Lakenheath Airmen gear up for deployments

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Michael Hess
  • 48th Fighter Wing Public Affairs
ROYAL AIR FORCE LAKENHEATH, England (AFPN) --  More than 800 Airmen assigned to the 48th Fighter Wing here are departing this month to support military operations in Southwest Asia, South America, Africa and Eastern Europe as part of the latest air and space expeditionary force.

"This is an average-sized deployment," said Capt. Gretchen Yule, 48th FW deployment manager. "It's lower than expected, though there will be people tasked as needed."

Average-sized is in relation to January 2005, when more than 1,200 Airmen deployed from the 48th FW.

Airman Allison Jernigan, an engineer assistant with the 48th Civil Engineer Squadron, deployed to Iraq Sept. 5. She said she was both nervous and excited about her first deployment.

"It'll be a learning experience," she said.

A large number of the deploying Airmen will go south to support the 494th Fighter Squadron F-15E Strike Eagles in the Middle East. The remaining deployed Airmen will support operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom in Iraq, Afghanistan, Kyrgyzstan and other installations.

Captain Yule said it is not uncommon to have one AEF cycle deploy to a wide variety of installations. Each wing is required to provide Airmen and equipment to various AEF rotations throughout the year.

The AEF concept is designed to complete the mission downrange and "still work at home, while providing Airmen predictability," said Captain Yule.

This allows Airmen to plan their life around a known deployment time and commanders to know who is available for further deployments. According to Captain Yule, an Airman's AEF cycle comes up every 16 months.

To ensure deploying Airmen know what to expect at their destination, all Airmen go through pre-deployment briefings.

These briefings include operational security, climate and terrain information, finance, chapel, legal, medical and public affairs. Each organization provides the deploying Airmen their expertise and services, applicable to their deployed location.