Interview with Maj Jon-Paul Maddaloni

Major Jon-Paul Maddaloni deployed as a part of a border transition team (BTT) in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom from January 2006 to February 2007. In this interview, Maddaloni discusses the transition team's predeployment training and preparation at Fort Hood. He also talks about parts of the training that were valuable and parts of the training that needed to be better organized to make the training more specific to the mission of each type of transition team. Upon completion of the training, the movement and reception into Kuwait was smooth. Once they acclimatized to the time change, the team received training on digital equipment, radios, time at the Udairi Range and the Phoenix Academy. After the training, the team was transported to Diyala and received a handoff. The handoff was not as detailed as he would have liked since this was the first BTT in the area. The BTT had to learn everything as they went along, and during their first convoy they were hit by an IED. Once in theater, Maddaloni's primary task was the S3 and his secondary task was the fires officer. The team arrived at FOB Cobra and the MiTT introduced them to the local police chiefs, Iraqi Army commanders, border police commanders, and the mayor of Khanaqin. Maddaloni was paired up with one border police brigade, with their headquarters in the vicinity of Khanaqin, and were responsible for 250 to 300 kilometers of the Iraq-Iran border. In the beginning, the team took a lot of time to develop a relationship with the Iraqi border police brigade. After assessing the Iraqi border police, the team developed a training schedule and started to fix their equipment to ensure they could perform their duties. The team did not have their own interpreters but had to rely on the local MiTT's interpreter until they were able to hire local nationals. The interpreters were also used as cultural guides and introduced the team to respected members within the community. Maddaloni talks about the challenges of the border mission and how they overcame them. Once the team's replacements arrived, they passed all of the information they could to provide a better learning curve and operate more efficiently. Maddaloni discusses the movement and reception back to CONUS. Maddaloni offers his lessons learned and recommendation based on this deployment. He also talks about the reintegration with his wife and how the FRG assisted with family separation.