thedrifter
01-08-08, 04:41 AM
FALLUJAH, Iraq-- Editor’s note: This is part two of a three part series focusing on the Marines of 1st platoon, Truck Company, Headquarters Battalion, Multi National Force – West.
Their compound is packed with green and tan armored vehicles. One stacked behind the other in columns of two, bisecting a football field–size, sandy lot. Marines mingle around the dusty parking area, carrying large guns, sipping on energy drinks and cleaning windshields. While some climb on top of the monstrous combat vehicles to mount their weapons, others inspect gear or wait for their equipment to get inspected. They are systematic. They have a routine and stick to it because this saves lives. In every direction, Marines are helping Marines get the job done with little to no complaining. Through rough beginnings in Camp Lejeune, N.C., to rougher times here, this group bonded and has become a well-oiled machine in the process.
These are the men and women of Headquarters Battalion’s Truck Company, whose sole purpose is to drive back and forth daily along Iraq’s highways, protecting and supporting the interest of U.S. Marines serving in Operation Iraqi Freedom..
The company’s makeup is not typical, especially when simply put, they drive trucks. Nearly 75 percent of the Marines graduated from the Corps’ school of infantry. Most of them are veterans, serving in the earlier, more hostile environment of Iraq’s war against extremists. Many have seen combat and thus have seen changes toward progression and transition this time around.
Marine vehicle drivers fall under the military occupational specialty code 3531, and are known as Motor T, short for motor transportation. The infantry riflemen have the assigned code of 0311, and are affectionately known as grunts.
When someone outside the military family hears the title Marine, the person is more than likely picturing a grunt, an infantry Marine. Not everyone realizes the Marine Corps has more than 35 broad occupational fields and more than 450 specific occupational specialties. But, there is little fuss when it comes to understanding what the Marine Corps is all about, which is supporting the infantry in their fight against the enemy. It is safe to say, the grunt is at the nucleus of the Corps, and young infantry men know it.
The bravery and selfless character it takes to join the military during wartime is honorable, but to join the infantry is what some may term as hardcore. These are the men who kick in doors, train in the rain while others sit inside behind computers or in a warehouse. Grunts often have an attitude about them that most Marines respect.
So when it came time for II Marine Expeditionary Force to deploy during late 2006, Truck Company was tasked to put together two platoons consisting mainly of infantrymen.
They were taken from their brothers, the men they had trained with, had sweated with, basically gone to hell and back with, and now they were to pack up and move into some job where they would drive trucks. Filling these spots were Marines from 1st and 2nd Battalions, 1st and 2nd Marine Regiments. No longer would they sleep on rooftops or walk the dark streets looking for the enemy. Instead, they would be delivering the food and supplies that their fellow grunts needed. In the beginning, the transition was not smooth and problems surfaced.
“There definitely was a separation in the beginning,” said 2nd Lt. Lee Stuckey, 1st, platoon commander. “There was stuff like, ‘I’ve been here and done that,’ and, ‘I’ve been on three deployments’ and this and that, and ‘you haven’t seen anything,’ but as a leader you have to crush it immediately.”
Stuckey, 27, Montgomery, Ala., did not have much time to shape the Marines into a highly functioning team. They had three months from the time they checked into Truck Company to the time they touched down in Fallujah.
“Some of them didn’t even have drivers licenses, so we had to get them licensed all the way up to seven-tons and have them capable and knowledgeable in these vehicles as if they were a 3531,” Stuckey said.
It seems very fitting that Stuckey himself is a former grunt, a machine gunner, before commissioning less than three years ago. He knew what his Marines were thinking, he related to what they were going through, but he wanted to get them to understand the importance of their mission and convince them they were the right Marines for the job.
It was young men like Lance Cpl. Tim Lue, 21, who would give Truck Company a distinct advantage. Lue was a machine gunner for 2nd Bn., 2nd Marines. It was here he learned a wealth of knowledge about machine guns, communication radios and night vision gear. He would bring all of this know-how with him to Truck Company and become gunner in the lead vehicle and Truck Company’s armor.
It takes a special Marine to sit in the turret of the front vehicle in a convoy, Stuckey said. He only puts men up there who have the moral fitness to make the right decisions in a split second. These Marine realize one bad shot, one accident, one killing of an innocent civilian, and they have just created more terrorists in the area.
