Future PRT command team visits Ghazni

GHAZNI PROVINCE, Afghanistan – In preparation for their tour here this summer, the incoming Ghazni Provincial Reconstruction Team commander and senior-enlisted adviser visited Forward Operating Base Ghazni for a pre-deployment site survey Feb. 21 – March 1.

U.S. Navy Cmdr. Tristin Rizzi, from St. Petersburg, Fla., and U.S. Navy Senior Chief Petty Officer Eric Deming of Tampa Bay, Fla., were able to study the operational tempo and types of missions while also becoming familiar with the staff and their functions.

The leaders met with each of the PRT departments to discuss what they were able to take away from their pre-deployment training at Camp Atterbury, Indiana, their roles within the PRT and what they would like the next team to continue.

U.S. Army Capt. Timothy O’Donnell, a PRT member from Linwood, Pa., indicated that, from the civil affairs perspective, it would be good for the incoming team to step in and start doing overnight missions right away. He felt that one-day missions can be ineffective if the convoy has the misfortune to spend all of its time transiting to and from destinations while dealing with delays caused by improvised explosive devices.

“When you sit there and wait on clearance, your whole day is gone,” O’Donnell said. “When you stay overnight, there is no hurry to get down there on day one. You get there when you get there and you can still accomplish that mission. I think the unpredictability of us doing that also helps keep us safe.”

O’Donnell also stated that he wants to make sure the new team continues to foster the relationships already formed with the key terrain districts.

The leaders got to see some of the key terrain districts during their visit and had the chance to travel with the PRT to Qara Bagh, Moqur and Gelan districts part of a three-day mission. Rizzi and Deming met with key leaders, learned about upcoming project proposals, toured the cities’ bazaars and spoke to members of the local population.

This was Deming’s second visit to FOB Ghazni during the current PRT’s rotation.

“I am impressed with the significant improvements the team has made in the last four months while conducting operations outside the wire,” he said.

After the mission, the commander and senior chief also had the opportunity to meet with Polish Brig. Gen. Andrzej Reudowicz, Task Force White Eagle commander, and U.S. Army Col. Albert Cox, deputy commander for Task Force White Eagle with the Illinois National Guard in Springfield, Ill., to get their perspective on this region and their direction on how operations should be conducted.

“I am satisfied with operations and the direction the current PRT is going with their campaign plan,” Rizzi said after the meeting with the FOB’s leaders and touring with the PRT. “The plan syncs well with Combined Joint Task Force-101’s operational plan for this region.”

The future PRT leaders left Ghazni armed with targeted knowledge and information to better prepare their newly formed team for their upcoming challenges.