Volume 9, No. 39 ©SS 2017
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 2017
PROVING ITS WORTH
US military using Warthogs to drop bunker busters on ISIS targets
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COVER STORY
Warthog drops bunker-buster on ISIS in Raqqa BY CHAD GARLAND Stars and Stripes
IRBIL, Iraq — Proving it’s not too old for new tricks, an aging A-10 attack plane dropped a bunker-busting bomb for the first time in combat earlier in August against an Islamic State target in Syria, defense officials said. Despite efforts to put it out to pasture, the 1970s-era A-10 Thunderbolt II, known affectionately as the “Warthog,” has been a workhorse in the U.S.-led anti-ISIS coalition since November 2014. A dozen A-10s based at Incirlik Air Base in Turkey average 750 strikes a month against ISIS, according to an Air Force video that showed a combat-effective 2,000-pound, GPS-guided GBU-31 version 3 being loaded onto one of the airframes for the first time, alongside a general-purpose variant. On Aug. 8, an A-10 dropped the bunker-buster on a building in the ISIS capital of Raqqa, where enemy snipers were targeting coalition troops and partnered Syrian Diplomatic Forces, a U.S. Air Force Central Command spokesman said. “The weapon was selected for its ability to penetrate deeply into this particular structure,” Air Force Capt. Jose Davis said via email. The 74th Fighter Squadron “Flying Tigers” deployed a dozen A-10s from Moody Air Force Base, Ga., to Turkey in July in support of the ISIS fight. Regarded as “flying tanks,” the aircraft is beloved by ground forces for unmatched close air support capabilities, but the Air Force has said it can’t afford to maintain both the Warthogs and the multi-
role F-35 meant to replace them. Lawmakers have fought to keep them flying into the next decade. There are currently no A10s supporting U.S. forces in Afghanistan in their dual missions of fighting terrorists and supporting Afghan forces, but defense officials are reportedly mulling a deployment of the aircraft under President Donald Trump’s new South Asia strategy, which would also add thousands of troops to the fight there. Though the A-10’s first combat use of the bomb came last month, the bunker busters have already been used extensively against ISIS militants by other aircraft, Davis said — more than 7,500 have been dropped so far. Air Force F-15 and F-16 fighter jets and B-52 and B-1 bombers can also employ the bomb, which is accurate to within 10 feet “every day and in every condition.” Senior Airman Joshua Coll, a weapons lead crewmember who loaded the bombs, says in the Air Force video that he feels “absolute satisfaction” seeing the planes go out with bombs he loaded and return without them. “That means that hostile targets died,” Coll said. “That means that we got the mission done.” Coalition air support has
‘ The weapon
was selected for its ability to penetrate deeply into this particular structure.
’
Air Force Capt. Jose Davis
R AMON A. A DELAN /Courtesy of the U.S. Air Force
A pilot conducts a preflight check on an A-10 Thunderbolt II on July 11 at Incirlik Air Base, Turkey. An A-10, typically used to support ground forces with rapid employment close air and contact support, was deployed last month to drop a bunker-busting bomb on an ISIS target in Syria. proven critical in fighting ISIS, especially in its urban strongholds, where the group is dug in for a fight against U.S.-backed Iraqi and Syrian forces. That airpower was heavily focused on helping Syrian Democratic Forces retake Raqqa, the capital of ISIS’s self-proclaimed caliphate. ISIS’ defenses have included underground tunnel systems and networks of passageways linking whole blocks of concrete houses, concealing fighter’s movements and protecting deadly arsenals. Snipers hidden inside multistory concrete buildings have wrought havoc on civilians as well as combatants. The jihadis lack any serious anti-aircraft capability, allowing coalition aircraft to loiter unmolested for long periods over their targets. The militants have used heavy machine guns on occasion to try and engage the circling warplanes and drones, but these have generally kept well above the automatic weapons’ maximum range. ISIS did manage to shoot down a low-
flying Russian Mi-25 gunship in Syria last year, but this was accomplished using an antitank missile — a hit not likely to be repeated soon. The GBU-31 version 3 helps the coalition take out “exceptionally difficult targets like bunkers or deeply buried or hardened facilities ISIS may use in support of its war machine,” while minimizing unintended collateral damage, Davis said. It pairs a joint direct attack munitions, or JDAM, guidance kit with a bomb body that has a 1-inch-thick casing made of a single, high-strength piece of forged steel and can penetrate up to 6 feet of reinforced concrete, according to an Air Force fact sheet. A delayed-action fuse then detonates 550 pounds of highexplosive Tritonal. The version 3 is “a less explosive weapon and more of a penetrating munition,” Davis said. In both penetrating and general-purpose variants, the GBU-31 “has proved effective in surgical and precision strikes against the enemy.”
