Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class Ryan Riedel, an info systems tech, tests the speed of the Internet, after a provider upgrade to the service at FOB Chapman, Feb. 15. Riedel helps maintain the Internet for the men and women of PRT Khowst.
KHOWST PROVINCE – To his Khowst PRT teammates who work with him daily, he's known as a jack of all trades. “My job consists of everything dealing with communications,” Riedel said. “I make sure the communications systems are good on the MRAP vehicles before missions, and I’m also a network administrator for Khowst PRT.”
When he’s not performing his duties as a communications specialist, he helps the SECFOR members on the team, by manning the guard tower, and riding in the convoys as an alternate M-240 gunner.
However, he considers his most important duty to be ensuring his teammates have their personal Internet. “Internet in Afghanistan is not as reliable as it is back home. I’ve had to do a lot of repairs to our personal Internet, to keep it performing at acceptable standards,” said Riedel.
“He’s phenomenal,” said his supervisor, Navy Chief Petty Officer Jean Law. “He has no problem waking up in the middle of the night, to help people with Internet problems.” Law has worked with Riedel for 6 months, and said, "Riedel is really close to his family, and he takes it upon himself to make sure other people can stay close to theirs.
Riedel knows the Internet also plays an important role on morale. “It’s hard being deployed, but with features like Skype and instant messaging, it eases the burden of being away,” said Riedel.