Lue, a native of Quad City, Ill., sits behind a huge 50-caliber machine gun, his favorite. It gets real bumpy in the turret because of the rollers on front of the seven-ton and the road conditions. It gets hot from the summer’s sun and cold from the winter’s wind. He’s not always comfortable, but he has to stay focused on everything around him; trash on both sides of the road, approaching vehicles, wires, animals, and all while communicating with Marines behind him.
“I came here to be a machine gunner, to pretty much pull the trigger. I had a plethora of knowledge from (2nd Bn., 2nd Marines) with machine guns and also trucks. I was pretty much perfect for the job. Since I had so much knowledge working with the guns, I also work in the armory. I have high morals and I won’t shoot anything that doesn’t need to be shot, so they put me up in the front (truck),” said the slender, deep voiced Marine.
No one told Lue to work in the armory, he just started doing it. He noticed early on that when weapons needed attention they would be taken to the Headquarters Bn. armory to get fixed. Of course this would take time and Lue knew he could fix them himself. So one day, he just started working on the weapons and that is all it took for him to become an armorer. He doesn’t have as much free time, but he is OK with that. In fact, he really enjoys working on them.
Lue admits he knew nothing about Truck Company before becoming a part of it. It has been difficult at times, especially leaving his friends in his old unit, but he still has his weapon and that, he said, is the best part. He came to realize the importance of Truck Company. It is his fellow grunts and Iraqi police who work closely beside the Marines who need the gear inside the trucks he and his Marines provide security for. It is easy to see the big picture, teamwork, it is all about the teamwork of the Corps, and Truck Company has perfected it.
Stuckey speaks of his Marines often and with the adoration of a father or a proud uncle.
“The best part of my job is knowing where I began with this unit and where we ended up,” he said. “To see how they’ve grown together, to see how they’ve evolved as small unit leaders and to know when they go to any other unit in the Marine Corps after they leave my platoon, that they’ll be different and people will say, ‘Where are you from Marine,’ and they’ll say with pride, hopefully, ‘Truck Company.’ They’ve just grown so much in this past year and just to watch them develop into young men and women and to be better Americans, they’re outstanding Marines.”
Their compound is packed with green and tan armored vehicles. One stacked behind the other in columns of two, bisecting a football field–size, sandy lot. Marines mingle around the dusty parking area, carrying large guns, sipping on energy drinks and cleaning windshields. While some climb on top of the monstrous combat vehicles to mount their weapons, others inspect gear or wait for their equipment to get inspected. They are systematic. They have a routine and stick to it because this saves lives. In every direction, Marines are helping Marines get the job done with little to no complaining. Through rough beginnings in Camp Lejeune, N.C., to rougher times here, this group bonded and has become a well-oiled machine in the process.
These are the men and women of Headquarters Battalion’s Truck Company, whose sole purpose is to drive back and forth daily along Iraq’s highways, protecting and supporting the interest of U.S. Marines serving in Operation Iraqi Freedom..
The company’s makeup is not typical, especially when simply put, they drive trucks. Nearly 75 percent of the Marines graduated from the Corps’ school of infantry. Most of them are veterans, serving in the earlier, more hostile environment of Iraq’s war against extremists. Many have seen combat and thus have seen changes toward progression and transition this time around.
Marine vehicle drivers fall under the military occupational specialty code 3531, and are known as Motor T, short for motor transportation. The infantry riflemen have the assigned code of 0311, and are affectionately known as grunts.
When someone outside the military family hears the title Marine, the person is more than likely picturing a grunt, an infantry Marine. Not everyone realizes the Marine Corps has more than 35 broad occupational fields and more than 450 specific occupational specialties. But, there is little fuss when it comes to understanding what the Marine Corps is all about, which is supporting the infantry in their fight against the enemy. It is safe to say, the grunt is at the nucleus of the Corps, and young infantry men know it.
The bravery and selfless character it takes to join the military during wartime is honorable, but to join the infantry is what some may term as hardcore. These are the men who kick in doors, train in the rain while others sit inside behind computers or in a warehouse. Grunts often have an attitude about them that most Marines respect.
