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Four months ago I took a job as a civilian contractor in Southwest Asia (SWA) and recently was reassigned to Afghanistan to support Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF). I recently flew out to a Combat Outpost (COP) to repair some equipment. Being a very small base supplied by air the Dining Facility (DFAC) often runs out of food, depending on the weather. But, all is not lost as they have tons of First Strike Rations along with Meal Alternative Regionally Customized (MARC) for the locals and Afghan National Army (ANA).

First Strike Rations Menus 1, 2, and 3


Meal Alternative Regionally Customized (Contents; Yellow and Wild Rice Pilaf, Saag Chole, and Crackers)


Cheers,
W-W

Winter is definitely here with night time temperatures in the twenties and teens. For a late snack, before crawling into my sleeping bag, I opened my Menu #1 FSR. There are definitely enough items in there to satisfy what you’re hungry for. I pulled out the pepperoni sandwich, Zapplesauce, and tropical punch beverage base. The sandwich was basically a SlimJim wrapped in a piece of bread - GOOD, Zapplesauce was good old applesauce - VERY GOOD, and the fruit punch was like KoolAid - GOOD. The Julian Date was 8137 for this batch; they were stored outside with temperatures ranging from 120deg F to 10deg F. Perhaps due to the cold all the sugar in the beverage base did not dissolve, even after shaking it vigorously and letting it stand a few minutes. My rating scale for taste testing is; NOT TO MY LIKING, GOOD, VERY GOOD.

Cheers,
W-W

Whiskey Whiskey. Sell some on Ebay. My only possible source is an Infantry First Seargant at Ft. Riley, 2 tours in Iraq, and still says he's never seen a FSR yet. He is an old pal, and if he could get his hands on some, he'd just give me a few, or even a case, if I paid the shipping.

Wild_Weasel, thanks for the pics. That is definitely a new way to obtain FSRs. The next time someone emails me asking where they can get FSRs, I'll tell them:

1. Check on eBay, they occasionally show up there.
2. Become a civilian contractor, get sent to Afghanistan, visit a Combat Outpost.

Wow! I'm increadibly jealous. Would love to get my hands on just 2 of the FSR. One to try, one to pack away.

hannonmc wrote:Wow! I'm increadibly jealous. Would love to get my hands on just 2 of the FSR. One to try, one to pack away.

be patient, for sure one day you'll only be able to find some FSR's and then you'll think " if only I still had one of those good old MRE's with the chili mac and the CCC..."

Day 2 Breakfast

Got up this morning and fixed breakfast from FSR #1; Filled French Toast was a giant unfrosted brown sugar Poptart with shelf stable bread – VERY GOOD, Mocha First Strike Bar was like a big smashed Tootsie Roll with Rice Crispies – VERY GOOD, so I’m off to the races. Stuffed the Stay Alert Gum and a Teriyaki and Barbecue Sticks in my jacket for a snack later. Also, all the drinking water here is bottled; the empties come in handy if you do not want to go out in the cold at night to use the latrine…

Cheers,
W-W

Great descriptions!
Stay alert man

There should be a cold weather FSR. Like a dry-heat non odourless cooking method to heat the sandwiches, and hot beverages, maybe two.
Also maybe a smaller UGR Express maybe like a 5 in 1 for smaller outposts. Then it would be more economical to break open two or three, depending on demand.

Breakfast Day 4

Got up this morning and had the Bacon Cheddar Sandwich, it was basically two pieces of precooked bacon rapped in cheddar flavored shelf stable bread - GOOD. So far all of the items using shelf stable bread are to say the least on the dry side! To qualify my rating criteria of NOT TO MY LIKING, GOOD, and VERY GOOD keep in mind I'm in the middle of nowhere with rocket attacks every two or three weeks, at home in the States I doubt I’d be as generous with my ratings. But, the snacks are VERY GOOD; jerky sticks, trail mix, energy bars, along with the drinks, stuff I'd normally carry while backpacking at home. One of the other field engineers here says that the FSR with chicken is the best, so we shall see. Oh, and if you know anybody sending care packages over here my suggestions are; cigarettes, porn, alcohol, and hollow point ammo in .223 and 9mm, we have plenty of cookies, candy and butt wipes.

Cheers,
W-W