Update #9 - April 26, 2006

Hello #9

The other day I got a chance to meet some soldiers form Baghdad whose mission was to take Iraqi detainees to trial. On my day off I convinced them to take me along for a ride. During my briefing, the Officer in Charge neglected to inform me that they get hit often on these trips through the city. Good thing we had air support that day and that made me feel a little more comfortable. I love it how during rush hour down town, all traffic stops when we roll up and traffic laws don’t really apply to us. It’s an awkward feeling riding at 60mph on the highway head on to oncoming traffic. It’s normal I guess for the military to do such things. We finally get to our destination which was located right outside of the green zone. Close enough for safety, far enough to hear shots being fired but I was never in any danger. The building is Saddams old private museum with a clock tower. During the ground war, it was reported that many solders were dying from sniper fire and they couldn’t figure out where it was coming from. One day an apache helicopte r decided to give the old clock tower a face lift. Problem solved! All that is left is a skeleton of metal filled with bullet holes and a beautiful view from the top as shown on the picture attached. After the tour, I got to escort a guy to trial and watch the new court system Iraq has set up. I felt privileged to witness democracy in a country where people used to get their hands cut off for something as little as having $USD. All is well and my trip home was as smooth as it was going there.
Thank you for your continued support,
SGT Santana, Alexandre C.
Bco 181 Engineers
APO-AE09342

Update #8 - April 26th, 2006

Mary Christmas Everyone! #8It’s that time of year again where we take a little brake from life and make a little time for family and friends. Sometimes we have to remind ourselves that patience can make anything happen, and will power can make it enjoyable. I’ll be home in a year… How enjoyable is it going to be spending some time with my family and friends around the holiday season? Patience got me where I am today and will power will get me home safe.

Greeting,
SGT Santana, Alexandre C.
Bco 181 Engineers
APO-AE09342

Update #7 - April 26, 2006

Finally here and my first mission (JOB) is pretty nice. It’s safe and I work indoors. I get to see and talk to a lot of bad guys in a secure location where they have no way to hurt me. Every day I try to make time to talk to them and learn about their culture, talk to them about what they think of the United States , the War and their religion. Another plus to my job is that I’m picking up Arabic fairly quick and I get to play with some cool toys from time to time. On the picture attached, there I am holding 2 RPGs found in a raid from a weapons cache that would have been used against us. Progress is being made everyday here but it’s unfortunate that the news does not reflect that. Other than the extremists, the Iraqi people don’t hate us as much as we think. Everyday I get a thank you from people we’ve captured because what we do is making a difference. By the time I’m done I hope to have a big enough vocabulary to communicate back to them. I’m taking things one day at a time and enjoying every minute.
Thank you for your support,
SGT Santana, Alexandre C.
Bco 181 Engineers
APO-AE09342

Tio Xande, Sofia and Alessandra

Update #4

Update #5

Update #5

Update #5

Update #4

Update #4

Update #3

Update #3

Update #3

Update #3

update #2

Alex Santana

Hello to all the Families and Friends of Company B!

From: Chrissy <chris.bona
Sent: Fri, 23 Dec 2005 07:20:51 -0500
Subject: Fw: Unit Update - Happy Holidays!

Hello to all the Families and Friends of Company B!
I hope this finds you all in good spirits as the Holidays rapidly approach. I wanted to share with all of you the following unit update I received from CPT Noyes to give everyone some information on how things are progressing overseas. I also wanted to let everyone know that the soldier's have received the Christmas Stockings, Mr. Potato Heads, Snowflake Ornaments that was a collaborative effort of all the families and friends during the Florence/Pittsfield Family meetings in November. They loved them. Also, they have received and put up the Giant Inflatable Snow Globe that I sent over (bought by our Retired 1SGT Steve Kordana) as an added gift to give our soldiers a piece of home and snow for the Holiday Season. I've received reports that many of our soldiers decided to open their Christmas presents next to it to watch it snow while they open their gifts.
Wishing everyone a very happy and safe holiday season!
All my love and best wishes!
Chrissy

