This Weekend's Pics - July 4th & 5th 2009

[Ghelp]

Good luck to my brothers in Afghanistan.

Kill!

[goat89]

Nice pics today! Thx!

[josh21x]

Good luck to my brothers in Afghanistan.

Kill!

You should add an Indian Flag on your avatar!

[jupiter]

Thankyou to all personnel active or veterans. Happy 4th of July.

[adren]

Happy 4th of July

[Fireball Sanchez]

Happy freakin' 4th of July!

Ejected 5.56mm casings speckle the flight deck of USS Bataan as Marines with Lima Company, Battalion Landing Team, 3rd Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment, 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit, conduct a stress shoot June 29. Lima Co. conducted the training to strengthen Marines' skills of focusing in a combat situation. The 22nd MEU, embarked aboard the ships of the Bataan Amphibious Ready Group, is currently serving as the theater reserve force for U.S. Central Command.
(Photo by Cpl. Justin Martinez : 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit Public Affairs)

A Marine with Lima Company, Battalion Landing Team, 3rd Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment, 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit, participates in a stress shoot on the flight deck aboard USS Bataan, June 29. Lima Co. conducted a stress shoot to strengthen Marines' skills of focusing in a combat situation. The 22nd MEU, embarked aboard the ships of the Bataan Amphibious Ready Group, is currently serving as the theater reserve force for U.S. Central Command.
(Photo by Cpl. Justin Martinez : 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit Public Affairs)

Marines with Lima Company, Battalion Landing Team, 3rd Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment, 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit, conduct a stress shoot on the flight deck of USS Bataan, June 29. Lima Co. conducted a stress shoot to strengthen Marines' skills of focusing in a combat situation. The 22nd MEU, embarked aboard the ships of the Bataan Amphibious Ready Group, is currently serving as the theater reserve force for U.S. Central Command.
(Photo by Cpl. Justin Martinez : 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit Public Affairs)

Marines with Lima Company, Battalion Landing Team, 3rd Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment, 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit, conduct a stress shoot on the flight deck of USS Bataan, June 29. Lima Co. conducted a stress shoot to strengthen Marines' skills of focusing in a combat situation. The 22nd MEU, embarked aboard the ships of the Bataan Amphibious Ready Group, is currently serving as the theater reserve force for U.S. Central Command.
(Photo by Cpl. Justin Martinez : 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit Public Affairs)

Marines with Lima Company, Battalion Landing Team, 3rd Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment, 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit, reload magazines during a stress shoot on the flight deck of USS Bataan, June 29. Lima Co. conducted a stress shoot to strengthen Marines' skills of focusing in a combat situation. The 22nd MEU, embarked aboard the ships of the Bataan Amphibious Ready Group, is currently serving as the theater reserve force for U.S. Central Command.
(Photo by Cpl. Justin Martinez : 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit Public Affairs)

Marines with Lima Company, Battalion Landing Team, 3rd Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment, 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit, conduct a small arms stress shoot on the flight deck of USS Bataan, June 29. Lima Co. conducted a stress shoot to strengthen Marines' skills of focusing in a combat situation. The 22nd MEU, embarked aboard the ships of the Bataan Amphibious Ready Group, is currently serving as the theater reserve force for U.S. Central Command.
(Photo by Cpl. Justin Martinez : 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit Public Affairs)

Lance Cpl. Michael Whitt, a native of Hopewell, N.J., and a Squad Automatic Weapon gunner with Lima Company, Battalion Landing Team, 3rd Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment, 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit, observes his fellow leathernecks from a distance as they conduct a stress shoot on the flight deck of USS Bataan, June 29. Lima Co. conducted a stress shoot to strengthen Marines' skills of focusing in a combat situation. The 22nd MEU, embarked aboard the ships of the Bataan Amphibious Ready Group, is currently serving as the theater reserve force for U.S. Central Command.
(Photo by Cpl. Justin Martinez : 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit Public Affairs)

Lance Cpl. Michael Whitt, a native of Hopewell, N.J., and a Squad Automatic Weapon gunner with Lima Company, Battalion Landing Team, 3rd Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment, 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit, stands on the flight deck of USS Bataan, June 29. Lima Co. conducted a stress shoot to strengthen Marines' skills of focusing in a combat situation. The 22nd MEU, embarked aboard the ships of the Bataan Amphibious Ready Group, is currently serving as the theater reserve force for U.S. Central Command.
(Photo by Cpl. Justin Martinez : 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit Public Affairs)

Hires.

