Lit by a nearby fire, a Soldier with Troop A, 1st Squadron, 9th Cavalry Regiment, and an Iraqi Army officer prepare Chai tea for Soldiers of Troop D, 1-9 Cavalry, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division. The Troop D Soldiers delivered supplies to Troop A at Al Kindi, an Iraqi army base near Mosul, where they are supporting military transition teams, or MiTTs, Jan 27. Photo by Sgt. Antonieta Rico, 5th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment, Tikrit


By Sgt. Antonieta Rico
5th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment

MOSUL, Iraq -- Curfew is in effect in Mosul as the Troop D, 1st Squadron, 9th Cavalry Regiment, Soldiers roll through the city’s empty streets Jan. 26.

Undeterred by reports of a possible roadside bomb, the support Soldiers are intent on delivering supplies to fellow cavalry Soldiers.

“Our goal is to keep the convoy moving,” said Capt. George Childs, Troop D commander, “If we stop, we are failing that mission.”

The supply convoy moves cautiously through the road where the suspected bomb is emplaced, and the Soldiers arrive safely with their cargo at Al Kindi, an Iraqi Army base near Mosul. There, Troop D delivers supplies, which include mattresses, fresh water, wood, building material and some generators to Soldiers of Troop A, 1-9 Cav. Regt. The Soldiers of the headquarters section of Troop A are embedded with a Military Transition Team at the Iraqi base.

With the recent realignment of 1-9 Cav. Regt. into a “super MiTT,” and Soldiers of the squadron spread through out Nineveh Province, the Soldiers of Troop D, the 1-9 Cavalry support troop, are relishing their chance to show what they are capable of.

Soldiers of Troop D also deliver supplies to MiTT units and coalition forces within Mosul, as well as 1-9 Cav. Regt. Soldiers in the Tal Afar and Al Kisik areas in western Nineveh Province.

“Especially now, with the squadron split, our mission is extremely important,” said Childs, a Daytona Beach, Fla., native.

The supplies Troop D Soldiers deliver ensure the Squadron’s Soldiers are able to carry out their own mission.

“If I don’t deliver, trucks don’t move,” said Staff Sgt. Guillermo Rivera, distribution platoon sergeant, “They don’t have spare parts for their vehicles, they don’t have ammunition, they don’t have fuel, they don’t eat.”

And although the Soldiers deliver the necessities, they also deliver the comfort items that take the edge off a hard days work. Rivera’s Soldiers also deliver mail, hot chow, and the occasional special request for cream cheese.

“If nothing else, we improve the morale of Soldiers that are deployed forward,” Childs said.

“When you go out there you always get a happy face waiting on you and a warm handshake,” said Rivera, a native of Puerto Rico, “We are like their best friend.”

That friendly sentiment was evident when the Troop D Soldiers arrived at Al Kindi.

Soldiers of Troop A were waiting for them and as the supplies were unloaded, the Troop A Soldiers and an Iraqi army officer started making Chai for the Troop D Soldiers. Soon there was a gathering outside by a bonfire, with Soldiers from both troops swapping stories over sweet, hot Chai.

And although sometimes people forget to thank the supply Soldiers for their vital support of the line troops, words are not always necessary.

“The Soldiers and the happy faces when you get to different places; that’s enough for me,” Rivera said.


Private 2nd Class Cory Rand, Troop D, 1st Squadron, 9th Cavalry Regiment, adjusts a lamp to check his vehicle before heading out on a supply convoy to Al Kindi, an Iraqi army base near Mosul, Jan 27. Rand's mission was to deliver supplies to Troop A, 1-9 Cav. Regt., who are supporting military transition teams, or MiTTs, at the base. Photo by Sgt. Antonieta Rico, 5th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment, Tikrit


Lit by a nearby fire, a Soldier with Troop A, 1st Squadron, 9th Cavalry Regiment, and an Iraqi Army officer prepare Chai tea for Soldiers of Troop D, 1-9 Cavalry, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division. The Troop D Soldiers delivered supplies to Troop A at Al Kindi, an Iraqi army base near Mosul, where they are supporting military transition teams, or MiTTs, Jan 27. Photo by Sgt. Antonieta Rico, 5th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment, Tikrit

Labels: 1-9 Cavalry, 1st Cavalry Division, 4BCT, Iraq, MiTTs, Mosul, photos, US Army