Classification: UNCLASSIFIED
Hi Chris,
The soldiers are doing very well here. Once again they are making there mark as one of the best units on the Base camp. We already have manyrecognitions by the the Battalion and the Brigade. CPL Carlson has been recognized for his contributions working in the Battalion Headquarters. He has single handedly trained himself on the key communication systems. Helped other in understanding the communicationsystems operations. Basically He has been the glue that keeps theBattalion TOC together.1LT Furlong has been recognized for his exceptional efforts in organizing the Prisoner escort team. He and his team have conducted many numerousprisoner escorts to other camps and each time the operation has runflawlessly even under adverse conditions. MSG Lavesque is the Compounds Supply NCO. His efforts have been paramount in ensuring the Iraqi election process went off without a hitch. He worked tirelessly to ensure the Iraqi officials had all the equipment they needed.Where he found some of the supplies is still a mystery. SSG Casey and his team of mechanics are making a name for themselves as the best maintenance crew on our base camp. Many other units have come to them for maintenance support knowing they could provide the service that there own maintenance teams could not provide. Compound operations would come to a halt if it was not for there efforts. The Headquarters section is doing an outstanding job managing all of the Company issues. Especially when they are constantly being over tasked on other operations. 1SG Shipman, SGT Clinton, SSG Adams, SGT Flis, SGT Brandon and especially Glen are the dream team of Headquarters platoon.All of the other soldiers from Headquarter Platoon have been assigned toother duties leaving them with a skeleton crew to conduct daily operations.When ever things go right or wrong I usually blame your husband or SGT Flis. Mostly Flis. I think he has come accustomed to it. You should be proud of Glen, he is an exceptional soldier. SGT Flis is rapidly becoming the go to man for Communications issue's on the Base. Many units come to him instead of the Battalion for Communication support. Let the families know that there soldiers are doing a great job and they can be very proud of there achievements. The work they are doing is strategically critical to Americas success in the War on terror.
Thanks much
Mike

Update #6 - November 19th, 2005

-written a few weeks ago

Hello from “Camp Victory” Baghdad, Iraq

So we finally get the call to gear up and load the busses for the airport. Now the security level goes up a little. We went to this airfield called area 51… no joke! I thought it was funny only because I don’t remember seeing much of it. We were quickly driven to this secluded area where no one could come in and we couldn’t go out. We had a tent and Mr. Bob “portable johns.” 2hrs later we get word that our plane was ready for us. Once again we do a roster check and off we go once again on the bus to the airstrip. We stop directly behind this C130 military plane “unlike the comfortable civilian plane we flew into Kuwait ” and now we’re all loaded and ready to go. While the pilot is giving us our safety brief, I scan the plane paying special attention to the static lines used by paratroopers to open the shoots thinking, “there is no way I would ever jump out of this thing!” Hats off to all airborne rangers. As the pilot heads to the cockpit I quickly asked him what the in-flight movie was. “alive!” He replies “A movie about a plane crash where the survivors had to eat each other.” How is that for an answer? Some people around me didn’t like that too much... and up we went… Music blasting in my headphones didn’t keep me from hearing every little noise coming from the plane’s mechanics. I made the best of what I had. Looking around once again, I noticed that those who could sleep did, and those who couldn’t had that drained look. I wonder what they were thinking? 1hr into my ipod… oh yeah, I forgot to mention the very important brief the pilot gave us… so, one 1hr into my ipod, down goes the pl ane into a sharp nosedive. I purposely jumped off my seat while restrained by the belt, and floated in the air for about 2 to 3 seconds before the plane pulled back up and I slammed back onto my seat. The pressure from that move didn’t go well with my stomach. Now my ears feel like they’re going to explode and my eyes are ready to pop out of the socket. The pilot now decides to turn the plane sideways. I guess they do this drill once they cross into the hot zone. I’m telling you it was more enjoyable than it sounds, especially with headphones on. Finally we land. Single file we walk away from the plane passing by troops walking the opposite direction with smiles on their faces waving at us… A**holes! Guess where they were going? Welcome to BIAP! said the CPT. Grab your rucks and load the bus. Now we’re packed in this bus like sardines headed toward the other side of camp. The famous “Camp Victory” where troops battled and died not too long ago so I can be here, safe.
…And I thought Kuwait was nice. Kuwait was a cheap motel compared to Saddam’s old backyard. Literally, his back yard! Camp Victory south is where I slept. Right next to Saddam’s sons pool house now where a military store is located. I unloaded my stuff, grabbed a chair, a bottle of water and sat under a palm tree. That felt nice until the first explosion went off. I was later told that it was a controlled explosion and usually attacks on camp are small arms fire, “AK-47” which happens daily here during wake up hours. Not to worry, this place is heavily guarded.
Off to chow I go. I know I’ve been talking about food a lot lately but I can’t skip mentioning the massive selection of good, well prepared foods and snacks. Unbelievable! This place was packed with coalition forces and civilian contractors. After chow one group went off to the bus stop to go sight seeing and I headed back to the tents to do some maintenance on my eye lids. A few hours go by and they came back with some awesome pictures of Saddam’s palace now coalition headquarters and other beautiful sights. They say the pictures do no justice to this place. After a brief discussion on what they had seen, we began playing cards. For the next three days we ate, slept, and played cards until we found a ride to our final destination just north of Baghdad. I was in no rush to leave paradise.
Believe it or not, I’m still very safe here and in good health. Next stop… somewhere north of Baghdad.