So when it came time for II Marine Expeditionary Force to deploy during late 2006, Truck Company was tasked to put together two platoons consisting mainly of infantrymen.
They were taken from their brothers, the men they had trained with, had sweated with, basically gone to hell and back with, and now they were to pack up and move into some job where they would drive trucks. Filling these spots were Marines from 1st and 2nd Battalions, 1st and 2nd Marine Regiments. No longer would they sleep on rooftops or walk the dark streets looking for the enemy. Instead, they would be delivering the food and supplies that their fellow grunts needed. In the beginning, the transition was not smooth and problems surfaced.
“There definitely was a separation in the beginning,” said 2nd Lt. Lee Stuckey, 1st, platoon commander. “There was stuff like, ‘I’ve been here and done that,’ and, ‘I’ve been on three deployments’ and this and that, and ‘you haven’t seen anything,’ but as a leader you have to crush it immediately.”
Stuckey, 27, Montgomery, Ala., did not have much time to shape the Marines into a highly functioning team. They had three months from the time they checked into Truck Company to the time they touched down in Fallujah.
“Some of them didn’t even have drivers licenses, so we had to get them licensed all the way up to seven-tons and have them capable and knowledgeable in these vehicles as if they were a 3531,” Stuckey said.
It seems very fitting that Stuckey himself is a former grunt, a machine gunner, before commissioning less than three years ago. He knew what his Marines were thinking, he related to what they were going through, but he wanted to get them to understand the importance of their mission and convince them they were the right Marines for the job.
It was young men like Lance Cpl. Tim Lue, 21, who would give Truck Company a distinct advantage. Lue was a machine gunner for 2nd Bn., 2nd Marines. It was here he learned a wealth of knowledge about machine guns, communication radios and night vision gear. He would bring all of this know-how with him to Truck Company and become gunner in the lead vehicle and Truck Company’s armor.
It takes a special Marine to sit in the turret of the front vehicle in a convoy, Stuckey said. He only puts men up there who have the moral fitness to make the right decisions in a split second. These Marine realize one bad shot, one accident, one killing of an innocent civilian, and they have just created more terrorists in the area.
Lue, a native of Quad City, Ill., sits behind a huge 50-caliber machine gun, his favorite. It gets real bumpy in the turret because of the rollers on front of the seven-ton and the road conditions. It gets hot from the summer’s sun and cold from the winter’s wind. He’s not always comfortable, but he has to stay focused on everything around him; trash on both sides of the road, approaching vehicles, wires, animals, and all while communicating with Marines behind him.
“I came here to be a machine gunner, to pretty much pull the trigger. I had a plethora of knowledge from (2nd Bn., 2nd Marines) with machine guns and also trucks. I was pretty much perfect for the job. Since I had so much knowledge working with the guns, I also work in the armory. I have high morals and I won’t shoot anything that doesn’t need to be shot, so they put me up in the front (truck),” said the slender, deep voiced Marine.
No one told Lue to work in the armory, he just started doing it. He noticed early on that when weapons needed attention they would be taken to the Headquarters Bn. armory to get fixed. Of course this would take time and Lue knew he could fix them himself. So one day, he just started working on the weapons and that is all it took for him to become an armorer. He doesn’t have as much free time, but he is OK with that. In fact, he really enjoys working on them.
Lue admits he knew nothing about Truck Company before becoming a part of it. It has been difficult at times, especially leaving his friends in his old unit, but he still has his weapon and that, he said, is the best part. He came to realize the importance of Truck Company. It is his fellow grunts and Iraqi police who work closely beside the Marines who need the gear inside the trucks he and his Marines provide security for. It is easy to see the big picture, teamwork, it is all about the teamwork of the Corps, and Truck Company has perfected it.
Stuckey speaks of his Marines often and with the adoration of a father or a proud uncle.
“The best part of my job is knowing where I began with this unit and where we ended up,” he said. “To see how they’ve grown together, to see how they’ve evolved as small unit leaders and to know when they go to any other unit in the Marine Corps after they leave my platoon, that they’ll be different and people will say, ‘Where are you from Marine,’ and they’ll say with pride, hopefully, ‘Truck Company.’ They’ve just grown so much in this past year and just to watch them develop into young men and women and to be better Americans, they’re outstanding Marines.”