By Army Capt. James Sheehan U.S. Army Africa
JAJI, Nigeria, April 11, 2018 — Walking off the plane here,
the air hits you like hot fumes from an open oven. Going south, the equator is
a short bus ride. But, this team wasn’t going south.
Leaving major metropolitan infrastructure behind, Army Chief
of Staff Gen. Mark A. Milley’s perspective on future combat operations in
austere conditions becomes a reality. Jaji isn’t home to the creature comforts
found in Middle Eastern forward operating bases. No Burger King. No Pizza Hut.
No air-conditioning or internet. No running water. However, there are plenty of
buckets.
“We walk over to this big pump and get our own water to
flush our toilets, since water happens intermittently,” explained Army Capt.
Aaron Harris. “It’s not always a fixed system or anything like that.”
Harris is ordinarily a forward support company commander for
the 10th Mountain Division in Fort Drum, New York. But out here, Harris uses
his logistics background to support a team of 12 U.S. soldiers fulfilling a
six-week advise-and-assist mission in a remote military compound located about
145 miles north of Abuja, Nigeria’s capital.
“We have bed space, plenty of places to sleep,” Harris said.
“The food’s great; we hired a local, a spouse of one of the Nigerian army
soldiers. She cooks for us, provides us water. We have water, hot meals, beds,
and mosquito nets. What more can you ask for?”
Austere Conditions
The process of having a shower includes carrying two
five-gallon buckets of cold water to a cramped stall walled off with thin
vinyl. Then, you pour one bucket on yourself, apply soap, and use the second
bucket to rinse.
The living quarters were reminiscent of a Hollywood war
film. Bunk beds, boarded-up windows, PVC-pipe camping chairs, and faded-green
socks hanging on a clothesline decorated the front porch. Inside, the walls
were littered with hand-drawn operations orders bordered by two-inch green
tape. Plastic storage containers serve as furniture. The most-frequented corner
included a plastic card table. The place was covered with the sounds of
soldiers conversing and arguing over card games.
The cohesion brought on by an austere living environment
carried into the work. The team said they were happiest when training the
Nigerian soldiers, even when it required ample amounts of sunscreen.
“At least it’s a dry heat,” an optimistic Army
noncommissioned officer said. “It could be worse. It could be humid. The last
thing we want is more sweat, mold and mildew. I’ll take hot over humid, any
day. Heck, I’d take this heat over the cold, any day.”
Army Sgt. 1st Class Saul Rodriguez is the most experienced
of the 12 U.S. soldiers at the remote military compound.
Confronting Boko Haram Extremists
Even in triple-digit heat and with AK-47 automatic rifles in
hand, it’s easy to forget these soldiers are likely headed into imminent
danger. The Nigerian army’s 26th Infantry Battalion may be next to deploy
northeast to confront the notorious and violent extremist organization, Boko
Haram.
“My job is to train you as much as I can. Your job is to
fight the bad guys out of your country,” Rodriguez shouted to a group of
soldiers demonstrating their best cover and concealment efforts behind Jaji’s
bushes and trees.
“Yes. We are hard on them. We have to be. Their life depends
on it,” Army Staff Sgt. Kevin Martin of the 10th Mountain Division said after
lecturing the 26th on the significance of maintaining noise discipline. “They
might need these skills one day. They face a very real and lethal threat. We
aren’t going to slow down; we are going to pack as much training in as
possible.”
This life-altering responsibility to prepare Nigerian
soldiers wasn’t lost on the mission’s leader, Army Capt. Stephen Gouthro.
Gouthro said one of the best parts of the mission was the
lack of micromanagement. The closest “flagpole” was thousands of miles away,
meaning the closest superior officer was in the United States or Europe.
Professional, Disciplined Team
“What better way to demonstrate mission command,” Gouthro
said. “This mission isn’t only about the tactical. Everything our team does
could have diplomatic effects. Out here, the team has to be professional,
mature and disciplined. And we are.”
All in all, this mission is the definition of the U.S.
Army’s top priority: readiness. From pack-out preparations to redeployment
operations, this mission challenged junior officers and NCOs to work without
built-in support from “Big Army.” Austere conditions, local negotiations, food
from the economy, far from higher headquarters, limited digital capabilities,
diplomatic implications and foreign-military engagements are only a few
examples of how this mission has made these men more ready.
A small support team traveled to Jaji about four weeks into
the mission, flying down from U.S. Army Africa’s headquarters in Vicenza,
Italy. The travelers asked Gouthro if the team had any requests. Historically
speaking, soldiers ask for candy, SIM cards or extra soap. Not this team.
Gouthro’s priority remained the mission. He asked for a sizeable knife for a
graduation gift to give the Nigerian company’s commander and some smokeless
tobacco, commonly known as "dip," for one of his NCOs.
After four weeks without running water in an austere environment,
there was only one message: “Bring a knife and some dip.”
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