3rd Plt., 'C' Co., 1st Tank Bn., get
chance to 'see the world'
(This article appeared in the June 18, 1999 issue of the
Observation Post, the base newspaper for Twentynine
Palms, California.)
1stLt Jason D. Grose
1st Tank Bn Adjutant
For many decades, Marine recruiters have promised young
men and women a chance to “see the world” and
on June 4th, 3rd platoon, C Co., 1st Tank Bn returned from
doing just that. Led by 1stLt David Olson, the platoon
spent the last six months touring the world from the jungles
of Africa to the sands of Kuwait.
Attached the 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) Special
Operations Capable (SOC), Olson, 18 tankers, and one
corpsman boarded the Harper’s Ferry on only her second
deployment and steamed out to sea from San Diego on December
5, 1998.
Their first stop was to conduct infantry training in the
lush paradise of Hawaii for two days. Passing by the
legendary island of Iwo Jima at Christmas, the tankers reached
Hong Kong just in time to celebrate the New Year celebration
and a couple of days of liberty.
Continuing on their journey, the platoon arrived in Singapore
on January 6th where they had an opportunity to conduct training
in both Military Operations in Urban Terrain (MOUT) and jungle
patrolling before setting sail for Phuket, Thailand.
The platoon’s schedule initially allowed five days
of liberty in Phuket but suddenly, they were recalled for
an unscheduled, operational contingency in Africa. On January
25th, Olson and his men arrived in Mombasa, Kenya. Leaving
their tanks behind, the tankers grabbed M16s and proved that
a Marine’s primary mission is as a rifleman, regardless
of his MOS. Olson’s tankers were assigned as a security
element for a humanitarian assistance effort. The tankers
set up a perimeter defense while MSSG-13 handed out medical
supplies from a local clinic. Working with both Kenyan Military
Police and civilian police from Mombasa, the tankers ensured
the safety of the medical personnel for five days.
When asked if they encountered any situations during the
defensive operation, Olson said, “One day many of the
local inhabitants started gathering near our perimeter. We
thought there might be trouble as the numbers grew so we stepped
up our alert status.” But due to the Marines’
presence, the crowd never turned violent and the clinic continued
to dispense the much-needed medical supplies.
With their humanitarian assistance mission successfully
completed, the tankers once again boarded the Harper’s
Ferry and arrived in Kuwait on March 4th. Unloading their
tanks, the platoon honed their tanking skills by executing
a CAX-like evolution on the Udairi Range until April 3rd.
They once again set sail to the Jebel Ali, United Arab Emirates
(UAE) and after enjoying a much-deserved five days of liberty,
the platoon continued their world tour by making stops in
Bali, Indonesia, Mackay, Australia, and Hawaii before returning
the Camp Pendleton on June 4th.
“We had a great deployment,” comments Olson,
“We got a chance to do infantry training, a real-world
humanitarian assistance mission outside our primary MOS, as
well as solid tank training in Kuwait.”
When asked about the liberty they had, Olson says, “Liberty
was definitely plentiful but the training our close-knit group
of tankers completed was the main benefit. We left with eight
LCPLs, eight CPLS, and two SGTS. We returned with three LCPLs,
ten CPLS, and four SGTs.”
Along with Olson, the other members of the platoon included:
GYSGT Carlos Graham
SGT Justin Bull*
SGT Jesse Christenberry*
SGT Cesar Fort
SGT Daniel Pinkerton
CPL Daniel Formella*
CPL Christopher Gunnels
CPL Nicholas Jones
CPL Ralph Mason
CPL Ryan O’Neil*
CPL Rodolfo Ramirez
CPL Eric Saucedo*
CPL Carlos Torresbaron*
CPL Leonel Verduzco*
CPL Franko Westry*
LCPL Cipriano Redhouse
LCPL Jose Velasquez
LCPL Ryan Ware
HM3 Jose Bojorquez
*Promoted while on deployment