Monitoring groups, however, have criticized the coalition’s use of such massive bombs in dense urban areas. A July Amnesty International report said coalition and Iraqi forces used explosive weapons unsuitable for Mosul, where militants used civilians as human shields and prevented them from fleeing. In one case in March, the U.S. dropped a 500-pound bomb GBU-38 bomb, containing the equivalent of 190 pounds of TNT, on a house where two snipers were firing on Iraqi forces. The blast caused secondary explosions, killing more than 100 civilians trapped inside the building — one of the deadliest civilian casualty incidents in recent years. Amnesty said planners should have known better than use such large ordnance. U.S. officials have rejected Amnesty’s charges, arguing that planners apply a rigorous process to ensure strikes meet a minimum requirement for proportionality and necessity. garland.chad@stripes.com
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EUROPE
Army, AF seek upgrades at Turkish sites BY JOHN VANDIVER Stars and Stripes
STUTTGART, Germany — The United States wants to spend more than $30 million to upgrade military facilities in Turkey, including the strategic Incirlik Air Base and a discrete outpost used by soldiers operating quietly along NATO’s southern flank. The U.S. Air Force is seeking about $26 million to build new dormitories for airmen at Incirlik, a key base supporting operations against Islamic State militants in Iraq and Syria. The funding request, along with $6.4 million from the Army for an undisclosed “forward operating site,” is part of the White House’s proposed 2018 budget. The earmarks for Turkey are a sign that the U.S. has no immediate
intention of pivoting missions away from that country despite an authoritarian drift that has alarmed fellow NATO allies. While the Air Force has been a fixture in Turkey dating to the early days of the Cold War, the Army’s role in Turkey is more opaque. The service quietly mans a missile defense radar at a small outpost in eastern Turkey about 450 miles from the Iranian border. The system is linked to the U.S.’ broader missile defense effort, known as the European Phased Adaptive Approach, which is designed to protect allies from threats in the region. As missile defense efforts advance in Europe, the military could need to expand facilities in Turkey. U.S. Army Europe declined to
discuss details of the $6.4 million to be spent on an unnamed forward operating site, citing operational security concerns. The plan at Incirlik is to build dormitories to accommodate 216 Security Forces airmen, situating the personnel closer to the base’s defense operations center. The project will improve response times for airmen handling base security, the Air Force said. Since families left Incirlik in 2016 over security concerns, the Air Force has converted vacated family housing into unaccompanied housing. “These houses are not vacant; we have a 95 percent occupancy rate,” said Master Sgt. Vanessa Kilmer, a base spokeswoman. The former school complex has also been revamped to include a fitness
center, dining facility and leadership school, she said. The military’s mission in Turkey continues despite growing international concern over President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s crackdown on opposition figures, judges and various civic institutions in the wake of an attempted coup in July 2016. Erdogan has lashed out at his Western critics while drawing closer to Russia. In the aftermath of the coup attempt, analysts in the Turkish media accused the U.S. of having had a hand in the mutiny, which involved elements of the Turkish air force based at Incirlik. Washington has rejected such accusations. vandiver.john@stripes.com Twitter: @john_vandiver
US finishes Falcon’s Talon training in Eastern Europe BY M ARTIN EGNASH Stars and Stripes
