Pilot values liaison work with Army

  • Published
  • By 2nd Lt. Rebecca Garland
  • 484th Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs
OPERATION ENDURING FREEDOM (AFPN) --  It takes more than a pilot in a plane to put bombs on target.

Air Force pilots, acting as air liaison officers and assigned to Army units, paint a roadmap in the sky for pilots overhead so they can drop bombs on the enemy without harming nearby friendly forces.

Capt. Danny Stout, a liaison officer and B-52 Stratofortress pilot is deployed to Afghanistan from Fort Drum, Texas, with the 10th Mountain Division. They are supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.

Stout is currently on a classified mission with the 2-505 Parachute Infantry Regiment to talk aircraft onto enemy targets.

“We’ve been out here for over a week, and my job is to focus solely on our aircraft in the (sky),” Stout said. “I talk their eyes onto our position first, so they know where the (friendly forces) are, sometimes with a mirror flash, sometimes with smoke.”

After Stout contacts the pilots and talks them onto his position, the aircraft are ready to strike enemy positions if necessary.

“It is most important for them to find us first, so they know where we are, and then we direct them to the enemy by guiding them onto ... obvious locations on the ground like a tower or something,” said Stout. “They don’t always drop bombs, because we’re not always being fired upon, but they’re ready and fly in the area until they’re replaced with another set of fighters. So, as long as they’re in the sky above us, I’m talking to them.”

Serving as a liaison officer has given him a new perspective on the daily life of a ground soldier, he said, a view he could not appreciate from the cockpit.

“I’ve learned to adopt and respect the Army way,” he said. “They look at me as part of their team, because I choose to be a team player, and ‘do as the Romans do’ while I’m assigned with them. We camp out a couple of weeks at a time, and these guys don’t pack anything extra, except socks, and that’s it.

“We stink when we’re done, and they make a career of this,” Stout said. “I’m only an (air liaison officer) for two years. This is definitely my Air Force-appreciation tour.”

Not all pilots want to be a liaison officer, Stout said, but he believes it is a worthwhile experience.

“The worst concept for any pilot is to not be able to fly for two years, but I think this experience has made my time out of the cockpit worth it,” said Stout. “I would never be in charge of 25 enlisted guys like I am now …

“I would also never camp out with the Army, (travel) with them or make these friends, had I not been a liaison officer. Working with the tactical air control party … has given me an all new appreciation for … how our young enlisted guys call in close-air support,” he said.

Stout has controlled many different aircraft since arriving in Afghanistan, including A-10 Thunderbolt IIs, B-52s, F-16 Fighting Falcons, F-15E Strike Eagles and Marine AV-8 Harriers. The planes may change, but the language is universal, he said.

“We have a pretty standard way of communicating, and just because I speak B-52 doesn’t mean I can’t communicate with the other pilots,” Stout said. “We’re all trained the same in communicating, which makes a difference when I’m on the ground. Being a pilot helps me to know what they’re thinking up there and helps me say the right things.”

Stout said his liaison officer experiences since arriving in Afghanistan on April 15th have given him a new appreciation for the term, “sense of urgency.”

“When guys on the ground need close-air support, they need it right then, because they’re probably being fired at,” Stout said. “That’s why the aircraft are designated to go out and be ready in the area, just in case. That way, when (close-air support) is needed, it is only minutes before they are on the target.”

Stout said he has taken part in many major operations since his deployment.

“After Operation Iraqi Freedom, people seemed to forget that there are still operations going on, and people are still getting killed here in Afghanistan,” he said. “We have troops still in the field, and the enemy is still out there. It’s important to remember that it’s still serious over here.”

“This has been the highlight of my Air Force career so far,” Stout said. “It’s been incredible to participate in big operation such as this one and know that what we in the tactical air control party … are doing is making a difference in the war on terrorism.”