BA'QUBAH, Iraq, Oct. 12, 2004 — Since their arrival in theater, soldiers of Detachment B, 106th Finance Battalion, have acquired the reputation of always going above and beyond in order to accomplish all Finance missions required by the 3rd Brigade Combat Team.
The Detachment B soldiers provide military pay agents with the tools and funding they need, and they pay contractors for services provided to the Army, allows the brigade to continue their overall mission and continually improve the surrounding local communities.
On Sept. 2, however, Detachment B was called upon to assist with a very different type of mission. The 3rd Brigade Combat Team Tactical Operations Center received a phone call from a representative of the U.S. Treasury stating that 91 Billion Dinars in cash, the equivalent of $62 Million U.S. dollars, were being flown into Forward Operating Base Warhorse from Baghdad in order to be transported and distributed to the local Banks in Ba'qubah.
Because of the lack of appropriate security or escorts, the major banks in Ba'qubah were unable to receive the money necessary to operate properly. Distrusting local banks has proven to be detrimental to the overall economic development of the surrounding communities. Ensuring the safe delivery of the money to the banks would guarantee the continuous operation of the banks thus allowing the local Iraqi population to obtain the necessary currency to continue their day-to-day affairs.
Because of vast experience handling large amounts of cash, Detachment B was called on to head the downloading and proper handling of fifty 120-pound boxes of Iraqi currency. Although short-handed, the soldiers managed to participate in the operation.
At 2:30 a.m. the next day, two Chinook helicopters landed on the Warhorse airfield carrying the load to be transported to downtown Ba'qubah in the morning. |