GRAFENWOEHR, Germany — A U.S. helicopter brigade finished advanced aerial gunnery training in Eastern Europe on Sept. 1. The 10th Combat Aviation Brigade, part of the Army’s 10th Mountain Division, started Falcon’s Talon on Aug. 7 as part of wider efforts to boost defensive readiness in Latvia, Lithuania and Romania. “Falcon’s Talon is about two things — reality and grit,” said 10th CAB commanding officer Col. Clair Gill. “The realism of how we need to fight and the development of leaders to independently execute missions without higher headquarters’ help.” Operation Atlantic Resolve is the ongoing U.S. commitment in Europe in response to Russia’s 2014 annexation of Crimea. The Falcon’s Talon exercise supports that mission by practicing close air support procedures with allies in the region. “We are growing a persistent presence for U.S. Army aviation in eastern Europe,” Gill
A soldier from the 10th Combat Aviation Brigade guards a helicopter hide site during an exercise in Latvia on Aug. 19. said. “Every exercise like this hones our collective interoperability. We bring a very advanced Army aviation capability to complement (NATO and partner nation) forces. We make them more agile, more lethal and better able to integrate with the NATO team.” A large focus of the exercise was to build up small-unit autonomy and survivability operating in Eastern Europe. “The exercise gave our soldiers the chance to practice tactical field craft in small teams while separated and resource constrained.” said Capt. Spencer Feliciano-Lyons, lead planner for the exercise. “One of the goals was to encourage
creative problem solving and see how our soldiers would approach unfamiliar problem sets.” “We were interested in seeing what sorts of solutions they would come up with,” Feliciano-Lyons said. “Any sort of innovation would be valuable in helping us to continually adapt to modern threats.” Falcon’s Talon concluded just days before Russia’s largescale Zapad exercises. Army officials say the timing is coincidental, not reactionary. “We don’t react to Russia. We train for any threat, at any time,” Gill said. egnash.martin@stripes.com Twitter: @Marty_Stripes
PHOTOS
BY
THOMAS SCAGGS/Courtesy of the U.S. Army
A soldier from Task Force Baltic Phoenix, 10th Combat Aviation Brigade, pulls security with soldiers from the Latvian National Guard on Aug. 21. The units were participating in Exercise Falcon’s Talon.
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MILITARY
Acting Army head visits Europe with eye on the budget BY DAN STOUTAMIRE Stars and Stripes
WIESBADEN, Germany — Acting Army Secretary Ryan D. McCarthy said Aug. 31 the possible cost savings of permanently stationing another brigade in Europe would be just one consideration during budget discussions later this year in Washington. Inside the Army, there is a growing debate over the merits of the service’s reliance on rotational forces to carry out its mission in Europe, where only two brigades remain permanently assigned after years of drawdown. McCarthy, who served with the 75th Ranger Regiment in the early days of the Afghanistan war before becoming a special assistant to former Defense Secretary Robert Gates, said the debate hinges on the competing demands of boosting combat readiness and the need to operate efficiently. “I’ve always said you defend your national interest with a strategy, not a budget,” McCarthy said in an interview with Stars and Stripes in Wiesbaden. McCarthy visited U.S. Army Europe headquarters before flying to Powidz, Poland, on Sept. 1 for a look at the expanding logistics and training base there. He was accompanied by Sen. Jerry Moran, of Kansas, a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee. “We have to be good stewards of the taxpayers’ money. We have to be conscious, especially when we’re pressurized fiscally, to make the best choices,” McCarthy said. “In large measure, (cost) is a variable in the decision, but we will always do what we think is in the best interest of the unit forward deployed.”
