CAMP ARIFJAN, KUWAIT - Soldiers of Headquarters and Headquarters Detachment, 718th Transportation Battalion recently demonstrated their selfless service by going above and beyond what their mission required of them, this to ensure fellow Soldiers in Afghanistan received fully mission capable equipment. The 718th was given the mission of pulling four Heavy Equipment Transporters from the Theater Provided Equipment Reset yard. The scope of the mission was to sign for the HETs and use the battalion's transportation assets to haul them to the 402nd Army Field Support Brigade in Afghanistan. The final destination for the HETs were to be Kandahar and the Helmand Province for use in transporting equipment throughout Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom.
Upon receiving the equipment, the 718th Quality Assurance/Quality Control team took it upon themselves to ensure the equipment being shipped to Afghanistan was road-worthy. With help from the 494th Transportation Company, the QA/QC team loaded, road tested and quality-inspected the TPER HETs, just as they would with any trucks from the 718th going into Iraq for convoy missions.
Upon inspection, Spc. Lloyd Bethea and Spc. Jorge Hernandez-Rosario discovered a cracked engine head in one of the trucks. They understood the impact this could have on Soldiers down-range, and reported the results to 718th Battalion Motor Officer, Chief Warrant Officer 2 Keith Peddicord. Peddicord contacted the Department of Defense Red River Army Depot team at Camp Arifjan, Kuwait and subsequently, a team was formed consisting of members of the 718th, 494th and Red River. Within 36 hours, the disabled HET's cab and engine were removed, a new engine was placed and the cab was assembled.
The extra steps taken by the QA/QC team and the quick response from the newly assembled team ensured all four trucks were ready to ship to Afghanistan on time, and more importantly, fully mission capable when they arrived. This kind of selfless service by the 718th will free-up time and resources for the Soldiers of the 402nd Army Fire Support Brigade in Afghanistan to continue to sustain the fight in their area of operations.
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