Army Casualties

The Department of Defense announced today the death of two soldiers who were supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.

They died Sept. 26, in Pul-E Alam, Afghanistan, of injuries suffered when an insurgent wearing a suicide vest detonated the device near their patrol. These Soldiers were assigned to the 1st Squadron, 91st Cavalry Regiment, 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team, Schweinfurt, Germany.

Killed were:

Staff Sgt. Orion N. Sparks, 29, of Tucson, Ariz., and

Sgt. Jonathan A. Gollnitz, 28, of Lakehurst, N.J.

For more information, please contact the U.S. Army Europe public affairs office in Heidelberg, Germany at 011-49-162-271-6685.

Face of Defense: Soldier Overcomes Injuries to Continue Serving

By Army Spc. Alisha Gredzlik

115th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment

LOGAR PROVINCE, Afghanistan, Sept. 24, 2012 – For Army Sgt. Matthew Maddox, 9/11 brings memories of his fifth-grade music class, where he first heard the news that would begin his path toward the Army.

Eleven years after those attacks, Maddox is serving his second tour in Afghanistan. But his journey has not been easy.

Maddox joined the Army when he was 17, and left for training just a month after graduating from high school.

“I had my mind made up,” he said. “This was what I had wanted to do since the fifth grade -- since 9/11.”

After basic training, Maddox was assigned to Vicenza, Italy, at the headquarters of the 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team. In late 2009, he deployed to Afghanistan. After six months, he headed home to California on mid-tour leave, never suspecting that he would not return to finish his tour. On May 26, 2010, at his home in Wallace, Calif., Maddox was run over by a grading tractor.

“I broke my left tibia, left femur, pelvis, tailbone, right orbital eye socket and suffered nerve damage to my right leg,” Maddox said. “I couldn’t walk for three months.”

He spent the next 18 months recuperating in California on “hospital status,” still in the Army, but at home working on a full recovery. Yet it was nowhere near the end of his military career.

On Jan. 3, 2011, Maddox reported back to Italy for a medical evaluation board. Instead of leaving the Army, he fought to extend his service and deploy again with the unit. After 18 months of rehabilitation and fighting for a spot in the fires platoon, Maddox finds himself on his second deployment to Afghanistan with the 173rd to settle what he calls unfinished business.

“I wanted to come back and finish a whole deployment. That was my personal goal. I wanted to finish what I started,” he said.

Now serving as a fire support specialist in Afghanistan, Maddox tracks the status of the 173rd’s artillery and mortar systems and their fire missions across two provinces. As a newly promoted sergeant with four soldiers working for him, he has to ensure their success as well as his own.

His enlistment will come to a close at the end of this deployment, but Maddox said he still sees a future with the military and plans to retire with the Army.

“When I get home I am joining the California National Guard, and I am going to apply for the California Highway Patrol to follow in my father’s footsteps,” he said.

Having rebuilt himself from the ground up, Maddox retains a positive attitude that he passes along to other soldiers.

“If you take pride in what you do and feel like there is more for you to accomplish, then it is worth it,” he said. “It is an experience everyone should endure. I have no regrets.”

Army Casualty

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.

Sgt. Kyle B. Osborn, 26, of Lafayette, Ind., died Sep. 13 in Muqer, Afghanistan, of wounds sustained when insurgents attacked his unit with small arms and rocket propelled grenade fire.  He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 503rd Infantry Regiment, 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team, Camp Ederle, Vicenza, Italy.

For more information the media may contact the U.S. Army Europe public affairs in Heidelberg, Germany, at 011-49-162-271-6685.

Army Casualty

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.

Pfc. Shane W. Cantu, 20, of Corunna, Mich., died Aug. 28, in Charkh, Afghanistan, of wounds suffered when he was hit by shrapnel. Cantu was assigned to 1st Battalion, 503rd Infantry Regiment, 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team, Caserma Ederle, Vicenza, Italy.

For more information pertaining to this release, media may contact the U.S. Army Europe public affairs office in Heidelberg, Germany at 011-49-162-271-6685.