The current rotational unit is the 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, from Fort Carson, Colo., which will be replaced this fall by the Fort Riley, Kan.-based 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division. “Heel-to-toe rotations bring great opportunity for the units forward deployed,” McCarthy said. “They get exponentially more repetitions, the smallunit training, live-fire exercises, interoperability with partners. There’s a high yield from a readiness standpoint to do that, but it does come at a price.” U.S. Army Europe Lt. Gen. Ben Hodges has argued in favor of rotations, which he says provides a stronger deterrent in regions where allies are nervous about a more aggressive Russia. The units are constantly operating in places such as the Baltics. Still, the Army’s shift toward more rotational units overseas was prompted largely by the notion that it would be a cheaper. A recent Army War College study argued that the conventional wisdom was wrong and that it is more affordable to station a brigade in Europe. McCarthy said readiness is his highest priority — “nothing else comes close,” he said — followed by modernization and support to families. It’s been a busy summer for rotational and permanently stationed units alike in Europe. Several multinational exercises have taken place, including the massive Saber Guardian exercise held in the Black Sea region in July. Currently, thousands of Russian troops are in Belarus for their own exercise, Zapad, which means “west” in Russian. Tensions in Europe have heightened since Russia’s
A LICIA BRAND/Courtesy of the U.S. Ar my
Acting Army Secretary Ryan D. McCarthy recently paid a visit to U.S. Army Europe for a firsthand look at its needs as he prepares a budget for next fiscal year. invasion of Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula in 2014. Since then, the Army has reversed the post-Cold War drawdown and beefed up its presence in response to concerns from eastern allies, largely through an increase in rotational units on loan from the States. “Clearly, the Middle East has had a lot of attention, but the commitment of the United States to the alliance is absolute,” McCarthy said. “I served at the street level
in Afghanistan with NATO servicemembers and again in the office of the secretary of defense, and the strength of the alliance is as strong as I’ve ever seen it, and I will be a champion for that in my current capacity.” McCarthy has held his position for less than a month. Before coming to Europe, he visited Redstone Arsenal, Ala., and Fort Bragg, N.C., homes of the Army Materiel Command and Army Forces Command,
respectively. “I thought it was important to see those major commands and sit down with their commanders and understand their priorities, because in large measure it will help me with the formulation and defense of our budget,” he said. “That’s one of my principal responsibilities.” stoutamire.dan@stripes.com Twitter: @DKS_Stripes
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1st Air Cavalry Brigade set to deploy to Europe BY JOHN VANDIVER Stars and Stripes
The Fort Hood, Texas-based 1st Air Cavalry Brigade will send 1,900 soldiers to Europe this fall to maintain a steady presence of Army airpower on the Continent. “Air Cav troopers are trained and ready to showcase our dynamic aviation capabilities through multinational ex-
ercises with our NATO allies and partner nations,” brigade commander Col. Phillip Baker said in a statement. The unit will replace the 10th Mountain Division’s 10th Combat Aviation Brigade, which has been deployed to Europe since February. It has conducted operations along NATO’s eastern flank with 50 Black Hawks, 10 tandem-rotor Chinook helicopters and a
‘ Air Cav troopers are trained and ready to
showcase our dynamic aviation capabilities through multinational exercises with our NATO allies and partner nations.
’
Col. Phillip Baker 1st Air Cavalry Brigade commander
THOMAS SCAGGS/Courtesy of the U.S. Army
A UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter from the 10th Combat Aviation Brigade lands at Bezmer Air Base, Bulgaria, on July 21. The Army announced that the 1st Combat Aviation Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division, stationed at Fort Hood, Texas, will be going to Europe to replace 10th CAB. supplement of Apache attack helicopters from a Fort Bliss, Texas, aviation battalion. The 10th CAB’s arrival in Europe came just after the deployment of a heavy brigade in January. The moves were part of an Army effort to ensure a “heelto-toe,” year-round presence of tank and aviation brigades in Europe, where the military was sharply downsized after
decades of drawdown. The 3rd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, is set to conclude its tour in the coming weeks, as it hands off its mission to the 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division, out of Fort Riley, Kan. The incoming brigade will bring tanks, trucks and other equipment, which will arrive in Germany and Poland by
mid-September. Rotational ground and aviation troops in Poland and the Baltics are a core component of the U.S. Army in Europe’s Operation Atlantic Resolve — the mission to reassure allies worried about a resurgent Russia. vandiver.john@stripes.com Twitter: @John_vandiver
Ecstasy deemed ‘breakthrough’ therapy for PTSD BY NIKKI WENTLING Stars and Stripes
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Food and Drug Administration designated the illegal psychedelic drug MDMA, commonly known to partygoers as ecstasy, as a “breakthrough therapy” to treat post-traumatic stress disorder. The designation was announced Aug. 26 and provides a fast-track for possible approval of MDMA as a prescription drug. It’s the result of years of trials sponsored by the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies, or MAPS, that have included veterans since 2010. “It doesn’t mean anything is approved or guaranteed, but it does mean this gets special attention from the FDA and allows it to move through the regulatory process more quickly,” said Michael Mithoefer, a clinical investigator who’s involved in the study of MDMA-assisted psychotherapy. During the trials, participants took
a dose of MDMA, and Mithoefer or another clinician guided them through eight hours of intensive psychotherapy. The process repeated two more times, each session one month apart. The goal, Mithoefer said, was to get to the root cause of someone’s PTSD, and not just treat the symptoms like other drugs do. The Department of Veterans Affairs in 2014 issued guidance on therapy, not medication, as a frontline treatment for PTSD. MDMA makes that therapy more effective, Mithoefer said. “Some people don’t respond to therapy because they find it so upsetting to face the trauma. Conversely, some are prone to emotional numbing and are so emotionally cut off that therapy doesn’t work,” Mithoefer said. “So the idea with MDMA is it seems to help people face the trauma without being overwhelmed by anxiety. It helps them to look clearly at what’s happened and their feelings with it rather than having to avoid it as much.”