Until next time, thank you for your continued support,

SGT Santana, Alexandre C.
Bco 181 Engineers
APO-AE09342

PS i'll be sending pictures soon...

Update #5 - November 5th, 2005

Hello from Kuwait "Club Med"
This place is unbelievable! We have almost everything we need here. This is the Hilton compared to FOB Tiger, NJ. too bad our stay here is short. Chow hall with food better than i've ever eaten in the military. Subway shop, Movie theatre, dance club, libary and lots of other luxuries. Beautiful landscape (if you like sand) and everyday is summer. They also make sure we have plenty of water bottles so we don't dehydrate. Nice!

Plane ride
This is funny enough to mention.... Hello passengers, we're on our way to Kuwait with a layover in Ireland (no drinking) :(. Please place your seats on the upright position with your tray up. All personal items under the seat in front of you..." This is the best part, "...place your weapons flat on the floor with the mussel facing out." I have to say this was a first for me. When we landed in Kuwait, tensions were high. I was selected as one of the security pesonal for my bus on our convoy to camp about 1hr away. That entire trip I had my eyes on the bus driver and even though I hadn't slept in a while, I don't remember blinking once. Kuwait is not considered a hostile zone but I felt the sweat running down my face as I white-knuckled the 30 round magazine on my weapon. The order was to shoot to stop anything that tried to derail our convoy to camp. No warning shots! Believe you me, I was awake. Once we got to camp things slowed down a little and we started our R&R. I'm safe and in good health.
I guess this is all from Kuwait... Next stop (e-mail), somewhere in Iraq. Tell you where that is when I come back
Thank you everyone for your support,
SGT Santana, Alexandre C. 3168
Bco 181 Engineers
APO-AE09342

The above is my new address as typed.

Update #4 - October 29th, 2005

Hello Everyone #4

Look at the attached picture (#4 IMT)… I just went through one of the most physically challenging exercises yet. Why am I still smiling?

A) I’m tired beyond belief.
B) I’m about to take off all the gear I have on.
C) I’m about to eat.
D) All of the above.

D is the answer. I.M.T. (individual movement technique) is a series of low crawl, high crawl and 3 to 5 second rush while firing at a target. When I took this picture, we just heard about New Orleans… I guess what I’m going through isn’t bad after all.

