we prepared a continuity book , mothballed the collection effort , and briefed the USARCENT staff . The continuity book listed basic reference information such as key network folder locations , e-mail addresses , and points of contact . It also contained information on our collection activities and advice on travel , in- and out-processing , automation and network support , and security .
1st Sgt . William Staude , retired , salutes the national colors being carried by soldiers from the 316th Expeditionary Sustainment Command as they march past him during the Veterans Day parade 11 November 2011 in downtown Pittsburgh , Pennsylvania . ( Photo by Sgt . 1st Class Michel Sauret , 354th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment )
The Importance of Maintaining Field Records
A ProPublica-Seattle Times investigative report indicates that field records from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan were lost , destroyed , or never maintained in the first place . Authors Peter Sleeth and Hal Bernton discuss this critical shortcoming and detail its ramifications in “ Lost to History : Missing War Records Complicate Benefit Claims by Iraq , Afghanistan Veterans .”
The authors write , “ Since the 1990 Gulf War , a failure to create and maintain the types of field records that have documented American conflicts since the Revolutionary War [ has plagued the U . S . military ]…. The recordkeeping breakdown was especially acute in the early years of the Iraq war , when insurgents deployed improvised bombs with devastating effects on U . S . soldiers . The military has also lost or destroyed records from Afghanistan , according to officials and previously undisclosed documents . The loss of field records — after-action write-ups , intelligence reports and other day-to-day accounts from the war zones — has far-reaching implications . It has complicated efforts by soldiers … to claim benefits . And it makes it harder for military strategists to learn the lessons from Iraq and Afghanistan , two of the nation ’ s most protracted wars . Military officers and historians say field records provide the granular details that , when woven together , tell larger stories hidden from participants in the day-to-day confusion of combat . The Army says it has taken steps to improve handling of records — including better training and more emphasis from top commanders . But officials familiar with the problem said the missing material may never be retrieved . ‘ I can ’ t even start to describe the dimensions of the problem ,’ said Conrad C . Crane , director of the U . S . Army ’ s Military History Institute . ‘ I fear we ’ re never really going to know clearly what happened in Iraq and Afghanistan because we don ’ t have the records .’”
Note To read the entire article , see Peter Sleeth and Hal Bernton , “ Lost to History : Missing War Records Complicate Benefit Claims by Iraq , Afghanistan Veterans ,” ProPublica website , 9 November 2012 , accessed 28 November 2016 , https :// www . propublica . org / articlelost-to-history-missing-war-records-complicate-benefit-claims-by-veterans .
Challenges
We faced some challenges related to travel , technical , and security issues . These were part of the normal friction of operating in a location like Kuwait , but they would have resulted in mission failure had they not been resolved . Official travel is full of unique challenges related to the Defense Travel System and obtaining official orders for travel . We flew through Kuwait City International Airport and made sure to coordinate ahead of time with USARCENT for transportation . Before departing , we contacted the USARCENT G-6 ( office of the chief information officer ) to initiate network and e-mail access , which sped access to the network upon arrival . Securing external media exemptions from the command ’ s information assurance shop required patience and persistence . Physical security imposed restrictions on movement and communications that necessitated careful coordination and preplanning . Because of limited office space , we moved three times in five weeks . By remaining flexible and coordinating with the staff ahead of time , we minimized the disruptiveness of these moves . Finally , mailing the hard drives was complicated due to the official post office ’ s limited hours and procedures .
Conclusion
Since Villard and I returned home , three MHDs have deployed to Kuwait , and the collection effort continues today . As an Army historian , I found helping USARCENT build a historical document collection a rewarding professional development opportunity . We demonstrated that Army civilian historians
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MILITARY REVIEW