The idea has seen positive results so far, according to MAPS. The 107 people involved in Phase 2 trials had chronic PTSD that was severe enough to resist treatment from traditional methods. Two months after they completed three sessions of MDMA-assisted psychotherapy, 61 percent of them no longer qualified for a PTSD diagnosis, according to MAPS statistics. Mithoefer recently completed a trial in Charleston, S.C., that tested the method on 22 veterans with servicerelated PTSD. Most of them had served in Iraq and Afghanistan, and a few of them were diagnosed with military sexual trauma. The results from the trial haven’t been published yet, but Mithoefer said veterans had “very strong results,” falling in line with the outcomes of other participants. The veteran population experiences PTSD at a higher rate than the rest of the country. The VA estimates between
11 and 20 percent of veterans who served in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars have PTSD in a given year. About 7 to 8 percent of the U.S. population will suffer with PTSD at some point. “One of the things we’ve been struck by with this group of veterans is how much they’re dedicated to trying to help out other vets,” Mithoefer said. “Many have said this needs to be available to everyone. Some have said things like, ‘We were taught not to leave anybody behind.’ They want to get the word out.” The FDA will work with MAPS to complete Phase 3 trials. The trials are expected to start in 2018 and involve more than 200 participants at sites in the United States, Canada and Israel. MAPS set the goal of having MDMA approved as a prescription medication by 2021. wentling.nikki@stripes.com Twitter: @nikkiwentling
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MILITARY
IAN BROWN /Courtesy of the U.S. Army
From left, Lt. Gen. Stephen J. Townsend, Gen. Joseph L. Votel and Lt. Gen. Paul E. Funk II stand together during the change-of-command ceremony for Combined Joint Task Force-Operation Inherent Resolve on Tuesday.
Gen. Funk takes over anti-ISIS coalition BY CHAD GARLAND Stars and Stripes
IRBIL, Iraq — Lt. Gen. Paul E. Funk II, commander of III Armored Corps, assumed command Tuesday of the U.S.-led coalition backing Iraqi and Syrian forces in their fight against Islamic State at a time when the terrorist group continues to lose ground in both countries. In a transfer-of-authority ceremony attended by hundreds of coalition troops and U.S. soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines at an undisclosed location in southwest Asia, Funk relieved Lt. Gen. Stephen J. Townsend, commander of XVIII Airborne Corps, who had led Combined Joint Task Force-Operation Inherent Resolve since August 2016. Funk, commander of the
Fort Hood, Texas-based III Armored Corps, is on his second deployment in support of Operation Inherent Resolve — his sixth combat deployment since Operation Desert Shield and Desert Storm. He takes command as Iraqi forces are soon expected to begin an offensive to retake the ISIS-held town of Hawija, south of Kirkuk, and half of Shirqat. The group also still controls towns in western Anbar province near the Syrian border and swaths of territory in Syria. Under Townsend, the coalition helped Iraqi Security Forces reduce ISIS-held territory to a 10th of what it once was. The Iraqis liberated Mosul, the country’s second-largest city and a key stronghold
‘ ISIS’ brutality
forces us to look deep into the heart of darkness.
