Things I am learning about...

Hi folks, I have been hanging out in Corey's IN box lately and wanted to teach you about things that I am learning.

Let's start with vehicles. I have included some pictures of them and what they are called...
The MRAP stands for Mine Resistant, Ambush Protected vehicle, we have two of them that we use, the Max Pro, which is made by International Trucks, and the RG -33 which we call the school bus. The short ugly one is the ASV, the Armored Security Vehicle. So now when I go on missions and tell you what vehicle I was in, you can see it here...

Alex emailed me recently and wanted to know what kind of gun I have. You can see at the bottom of my perch...

Here's what Corey had to say.. "Well, let Alex know that the guns that my soldiers carry is called an M-4 carbine. It is a magazine fed, air cooled, semi automatic rifle which fires from the closed bolt position. I carry a 9 mm semi automatic pistol with a 15 round carrying capacity. Our truck utilize both the M-250 caliber machine gun, referred to as the Ma Deuce, and the M-240 B ,which fires a 7.62 mm round. Incidentally, the M-2 Machine gun is the oldest gun in service in the United States Military, and has remained virtually unchanged in over 60 years."

Oh and Corey wanted to let Alex's classmates know that he wrote each one of them a letter. Alex will be bringing them in when they arrive. until next time... Baldy

My latest mission..

Ok, there has been so much excitement around here. I, Baldy, got to go on yet another mission. This one was definitely exciting. A stryker vehicle rolled over. No one was hurt but it sure was a mess. It was raining like crazy too. Lightening struck a power line next to one of our vehicles too. All in all it was one delay after another. On a different note because of all of the delays I got to be out on the roads during daylight hours. I got to see the local people, some kids, some donkeys, even the local police. Oh yeah, I even got to drive! I know, I know, CRAZY! Anyway, the guys have been great at taking pictures documenting my mission. I knew you wouldn't believe it if you didn't see it with your own eyes. Even though I got to drive I think I like hanging out with SFC Corey Last the most. There's a picture of us here too. Here's to hoping you all had a Merry Christmas and a safe and Happy New Year! Until next time.... Baldy....

Baldy's latest adventures..

An Update from SFC Corey Last regarding Baldy's Missions and adventures....

Here are some pictures of Baldy's week. We got our platoon photo with Baldy. I assigned him to truck 210, with Staff Sergeant Bentley,(Wild Man), Specialist Van Pelt, (Silver Fox), and Specialist Hull, (Trigger Monkey). He was assigned to be Security for SSG Bentley, on his first mission.

He got to go to Scania, which is south of Baghdad, almost all the way to the Kuwaiti Border. He crossed the Euphrates and the Tigris Rivers. He had to stop in Seitz for the night, which is close to the Baghdad International Airport.

We have him as a Private right now, after he has 5 missions, we will promote him to Private First Class. He is also going to be awarded the Combat Infantrymans Badge for being within range of the IED (Improvised Explosive Device)that struck our platoon. Disco Stu is the nickname of truck A210. The crew has the disco ball hanging from the gunners turret.

I really wish we could get a picture of him by the Euphrates, or by an Arabic sign, but we would need to be doing our run during daylight, which we do not do, or stop, which is a big deal since we are being tracked by the Blue Force Trackers, and we would also need to stop about 40 semis and all of our trucks, which is not good!.

The platoon has really taken to him, though. He is going on his third mission right now, to FOB Normandy, and tonight he is riding Scout Vehicle, which is the very first truck in the line. His first mission, he was riding in Lead, which is the wingman for the Scout. Our last mission, he rode in the Pace truck with me, to Seitz again.


Taking a Break......................... Sunset, Scania, Iraq


Seitz, Iraq, after IED...............Dancing with the Disco Ball


Radio Watch............................ Guard with the Big Gun...

Hangin with the Silver Fox... Convoy Commanders Brief..

Baldy has arrived!

Wow, I finally made it to Iraq. 8 days inside a box! Not fun. I don't suggest that you try it. I'm finally here now and SFC Corey Last has been the best host. I am already making myself at home. As you can see from the photos I have found a nice perch to hang out. I even got to meet all of the guys.

Rumor has it that I will be going on a mission soon but I must keep it a secret. I can tell you that I will be going out with a very responsible man named SPC Van Pelt. He'll be teaching me the about gunning on a M1151, armored humvee. Hmm. I will have to get more details on what that is and what it means and get back to you.

For now I am here and learning the ropes. See you soon.

Baldy....

Intro...

Hi My name is Baldwin the Bald Eagle. You can call me Baldy for short.

I am about to embark on a journey to Iraq to hang with SFC Corey Last. Hopefully, he will have time to help me share my journey with you! This is my friend Alex. He and his third grade class collected lots of goodies to send along with me. We can't wait for Corey to get them! See ya real soon!