9-1-2003
Commanded by ASI's own Brian Williams, the 808th Engineer Company (under the 493 rd Engineer Group, 420 th Engineer Battalion and 90th Regional Support Command) from Houston provided key support to the 62nd Engineer Combat Battalion (Heavy) from Fort Hood, Texas , while deployed to the Kuwaiti CENTCOM Area of Operations in support of Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom.
The 62nd was the first Engineer Combat Battalion in Theater and was assigned as a Direct Reporting Unit (DRU) to the 416 th Engineer Command, the theater level engineer command, from Chicago . The unit's job was to construct the Inland Petroleum Distribution System (IPDS) in preparation for an attack on Iraq .
The mission was to construct an IPDS from Camp Virginia , Kuwait , to Logistics Supply Area (LSA) Adder, Iraq (near Tallil Airbase), a total distance of approximately 240 miles of pipeline. The construction of this pipeline was essential, as one of the pre-start conditions for the war with Iraq was the completion of the IPDS to Breach Point West (BPW) on the Kuwait and Iraq border.
Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom
The 808th , upon arrival in the Theater of Operations, began focusing on the fill and testing operations of the pipeline construction and provided key support to the overall quality control of the pipeline constructions. With 240 miles of pipeline construction, the 808 th constructed 60 miles of the IPDS system. Out of the 20 pump stations, the 808 th constructed 13, all in less than 5 hours each. Out of the total 240 miles of pipeline, the 808 th conducted quality inspections of 170 miles while conducting fill and test operations. In addition to the pipeline construction, the 808 th assisted the 62 nd Engineer Battalion with over 100 miles of dozer support for the purpose of building protective berms. The 808 th supplied their own transportation assets to assist the battalion in the movement of connexs and other materials needed for the pipeline mission.
In the end, the 808 th Engineer Company provided key support to a mission that was an outstanding success. The 808 th received 7 Bronze Star Medals, over 30 ARCOMs and over 20 AAMs.
Brian received a Bronze Star for his valiant efforts during OIF, a Meritorious Service Medal for his ability as a commander of the 808th Engineer Company for four years and was promoted to the rank Captain. |