’
Lt. Gen. Paul E. Funk II commander, III Armored Corps for the militants, as well as Tal Afar to the west and the remainder of northern Nineveh province. He’s also overseen coalition training and support of Syrian opposition groups fighting to oust ISIS from the capital of its self-proclaimed global caliphate in Raqqa, where the old city was liberated this week. “What all of this has shown is that our ‘by, with and
through’ strategy works when you have capable partners willing to fight,” Townsend said. Townsend’s XVIII Corps had relieved III Corps when it was last in Iraq from September 2015 to August 2016, then under the command of Lt. Gen. Sean B. MacFarland. Gen. Joseph L. Votel, commanding general of U.S. Central Command, who presided over Tuesday’s ceremony, said III Corps’ efforts at that time led to the recapture of both Fallujah and Qayara Airfield West, a key logistics hub supporting coalition and Iraqi forces in northern Iraq. Since its inception in June 2014, the coalition of 72 nations and organizations has helped its Iraqi and Syrian partners reclaim more than 30,000 square miles of territory from
ISIS and liberate more than 5.5 million people, the coalition said. Besides intelligence, combat advice and more than 26,000 strikes, the alliance has provided equipment and training for nearly 115,000 Iraqi Security Forces members and more than 11,000 Syrian fighters. As a result, “real change is happening,” Funk said. “ISIS is on the run.” Condemning the jihadis’ campaign of violence, Funk reaffirmed the coalition’s commitment to ending it. “ISIS’ brutality forces us to look deep into the heart of darkness,” he said. “We must defeat them, and our collective effort will.”
garland.chad@stripes.com Twitter: @chadgarlan
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Major recognized for saving 3 people from rough Hawaiian surf BY WYATT OLSON Stars and Stripes
FORT SHAFTER, Hawaii — Maj. Andrew Downey at first saw only a woman’s hand jutting out of the surging whitewater tide on a stormy day in April off the north shore of Kauai. As she bobbed up, he saw the backpack that was dragging her under. Within a few minutes he had pulled the woman, her husband and their 11-monthold child out of the swirling maelstrom called the Queen’s Bath. On Aug. 29, Downey was presented the Soldier’s Medal, the service’s highest honor for an act of valor in a noncombat situation. “What a great day when you can recognize a soldier for doing a heroic act,” said Gen. Robert Brown, commander of U.S. Army Pacific, as he presented the medal at a ceremony at Fort Shafter. “It’s a pretty darn good day.” Addressing the soldiers who
had gathered, Downey said, “I have to say that I think a lot of people would do the same thing, and first responders do it every day without any thought of their own personal safety. I’m happy everyone came away unscathed.” Such rescue attempts are indeed perilous. In July 2015, two soldiers with Hawaii’s 25th Infantry Division were standing on rocks along the shore of Halona Beach Cove on Oahu. A sudden wave pulled one of them in, and as the other soldier attempted to pull him back up, another wave dragged him out. Both drowned. Downey, who works in Space Operations, had been vacationing on Kauai with his wife, Rifka, and four children. They were standing near Queen’s Bath, a tide pool on the Hawaiian island’s north shore. During the winter months, the surf is often dangerously high in the area, even more so during stormy weather.
‘ What a great day when you can
recognize a soldier for doing a heroic act. It’s a pretty darn good day.
’
Gen. Robert Brown commander of U.S. Army Pacific
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Maj. Andrew Downey, left, receives a congratulatory handshake from Gen. Robert Brown, U.S. Army Pacific commander, after receiving the Soldier’s Medal at Fort Shafter, Hawaii, on Aug. 29. The more confident swimmers leap off a cliff into Queen’s Bath during calm days. But April 22 was not one of those days. “That day everything was shut down,” Downey said. “There was a heavy rainstorm and bigger waves were coming in. A few waves — heavy waves — rolled in and crashed over the rocks. There was a lot
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of whitewash coming in.” It was Rifka who first realized someone standing near that cliff’s edge had been dragged in by a rogue wave. “I saw the baby in the water first, just being caught up in the whitewash,” Rifka said, standing beside her husband after the medal ceremony. “I started yelling for him to go get them. He saw the woman. I started praying.” “There’s not much time to think,” Downey said of the seconds in which the catastrophe unfolded. “It’s more of a reaction to the situation. You have to make a quick assessment of what’s going on. A quick decision makes a difference when somebody’s going under.” “Without regard to his own safety, Downey immediately jumped 20 feet into the ocean, navigated through the whitewater to the woman, hooked his arm around her, and took her safely to shore,” the award citation reads.
