patrol around FOB Fenty
10 / 15 Show Caption + Hide Caption – U.S. Army Pfc. Arturo Brooks, a dismounted team member assigned to Bravo Troop, 4th Squadron, 9th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, pulls security during a presence patrol around Forward Operating Base Fenty in ... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
1st Cavalry conduct presence patrol around FOB Fenty
11 / 15 Show Caption + Hide Caption – U.S. Army Staff Sgt. David Nimrod, section sergeant assigned to Bravo Troop, 4th Squadron, 9th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Divisio, lines his Soldiers up at the beginning of a presence patrol around Forward Operati... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
1st Cavalry conduct presence patrol around FOB Fenty
12 / 15 Show Caption + Hide Caption – U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Johnathan Vines, platoon sergeant, assigned to Bravo Troop, 4th Squadron, 9th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, briefs his Soldiers prior to a presence patrol around Forward Operating Ba... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
1st Cavalry conduct presence patrol around FOB Fenty
13 / 15 Show Caption + Hide Caption – U.S. Army 1st Lt. Arrio Granum, platoon leader assigned to Bravo Troop, 4th Squadron, 9th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, briefs his Soldiers prior to a presence patrol around Forward Operating Base Fenty in N... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
1st Cavalry conduct presence patrol around FOB Fenty
14 / 15 Show Caption + Hide Caption – U.S. Soldiers assigned to Bravo Troop, 4th Squadron, 9th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, gather for a briefing prior to a presence patrol around Forward Operating Base Fenty in Nangarhar Province, Afghanistan,... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
1st Cavalry conduct presence patrol around FOB Fenty
15 / 15 Show Caption + Hide Caption – U.S. Soldiers assigned to Bravo Troop, 4th Squadron, 9th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, gather for a briefing prior to a presence patrol around Forward Operating Base Fenty in Nangarhar province, Afghanistan,... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

NANGARHAR PROVINCE, Afghanistan - To warm up for their first patrol outside the wire at Forward Operating Base Fenty, Nangarhar province, Afghanistan, Aug. 22, Troop B, 4th Squadron, 9th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division soldiers practiced bounding.

Bounding is a way of moving across open terrain, where enemy contact is anticipated. Multiple teams alternate movement with each other: one keeps eyes on the enemy and provides covering fire, as necessary, while the other team moves forward. This continues until the teams reach their objective.

Once the team leaders were satisfied with the bounding rehearsals, the 4th Squadron soldiers set out on a presence patrol around FOB Fenty.

The purpose of the early morning patrol, which started just after dawn, was to check the security of Fenty's perimeter, as well as engage the local population.

"We needed to get out there and establish ourselves outside the wire from a perspective of security, looking back in on ourselves," said U.S. Army 1st Lt. Arrio Granum, platoon leader, of Hillsboro, Ore. "A defensive position is never complete, because you're always trying to make it better."

The patrol wound part way around Fenty, the soldiers trekking through dense undergrowth, across irrigated farmland and along dirt pathways on the outskirts of Jalalabad. As they went, the lead team used handheld minesweepers to search for improvised explosive devices buried in the footpaths, while the other teams provided security.

"My team did great running the counter-IED equipment," said U.S. Army Sgt. Nikko Coronado, team leader, of Wylie, Texas. "It worked well for us."

The patrol was not without its difficulties, though.

"The challenges Troop B faced involved the terrain and engaging the local population," said U.S. Army Staff Sgt. David Nimrod, section sergeant, of Kansas City, Mo. The route the unit took was unfamiliar and often overgrown, and navigating it without interfering with the locals conducting their day-to-day activities required patience and skill.

The local Afghans typically carried on with whatever they were doing. Whether it was working in their fields or traveling down the same footpaths as the soldiers, the villagers have long been accustomed to a U.S. presence in the area.

Even so, whenever children caught sight of the Americans they ran toward them, laughing and calling for the soldiers to give them something. A few obliged and gave away pens and candy.

The patrol was largely uneventful: no IEDs were discovered, the enemy did not engage and no bounding was necessary.

Uneventful though it was, Troop B's leadership agreed the presence patrol accomplished its mission.

"If we get too static and too complacent, then the enemy is going to be able to react to that," Granum said. "We want to throw the enemy off, make sure we always have the upper hand."

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