Lately we’ve been doing lots of training with Iraqis and that has given us lots of opportunities to ask questions after training. It’s been a nice experience learning the culture and knowing that they are happy we’re there and doing what we can to help the country. I spoke with one guy who said his brother still lives there and said that life in Iraq is nothing like what it used to be. (#4 Iraqi)

Up to this point we’ve done training for almost every combat job we might be a part of such as, Convoy Security, Rout Security, House to House, Urban Assault, Entry Control Point, Quick Reaction Force and we also had a chance to do some Detainee Operations. Unfortunately I can’t share the details but some of the tests lasted about 72hrs with 3 to 4hrs of sleep. Things tend to be funny after no sleep and hard work. According to the OCTs (Observers Controllers Trainers) we were on point. Our added understanding in demolition in combat will further help us identify and avoid potential I.E.Ds (Improvised Explosive Devices) and keep us safe while out in Iraq . Training has been taking a toll on my group and most of us can’t wait to leave. Most people who have been there say that other than combat, living conditions in Iraq is excellent compared to what we have here state side. (#4

Well…. I guess this is all I can share with everyone… Next e-mail will be from Kuwait
Thank you for your support,

SGT Santana, Alexandre C. 3168
Bco 181 Engineers
APO-AE09342

The above is my new address.

Update #3 - September 23rd, 2005

Hello Everyone #3

Still enjoying days here at the FOB. A few weeks ago we had a chance to qualify with our weapons system to include the one in the attached picture. This bad boy is called the MK19 “automatic grenade launcher”. It’s the machine gun of grenades. After my team qualified with it, I had a chance to take a shot at it. Closest target at 400m…..too easy! the 1500m target on the other hand was a little trickier. It took 3 3 to 4 round burst before I finally hit it. I never thought I would be able to hit something over 1 mile away. It takes about 8 seconds before it impacts and 12 seconds before you hear the impact. Since this weapon is meant for serious destruction, once in theatre (Iraq ) I hope my gunner never has to use it. Another weapon assigned to my team is the 240B A.K.A 240 boom stick. It’s the envy of the FOB. Not too many people have seen this beast. Every time we walk by, heads turn, we see people pointing and whispering “that’s the 240”. We had one instructor stop training to look at it and at one point asked my gunner to shoot it. The only down side to it is that it’s one of the loudest weapon out there. Not a bad trade for the fire power.

Thank you for your support,
SGT Santana, Alexandre 3168
Bco 181st Combat Engineer BN
BLD. 6038 Doughboy loop
Fort Dix, NJ 08640-9001

more updates to come...

(TRADUCAO)

Ainda aproveitando os dias aqui no FOB (New Jersey). Algumas semanas atras nos tivemos a chance de qualificar pelo os nossos sistemas de armas para incluir o que esta na foto. Este bad boy se chama MK19 (granada automatica). E a metralhadora das granadas. Depois que meu time se qualificou com ela, eu tive uma chance de atirar com ela. Alvo mais perto de 400m, muito facil! O alvo de 1500m no outro lado foi um pouco mais dificil. Me levou 3 3 para 4 rodada ate eu acertar. Eu nunca imaginei que pudesse acertar alguma coisa mais longe de 1 mile. Leva 8 segundos antes do impacto e 12 segundos antes de ouvir o impacto. Ja que essa e uma arma de grande destruicao, quando no "teatro" (Iraq), espero que meu atiradar nunca precise de usar-la. Outra arma qualificada pelo meu time foi 240B conhecida como 240 boom stick. Nao muitas pessoas tem visto este monstro. Todas as vezes que passamos, cabecas se viram, nos vemos pessoas apontando e cochichando (esta e a 240). Nos tivemos um instrutor parar de treinar para olhar, e depois pediu ao meu atiradar para dar um atirada. A unica parte ruim e que e uma das armas mais altas la. Nao uma troca ruim pelo poder de fogo.

Thank you for your support, (obrigado pelo apoio)
SGT Santana, Alexandre 3168
Bco 181st Combat Engineer
BNBLD. 6038 Doughboy loop
Fort Dix, NJ 08640-9001
?
more updates to come... (mais novidades para chegar).