He returned to the father, who was holding onto the baby. “He did a great job holding onto that child,” Downey said. “He did a phenomenal job staying afloat.” But when the father told Downey he “really couldn’t swim,” the soldier took the baby ashore himself. He then returned for the father, who was by then clinging to a jutting rock. The names of the rescued family members, who were vacationing from Wisconsin, were not made public. The Downeys have been stationed in Hawaii for four years, so they have developed a healthy respect for the capricious clout of Hawaiian waves. “It’s understandable if you’re not from the islands,” Downey said of the naiveté of some tourists. “Sometimes they’re not aware of the power of these waves, and it’s easy to get swept up.” olson.wyatt@stripes.com Twitter: @WyattWOlson
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MILITARY
Soldiers practice quickly putting on their gas masks during Expert Infantry Badge certification at Hohenfels, Germany, on Aug. 30.
‘A huge milestone’
High attrition rate dashes hopes of most GIs seeking to earn Expert Infantry Badge BY M ARTIN EGNASH Stars and Stripes
HOHENFELS, Germany — Soldiers from across Europe are challenging themselves to earn one of the most coveted badges the U.S. Army offers, the Expert Infantry Badge. Certification to get the special skills badge happens only every year or so in Europe, but the reason the badge is so rare is the staggering attrition rate. About 225 American and German soldiers participated in the four-day training that ended Aug. 31. During the certification, the soldiers must perform 30 combat-related tasks perfectly or
they are immediately dropped from the test. The tasks, which are designed to push them mentally and physically, include assembling a variety of weapons, performing firstaid procedures and going on a 12-mile ruck march. “The badge is extremely prestigious in the infantry community,” said Master Sgt. Davie Jones, an Expert Infantry Badge committee member. “When you see a soldier has it, you know he knows his stuff and that soldier is ready for a leadership position. It’s a huge milestone for any soldier who wants to make the infantry a career.” egnash.martin@stripes.com Twitter: @Marty_Stripes
‘ The badge is extremely prestigious in the infantry community. When you see a soldier has it, you know he knows his stuff and that soldier is ready for a leadership position.
’
Master Sgt. Davie Jones Expert Infantry Badge committee member
PHOTOS
BY
M ARTIN EGNASH /Stars and Stripes
Above: Sgt. Mark Blackwell throws a practice grenade during Expert Infantry Badge certification at Hohenfels, Germany, on Aug. 30. Below left: An Expert Infantry Badge is worn by one of the graders of the EIB certification. Below right: Spc. Kaden Voss is graded on calling for artillery fire.
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Fri Sep 8
7:30pm 7 Bridges: The Ultimate Eagles Experience
Jabez S. Hardin Performing Arts Center Eagles tribute band. $39.50, reserved seat tickets. Call 706-726-0366 or visit augustaamusements.com.
7:30pm Ricky Skaggs and Kentucky Thunder
Imperial Theatre Fifteen-time Grammy Award winner and country and bluegrass legend Ricky Skaggs and his band Kentucky Thunder kick off the 2017-18 concert series at the Imperial Theatre. $15-$40. Call 706-722-8341 or visit imperialtheatre.com.
Mon Sep 11
8:30am 9/11 Day of Remembrance
Behind the Columbia County Library Join the Columbia County Board of Commissioners at the Military Memorial Wall behind Columbia County Library. Retired Lt. Serge Burack, Eng 234 FDNY, will be the guest speaker. Visit facebook.com/ columbiactyga or columbiacountyga. gov.
Wed Sep 13
Strategies to Boost Your Life and Career DoubleTree Hotel
Friday, September 8, 2017
A conference hosted all day by the Southeast Region of Federally Employed Women that includes sessions, networking opportunities, vendors and exhibitors, refreshments and luncheon. Continues through Saturday, Sept. 16. Pre-registration was through Aug. 31: $175, non-FEW members; $150, FEW members; $125, military or retired FEW members. Late registration fee is an addition $25. Email few. srchapter@gmail.com.
Thu Sep 14
8am - 4:30pm Addressing the ABCs of Diversity
Augusta Marriott and Convention Center A Diversity and Inclusion Summit featuring keynote speaker Sonia Manzano, who played Maria on “Sesame Street.” $65, general, or $35 for students. $40 for the morning session keynote, without lunch. Visit augusta.edu/diversity/ summit.
8pm An Evening with Clint Black
Evans Towne Center Park Country superstar Clint Black performs, with Josh Thompson at 7 p.m. Tickets cost $25-$55. Tickets may be purchased at freshtix.com or at Security Federal Bank locations throughout the CSRA.
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