Army Casualty

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.

Spc.  James A. Justice, 21, of Grover, N.C., died Aug. 17 at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center, Germany from injuries suffered on Aug. 14 from enemy small-arms fire in Wardak province, Afghanistan.  Justice was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 503rd Infantry Regiment, 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team, Caserma Ederle in Vicenza, Italy.

For more information, media may contact, U.S. Army Europe Public Affairs in Heidelberg, Germany at 011-49-1-62271-6685.

Army Casualty

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a Soldier who was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.

Pfc. Andrew J. Keller, 22, of Tigard, Ore., died Aug. 15, in Charkh, Afghanistan when enemy forces attacked his unit with small arms fire.  He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 503rd Infantry Regiment, 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team, Caserma Ederle, Vicenza, Italy. 

For more information the media may contact the U.S. Army Europe public affairs office at 011-49-162-271-6685.

Face of Defense: Day Makes Difference for Deployed Siblings

From a 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team News Release

FORWARD OPERATING BASE SHANK, Afghanistan, Aug. 13, 2012 – Army Sgt. 1st Class Mica Snell and his brother, Army Staff Sgt. Justin Snell were born and grew up in Derby, Kan. Less than two years apart in age, they went to the same schools at the same time and more often than not, had the same friends.

Justin moved to Green Valley, Ariz., when he was 16 and graduated from high school there, while Mica stayed and graduated from Derby High. After high school, Mica attended two years of college before joining the Army in early 2001. After Justin graduated, he went to the University of Arizona for three years.

When Mica joined the Army, he enlisted as a Patriot launching station enhanced operator and maintainer. He was assigned to Fort Bliss, Texas, and took advantage of the location, visiting Justin numerous times in Arizona.

Like many big brothers, when Justin came to him and said that he wanted to join, Mica advised him to first finish school. And if Justin was still interested in the Army after graduating, he should seek an officer’s commission, Mica advised. Like many younger brothers, Justin didn’t listen and enlisted anyway, as an infantryman.

Mica was still at Fort Bliss when Justin joined and was assigned to the 112th Signal Battalion at Fort Bragg, N.C., in 2005. Later that year, Mica was assigned to the 82nd Airborne Division’s 3rd Brigade Combat Team and what followed would be a time in his career he’s never forgotten. He and Justin were able to train together, jump together, attend unit functions together and Justin was even able to pin Mica when he was promoted to staff sergeant.

Soon after, the brothers would be separated by multiple deployments and changes of duty stations that made seeing each other almost impossible. After a deployment to the Philippines, Justin deployed in November 2005 and was assigned to the scout platoon of 1st Armored Division’s Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 1st Battalion, 41st Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, at Fort Bliss.

“In the summer of 2009, Justin called me and told me that he was getting married in Houston and wanted me to be his best man,” Mica said. “Of course, I accepted and met him in Houston. Little did I know that this would be the last time I would see him for over four years.”

Before Justin returned from his first deployment, Mica had been deployed to Iraq. Justin returned to Fort Bragg, switched units and deployed to Iraq before Mica returned to Bragg. Justin followed suit, changing units and quickly deploying to Iraq for 12 months.

The deployments continued, and the brothers continued to just miss each other.

In 2008, Mica was assigned to 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team’s Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 1st Battalion, 503rd Infantry Regiment, in Vicenza, Italy, deploying to Afghanistan’s Logar and Wardak provinces in May 2010.

After the 173rd’s return from Afghanistan, Mica stayed busy and began to prepare for his next deployment, less than two years away. During that time, Justin called to tell Mica that he would be walking in his footsteps, as his unit would also be in Logar and Wardak.

The closer it got to Mica’s next deployment, the more he was able to find out, ultimately learning that the 173rd was headed back to Logar and Wardak. More importantly, Mica’s unit would be replacing Justin’s.

“I can remember driving to Rome with my dad during Thanksgiving of 2011, and at that time I knew there was going to be a chance we could meet,” Mica said.