Update #2 - September 10th, 2005

Hello Everyone,
Let me start this update with an exert from my journal entry;
...Second day into training and the growling hot weather and the long hours from yesterday has been eclipsed by today’s schedule. I'm confident that things will only get easier from here. As I lay down to call it a night, I have decided to keep my pants on (as dirty as they were) and both my weapons on me so I can get a head start on a fresh day at 4am. The soothing hardcore sounds of Sepultura and Slipknot blares through my ipod headphones and slowly I regain my sanity. Thirty minutes go by and I feel a thud. I can’t believe people are still moving around this late at night. I open my eyes only to realize that everyone is on the move. I remove my headphones and look over at my squad leader, his silence said it all. BOOM! Another mortar round lands closer to our tent. Within seconds I quickly grabbed my sandals, strapped on my IBA (individual body armor), and secured my weapons and off I sprint to the nearest bunker. On my way over I noticed a man down. He’s one of mine. His casualty card stated that he had a leg wound. I asked him if he was ok and with the assistance of another soldier began dragging him 50 meters to safety. I yell out for a medic and simultaneously scanned the area to locate my other team member. He was only 15 meters to my side in good heath and both his weapons. MedEvac arrived, took the injured and I turned around to give my squad leader a thumbs up. All accounted for Sergeant! “Good job Sergeant Santana” he yells back. It is now 0015hrs…
Welcome to F.O.B. Tiger (Forward Operating Base) Fort Dix training area.
As you can see from day two of training, we are not joking and smoking here. We are preparing to do a job. We are no longer a National Guard unit but a Company of Combat Active Duty soldiers. As you can see from the attached picture, we still manage to have a few laughs here and there.
We as a Company have been very impressed with the different types of scenarios that have been thrown at us. The instructors continue to praise us for our good work. On future e-mails I’ll make sure to mention some of the training we’ve had so far for at this time I cannot share them with you.
Thank you for all the e-mails, music and especially the letters. The letters and notes definitely help me get through a tough day.

I’m in good health and motivated for whatever comes our way!

SGT Santana, Alexandre 3168
Bco 181st Combat Engineer BN
BLD. 6038 Doughboy loop
Fort Dix, NJ 08640-9001

Update #1 - August 19th, 2005

Hello Everyone,

Here is an update on my little trip. Uncle Sam has been taking real good care of me so far. I’ve bee getting the latest equipment, free cloth, food and a place to sleep and all I have to do in return is serve 12 months in Iraq! Not a bad deal. I’m still state side doing some training and getting all necessary equipment for the mission coming up. Morale in my company is extremely high and we’ve been training with some of the best the Army can offer. With the exception of 4 to 6hrs of sleep, vest + light gear weighing in at around 60lbs, weather at times reaching 100F and the massive amount of information we’ve been taking in, It almost feels like we’re on vacation. All in all we can’t complain.
In my squad of 12 we have an Army Ranger with combat jumps in Panama and a Sapper (Special Military training with concentration in demolition) who served Active Duty for 4 years in an elite unit in Hawaii. My Platoon Sergeant is also a Combat Veteran with tours in Panama, Bosnia and played a big part on the first strike in the Golf War. We are all in good hands and I’ve been doing my part making sure my team gets the best training possible so we can come home safe and in one peace. That’s my job! My company has developed a well respected reputation in our short two weeks here at Fort Dix. So much so that everywhere we go, people know who we are. We’ve been mentioned as one of the best to come through here in the past 2 years.
Thank you for all your good words and support on my last few weeks at work and my heart will be with all of you while I’m here.

See you all soon,

SGT Santana, Alexandre 3168
Bco 181st Combat Engineer BN
BLD. 6038 Doughboy loop
Fort Dix, NJ 08640-9001

P.S. if you have music you would like to share with me, feel free to help me fill my ipod by sending cds to the address listed above. I’ll be here until mid October. Please provide song and album name if possible.

“Knowledge is key but execution is an open doorway”
SGT Santana, Alexandre

Hello

I created this blog so we can share pictures and letters from Alex while he is in Iraq.