computer reading about it,” says in- telligence analyst Marine Staff Sgt. Jen Altman. Altman, selected for one of the Corps’ prestigious officer commissioning programs, remained at a tactical control point in Iraq for about a month. Not everyone was initially as en-
Marines serving on an FET sleep in the early morning at Combat Out- post Saipan, Afghanistan (left). FET members are able to speak with Afghan women in their homes (below) as they patrol Spin Boldak, Afghanistan.
thusiastic about the FET program. “We were met with skepticism by the male Marines until they saw we were serious about our work,” Altman says. “I was skeptical at first,” agrees
Capt. Brandon H. Turner, USMC, who heads Golf Company, 2nd bat- talion, 6th Marines. “I didn’t know what to do with them, and I was concerned how the company would react. But a few days of seeing what they could do for us in the field erased any doubt. I don’t want to go anywhere without them.” Turner notes the FET Marines draw out im- portant tactical information such as the locations of insurgents or IEDs in place waiting to kill his Marines. While the FET mission primarily is to engage the female population, Turner observes, “Even the male Afghans open right up to our FETs. In the same situation when I use my male Marines, I have two alpha- male types going at each other, and we don’t get much accomplished. Put an FET in there, and Afghan men spill their guts.”
Dedicated to the mission Until recently FET work was collat- eral duty; Marines in country volun- teered and received up to two weeks of training. But some commanders were hesitant to lose clerks, logisti- cians, intelligence analysts, or driv- ers to checkpoints and night patrols in Ramadi and missions in the far reaches of Afghanistan. Eventually, the Marine Corps decided to resolve this tension by dedicating women to the FET mission. It sought volunteers for the program on the West Coast.
PHOTOS/IMAGES: TKTK
PHOTOS: LEFT, CPL. LINDSAY L. SAYRES, USMC/DOD; ABOVE LEFT, SGT. HEIDI AGOSTINI, USMC/DOD
In January 2010, nearly 40 female Marines and sailors with varying ranks, backgrounds, and MOSs met at Camp Pendleton, Calif., for two months of training. According to Marine Corps of-
ficials, the predeployment train- ing includes patrolling and convoy operations, Pashto language, civil and hostile engagements, NGOs and civil affairs, combat marksmanship, combat lifesaving skills, tactical training, working with interpreters, IED awareness, combat condition- ing, and more.
While it is said, “Every Marine’s a
rifleman,” only certain ones receive the coveted designator. Because en- gagement teams work in direct sup- port of the 0311 Marine (0311 being the MOS for rifleman), the women need to understand how he oper- ates. “We need to move how they move. We know what they are going to do, and we know what we need to do,” explains Sgt. Nora Mund, a tough-sounding Marine with a tough armor MOS to match.
Hazardous duty While many missions have been routine and violence has been in abeyance, some operations turn into shootouts between U.S. units and the enemy insurgents they ferret out. Some leaders look at this as an occupational hazard. FETs and in- fantry Marines alike are hesitant to provide details of combat action. “We don’t plan for our FETs to be in a kinetic role, but once you step outside that wire, you cannot be sure what will happen. Yes, they have engaged insurgents, and then they go back to their role engaging the populace,” says Turner. In February 2007, outside Barwa-
nah, Iraq, Cpl. Jennifer M. Parcell, 21, was killed along with Sgt. Maj. Joseph J. Ellis, 40, when an Iraqi woman Parcell was searching detonated an explosive vest. An interpreter and
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