Air Force engineer discusses building relationships in Afghanistan

  • Published
  • By Capt. Darrick Lee
  • Provincial Reconstruction Team Kapisa/Parwa
KAPISA PROVINCE, Afghanistan (AFNS) --  Although the formula for success in Afghanistan may be complex to some, it is commonly agreed that the war cannot be won by military might alone. 

According to Army Gen. Stanley McChrystal, the International Security Assistance Force commander, the current strategy used by coalition forces in the region focuses on a three-pronged approach: improve security, establish government processes and focus on infrastructure development.

On the frontlines of the development effort are provincial reconstruction teams. Originally implemented in Iraq, they now are the primary force in Afghanistan used to help create roads, schools, medical facilities and other necessary structures.

While the actual construction is performed by Afghans, coalition engineers provide the mentoring and expertise to ensure projects are completed on time and up to standard.

First Lt. Anthony Raffaele is a civil engineer with the Kapisa and Parwan PRT in Afghanistan.

Originally serving as the chief of operations support at the 90th Civil Engineer Squadron here, Lieutenant Raffaele is deployed as part of a joint engineering team consisting of civil engineer Airmen, Afghans and members of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

Serving as an engineer with a PRT in Afghanistan is not a typical civil engineer job. There's a fair amount of risk involved, since most of the projects are located in Afghan communities away from the security of Bagram Airfield, where his team is headquartered. In fact, Lieutenant Raffaele travels to and from his worksites by embedding with the Army on combat patrols, sometimes on foot.

This requires him to be prepared for combat, as most insurgent attacks against PRTs occur while travelling to and from their objectives. Part of his preparation included three months of combat training with the Army's 189th Training Brigade at Camp Atterbury, Ind.

There, Lieutenant Raffaele learned how to survive outside the wire, with training in convoy operations, mounted gunnery and hand-to-hand combat.

His training was not confined to combat skills. As part of his duties, his team learned how to interact with Afghans, including learning the local language, observing Afghan culture and interacting with civilian agencies contributing to the coalition effort.

With less than two months in theatre, he's provided oversight and guidance on the construction or repair of 14 roads, 14 schools, two courthouses, one mosque and one medical clinic.

According to Lieutenant Raffaele, the relationships that build during the construction process is just as important as the project itself. He draws similarities between his mission at his home station and his mission as an engineer in Afghanistan.

"Our nuclear mission (at F.E. Warren) is designed to deter others from launching attacks against the U.S.," the lieutenant said, "but here, the PRT is used as a deterrent by empowering the people to separate themselves from insurgents. If they are able to create and sustain the structures they need, they may become less likely to be influenced by insurgents."

Building structures while simultaneously building relationships is not an easy task, especially when bridging two cultures to accomplish one mission. He said baby steps must be taken sometimes to implement new ways of doing things or overcome shortcomings that can hinder progress.
"Everything is not always as safe as we would like on site," he said, commenting about the differences between construction in the United States and in Afghanistan. "Once, I saw Afghan workers laying hot asphalt wearing nothing but sandals. Issues like these are issues we work through together."
Lieutenant Raffaele offers advice to others in his career field.

"Learn as much as you can at home station," he said. "No matter what shop you work in, all of your trades, and then some, will be used when you deploy."