U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Martin Ratkowski, Combined

U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Martin Ratkowski, Combined Team Zabul K-9 handler, and his K-9, Tosca, secure an area during a patrol to a local village in the district of Mizan, Afghanistan, Oct. 20, 2011. Ratkowski attached to Provincial Reconstruction Team Zabul to provide a home-made explosives search with his K-9. PRT Zabul's mission is to conduct civil-military operations in Zabul province to extend the reach and legitimacy of the Government of Afghanistan. Ratkowski is deployed from the 9th Security Forces Squadron at Beale Air Force Base and is originally from Buffalo, N.Y.