India Company, 3/5 Dark Horse Marines use solar power to brighten mission accomplishment

01/06/11

By Gunnery Sgt. William Price, 1st Marine Division
January 2011

FORWARD OPERATING BASE JACKSON, Afghanistan -The Marines and sailors of 3rd Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment have tapped into a vital renewable energy source – the sun – to help take the fight to the enemy in Sangin District.

Since deploying to Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom, India Company, 3/5, has been working with a new program called ExFOB, or “Experimental Forward Operating Base.”

“ExFOB has provided immediate energy to my boys,” said Gunnery Sgt. Willy Carrion, ‘I’ Company, company gunnery sergeant. “Logistics and resupply to my men is essential to our mission accomplishment. Marines can sustain themselves on little food and water, but the time we have saved on convoys for fuel and batteries, has been crucial.”

The Marines and sailors of Dark Horse 3/5 have been using an array of solar equipment since their  predeployment workup, Enhanced Mohave Viper, at Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center, in Twentynine Palms, Calif., in July. While there, the Marines were able to save up to eight gallons of fuel, per generator, a day.

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