That feeling became stronger when Mica found out the brothers would be moving through the same outposts and operating bases at the same time.

“I knew we could meet when I found out that I was going to [Forward Operating Base] Altimur, and that Justin was moving from his combat outpost to Altimur during the same time that I was going to be there,” Mica said. “When we left Aviano, there was no doubt I was going to see him.”

Mica and soldiers of the 173rd left Aviano Air Base, Italy. Expecting to arrive at the transit center in Manas, Kyrgyzstan, in less than 10 hours, the soldiers instead found themselves in transit for almost a week.

While the days passed by, Mica feared that his opportunity to see his brother was passing with them.

When he finally arrived at here, Mica already was tracking his brother’s movements, and knew Justin made it to nearby Altimur. The brothers were separated by no more than a short drive.

Army Command Sgt. Maj. Mickey Rutledge, command sergeant major of the 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team’s 1st Battalion, 503rd Infantry Regiment, stepped in and bridged the gap. Rutledge let Mica stay in place here an extra day. That extra day was all the brothers needed, as Justin rolled in shortly after.

The 1st Battalion representative there brought joy to another Snell family member, bringing the brothers to the other side of base, where they could have a hot meal and call their mother to let her know her boys were safe.

“There it is again,” Mica said. “Another amazing experience in my career that involved my brother, the greatest warrior I know.”

Pictures from the Front Lines

Ghazni Briefing

U.S. Army Second Lt. Mark Lucas briefs his soldiers before a combat logistics patrol mission on Forward Operating Base Arian in Afghanistan's Ghazni province, July 8, 2012. Mission briefs are mandatory for every soldier who will take part in the mission. Lucas, a platoon leader, is assigned to the 82nd Airborne Division's 307th Brigade Support Battalion, 1st Brigade Combat Team.

Cannon Demonstration

U.S. Army paratroopers fire an M777A2 cannon during a firing demonstration for visiting Command Sgt. Maj. William Johnson, ISAF - Joint Command command sergeant major, on Forward Operating Base Shank in Logar province, Afghanistan, July 12, 2012. The paratroopers are assigned to Battery A, 4th Battalion, 319th Airborne Field Artillery Regiment, 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team and are on their 4th deployment to Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom.

Sangin Patrol

U.S. Navy Hospitalman Derek Happel, front, and U.S. Marine Corps Cpl. Alexander Vanny, team leader, conduct a patrol in Sangin, Helmand province, Afghanistan, July 11, 2012. Happel and Vanny are assigned to 3rd Platoon, Alpha Company, 1st Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment, Regimental Combat Team 6. The Marines conducted the patrol in support of Afghan forces during Operation Gospand-Sia.

DOD Identifies Units for Upcoming Afghanistan Rotation

The Department of Defense today identified three major units to deploy as part of the upcoming rotation of forces operating in Afghanistan.  The Spring 2012 scheduled rotation involves one brigade combat team headquarters with more than 70 personnel; one brigade combat team with more than 3,600 personnel; and a combat aviation brigade with more than 2,400 personnel to include:

Headquarters unit (rotation began last month):

76th Infantry Brigade Combat Team Headquarters, Indiana Army National Guard

Brigade Combat Team and Combat Aviation Brigade:

173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team, Vicenza, Italy

12th Combat Aviation Brigade, Katterbach, Germany

DoD will continue to announce major deployments as they are approved.  For information on the respective deployments contact the following:

76th Infantry Brigade Combat Team Headquarters, contact the 76th IBCT public affairs officer at 317-800-8541, or the Indiana Army National Guard public affairs office at 317-247-3222.

173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team, contact the 173rd ABCT public affairs officer at 011-39-044-471-8839, or U.S. Army, Europe, public affairs office at 011-49-6221-57-8628 or 011-49-6221-57-5816.

12th Combat Aviation Brigade, contact the U.S. Army, Europe, public affairs office at 011-49-6221-57-8628 or 011-49-6221-57-5816.

UPDATE:  March 15, 2011 -- Headquarters unit rotation began last month.