First Sergeant Michael Woodard, senior noncommissioned officer of the 1177th Transportation Company, talks with members of his unit about Soldier issues and duty responsibilities shortly after a staff meeting in his office at a Robins Air Force Base. (Full size)

Pulling security duty may seem like an odd thing for a transportation unit to do considering the 1177th’s primary mission is moving equipment for Georgia’s 48th Infantry Brigade to wherever it may be needed. But the role these Soldiers play as part of Operation Noble Eagle is not that different from what they would have to do as Army tractor-trailer drivers.

“What makes this mission different is that our focus is on security,” Woodward explained. “In our primary mission our Soldiers would be doing other things, to include security.

While there are certain aspects of the 117th’s mission that he could not talk about, Woodard did provide some examples of what his Soldiers have been doing, here and at Moody, for the past year. 

For the most part, he explained, unit members have been working in shifts alongside Air Force security police, checking identification cards and vehicle contents, and conducting 24-hour roving patrols of the air bases, he explained. Not much detail there, he said, but operational security is always consideration, Woodard said. 

Soldiers of the 1177th Transportation Company open the back of a commercial truck wanting to enter Robins Air Force Base. More than 100 commercial and passenger vehicles are randomly stopped and inspected by the Guardsmen and their Air Force counterparts to reduce the threat someone or something entering the base that shouldn’t. (Full size)

“I realize the public often wants more details about what we’re doing, but so do those ‘other people’ out there,” he added. “While we enjoy having our story told, we also don’t want to give ‘the other guy’ any advantage whatsoever.”

Some would consider the 117th’s mission boring, tedious and tiresome, but he and his Soldiers have plenty to occupy their time, Woodard said. On-duty, of course, they’re staying alert for any possible threat that may materialize. During the duty day, he and Soldiers work on keeping their basic Soldier and truck driving skills sharp. 

“The Air Force understands the need to ‘stay up-to-speed’ on our primary mission,” Woodard said. “Any time we need space or equipment, especially a tractor-trailer rig, it’s made available.”

There’s no telling when the 1177th may be called on to jump back into its heavy haulers and return to its wartime mission of moving the brigade, he added. But when that call comes, he and Soldiers will not be lacking in the skills they need to perform the mission.

When they’re off-duty, he said, many of his Soldiers stay busy attending classes at the civilian colleges and technical schools here and in Valdosta, he added. Others are involved in sports and a variety of other recreational activities.

Since their assignment here and at Moody places many of his Guardsmen one or two hours from the cities in which they live, many use their off-duty time, especially when it falls on a weekend, to go home and be with families. 

“I guess that’s the greatest advantage we have,” Woodard said in a thoughtful tone of voice. “Unlike our fellow Soldiers whose only connection, right now with their families, is letters, long-distance telephone calls and e-mail, we can go home. That, he said, makes him and his Soldiers appreciate their assignment and hope that those serving overseas are soon home with their loved ones, he added. 

As the war on terrorism continues, missions being carried out here and abroad are equally important in stopping those who would rather see chaos prevail than live in peace, he said. It’s not an easy job, Woodard added. But, it’s one that must be done, whether it calls for guarding a gate at home or helping people a world away establish a “government of the people, by the people and for the people.”

That’s why the Soldiers of the 1177th Transportation Company are committed to giving their mission to protect the homeland more than their best effort, he added proudly.