First Reconnaissance Battalion Marines prepare rigid raider craft in the well of USS Bonhomme Richard to rehearse boat operations June 30. The men are attached to Battalion Landing Team 2/4, the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit’s ground combat element. The MEU is conducting its first pre-deployment exercise at sea with its Navy counterpart, Amphibious Squadron 7. The Navy and Marine Corps team will test interoperability before a certification exercise later this summer.
(Official U.S. Marine Corps Photo by Gunnery Sgt. Scott Dunn)

Hires.

First Reconnaissance Battalion Marines rehearse boat operations on rigid raider craft from the stern gate of USS Bonhomme Richard June 30 during the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit’s first pre-deployment exercise at sea. The men are attached to Battalion Landing Team 2/4, the MEU’s ground combat element. The MEU and its Navy counterpart, Amphibious Squadron 7, are testing interoperability before a certification exercise later this summer.
(Official U.S. Marine Corps Photo by Gunnery Sgt. Scott Dunn)

Hires.

First Reconnaissance Battalion Marines rehearse boat operations on rigid raider craft from the stern gate of USS Bonhomme Richard June 30 during the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit’s first pre-deployment exercise at sea. Pictured from left are Sgt. Rudy Iglesias, Cpl. Steven Wain, Cpl. Joseph Missildine, Staff Sgt. Bo Irving and Gunnery Sgt. Brad Colbert. The men are attached to Battalion Landing Team 2/4, the MEU’s ground combat element. The MEU and its Navy counterpart, Amphibious Squadron 7, are testing interoperability before a certification exercise later this summer.
(Official U.S. Marine Corps Photo by Gunnery Sgt. Scott Dunn)

Hires.

First Reconnaissance Battalion Marines rehearse boat operations on rigid raider craft from the stern gate of USS Bonhomme Richard June 30 during the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit’s first pre-deployment exercise at sea. Pictured from left are Sgt. Rudy Iglesias, Cpl. Steven Wain, Cpl. Joseph Missildine, Staff Sgt. Bo Irving and Gunnery Sgt. Brad Colbert. The men are attached to Battalion Landing Team 2/4, the MEU’s ground combat element. The MEU and its Navy counterpart, Amphibious Squadron 7, are testing interoperability before a certification exercise later this summer.
(Official U.S. Marine Corps Photo by Gunnery Sgt. Scott Dunn)

Hires.

First Reconnaissance Battalion Marines, right, rehearse boat operations on rigid raider craft from the stern gate of USS Bonhomme Richard June 30 during the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit’s first pre-deployment exercise at sea. Lt. Dwayne Williams, the ship’s assistant first lieutenant, center, supervises the deck operations. The Marines are attached to Battalion Landing Team 2/4, the MEU’s ground combat element. The MEU and its Navy counterpart, Amphibious Squadron 7, are testing interoperability before a certification exercise later this summer.
(Official U.S. Marine Corps Photo by Gunnery Sgt. Scott Dunn)

[Lancero]

Good to put a face to the picture

U.S. Army Specialist Zachary Boyd looks at a photo of himself at Woolley's Frozen Custard shop in Fort Worth, Texas on Saturday, July 4, 2009. Boyd was photographed wearing pink boxer shorts and a red T-shirt while fighting in Afghanistan. The T-shirt was purchased at the custard shop

[Lancero]

A U.S. Army soldier visits the gravestone of Army Sergeant Ryan P. Baumann, 24, of Great Mills, Maryland, in Section 60 of the Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia, July 4, 2009. Baumann died in August 2008 in Afghanistan

U.S. soldiers mark the United States Independence Day at the Forward Operating Base (FOB) Airborne in the mountains of Wardak province in Afghanistan July 4, 2009.

U.S. Lieutenant Richard Chersicla of 2nd Platoon from the 3rd Brigade, 10th Mountain Division, rests near a protective wall at the Combat Operation Outpost (COP) Conlon marking the United States Independence Day in mountains of Wardak province in Afghanistan July 4, 2009.

U.S. Marine First Sergeant Derek Mays (L) and Gunnery Sergeant Chris Wilkin of Fox Company, 2nd Batallion, 8th Marines hoist the Marine Corps flag at an Independence Day ceremony at a remote combat outpost in the village of Sorkhdoz in southern Afghanistan's lower Helmand River Valley July 4, 2009. The Marines seized the valley, a Taliban heartland, in a massive helicopter and ground assault earlier this week, known as operation Strike of the Sword.

U.S. soldiers, receive cake during a ceremony to mark The U.S. Independence Day at the U.S. base called Camp Eggers in Kabul, Afghanistan on Saturday, July 4, 2009

In this picture released exclusively to Reuters on January 17, 2009, Taliban militants are seen with their weapons in an undisclosed location in Afghanistan January 16, 2009. Alienated young British Muslims who were drawn to al Qaeda extremism, have found an unexpected answer to their alienation in the story of Muslim soldiers who fought and died alongside British soldiers in World War Two.

Bellow is a set of pics from today and yesterday concerning current operations in Afghanistan. There's no point in putting quotes (if you have a particular interest in knowing unit or location of a specific pic, come forward and i'll looke it up)

[pg_ord]

Happy Independence Day to the Americans

[muck]

Happy Independence Day!

Those pictures are nice, some of them truly moving.

[Smitty_Damitty]

I know a pack of Newport brand cigarettes when I see 'em, goddammit! Happy 4th everyone.

[Fireball Sanchez]

Spc. Rufino Persaud, a native of Jacksonville, Fla., watches over the Afghan country side while fellow members of Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 1st Battalion, 32nd Infantry Regiment, speak with members of the Afghan border police, at an Afghan border patrol outpost, June 30. The 10th Mountain Division Soldiers work closely with their ABP counterparts in order to help stop illegal activity along the border with Pakistan.
(Photo by Sgt. matthew moeller : 5th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment)

Spc. Rufino Persaud, a native of Jacksonville, Fla., scans for suspicious activity from an Afghan border police outpost while fellow members of Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 1st Battalion, 32nd Infantry Regiment, 10th Mountain Division, speak with members of Afghan border police, June 30. 1st Bn., 32nd Inf. Regt., Soldiers work closely with their Afghan counterparts, in Kunar province, in order to help stop illegal activity along the border with Pakistan.
(Photo by Sgt. matthew moeller : 5th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment)

U.S. Army officers with Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 1st Battalion, 32nd Infantry Regiment, 10th Mountain Division, set up a defensive position with a M-240B Machine Gun on a road outside Forward Operating Base Joyce, June 30.
(Photo by Sgt. matthew moeller : 5th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment)

Army Capt. Christian Lightsey, of Jacksonville, Fla., looks out over the village of Sarhani during a patrol, June 30. Lightsey, and fellow Soldiers with 1st Battalion, 32nd Infantry Regiment, 10th Mountain Division, have been patrolling Afghanistan's volatile Kunar province since arriving in early January.
(Photo by Sgt. matthew moeller : 5th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment)

Soldiers with Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 1st Battalion, 32nd Infantry Regiment, 10th Mountain Division, patrol the rocky cliffs near Forward Operating Base Joyce, in Kunar province, June 30.
(Photo by Sgt. matthew moeller : 5th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment)

Soldiers with Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 1st Battalion, 32nd Infantry Regiment, 10th Mountain Division, patrol outside Forward Operating Base Joyce, in Kunar province. During the Patrol, the Soldiers met with Afghan border police officers to discuss continued security along the border between Afghanistan and Pakistan.
(Photo by Sgt. matthew moeller : 5th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment)

Senior Airman Adrian Jarrin, aerial gunner, 129th Expeditionary Squadron conducts a pre-flight inspection of a .50 caliber machine gun, June 25, Camp Bastion, Afghanistan.
(Photo by Staff Sgt. Shawn Weismiller : U.S. Air Forces Central Public Affairs)

A HH-60G Pave Hawk, manned by Airmen assigned to the 129th Expeditionary Rescue Squadron, takes off from Camp Bastion, June 23. The crew responded to a 9-line Medevac request to help injured personnel further down range.
(Photo by Staff Sgt. Shawn Weismiller : U.S. Air Forces Central Public Affairs)

Staff Sgt. Sean Pellaton Aerial Gunner, 129th Expeditionary Rescue Squadron provides security during a medevac mission, Helmand province, Afghanistan, June 26.
(Photo by Staff Sgt. Shawn Weismiller : U.S. Air Forces Central Public Affairs)

[stevej]

What has this guy got hanging off the left side of his handguard rail? It looks like it could be a carry handle.

[BumpkinBoy]

Looks like the Iron sights. I'm under the impression it's kept there in case his primary optic site of choice breaks?

[scrybe]

Yea, carry handle. Might as well keep it close.