OIF experience benefits Airmen deployed elsewhere

  • Published
  • By Tech. Sgt. Scott T. Sturkol
  • 416th Air Expeditionary Group Public Affairs
KARSHI-KHANABAD AIR BASE, Uzbekistan (AFPN) --  For two years now, Airmen have deployed to support Operation Iraqi Freedom, serving either in Iraq or locations elsewhere in Southwest Asia.

Many Airmen deployed here said previous experience supporting OIF has paid dividends in understanding even more their current deployment supporting Operation Enduring Freedom, and has made them better Airmen.

Tech Sgt. Aaron Otte is the assistant flight chief for the 416th Expeditionary Mission Support Squadron’s security forces flight and is deployed here from Hill Air Force Base, Utah. He said there are vast differences between being deployed to Uzbekistan and Iraq. When he deployed to Kirkuk Air Base, Iraq, from October 2003 through March 2004, he worked in security forces logistics.

“(In Iraq), I was concerned with keeping the supplies and equipment in operational condition, which sometimes meant cannibalizing two or three items to get one back out to the troops,” Sergeant Otte said. “While here supporting OEF, I am back to ... doing the job of security forces in the field. Overall, every deployment ... adds to the knowledge I can draw on to better accomplish my job.”

Senior Airman Anna Veach is an air transportation journeyman with the 416th EMSS’s Air Terminal Operations Center here and is deployed from Maxwell AFB, Ala. She said going into Iraq with the 11th Marines Regiment in 2003 changed her life in many ways.

“I can remember driving the lead vehicle in a small convoy into Baghdad ... and I saw this little child standing on the side of the road who was barefoot except for the outer packaging from (a packaged meal) on his right foot,” Airman Veach said. “It was the saddest thing I ever saw, but he was waving at us and had the biggest smile on his face. All the Iraqis I saw were smiling and waving and cheering at us.

“This deployment, however, is much different,” Airman Veach said. “I am enjoying myself a lot more than the time I was in Iraq, but without ... being there I don't think I could be as good at what I do now.”

Master Sgt. Scott Nybakken is a C-130 Hercules crew chief and flightline expediter with the 774th Expeditionary Airlift Squadron and is deployed from the Delaware Air National Guard at New Castle. He supported OIF from two different forward-deployed locations in Southwest Asia from March to July 2003 and from September to December 2003. He has also been here for three full rotations supporting OEF and said he has formed an appreciation for those he works with and for the efforts that are being done in the war on terrorism.

“As C-130 crew chiefs, we typically work 12-hour shifts, seven days a week,” Sergeant Nybakken said. “We all do our jobs in sometimes inhospitable, uncomfortable conditions. Crew chiefs work as a team, keeping our planes in the air, delivering troops, ammo, food, water and medical aid to our forces in harm's way. Whether that's supporting OIF or OEF, we just want to make sure our troops have what they need anywhere, anytime.”

In the C-130 world, flying anywhere for either operation can drum up special memories or change your life, said Senior Master Sgt. David Leightenberger, a C-130 loadmaster with the 774th EAS and deployed here from the Ohio Air National Guard at Mansfield.

“(I) and many of my C-130 comrades from Mansfield deployed to areas in Iraq from July to August 2003 and again from April to June 2004,” Sergeant Leightenberger said. “I can remember providing daily support by delivering ammunition and supplies to the troops during the intense fighting around Fallujah in April 2004. Most of our flights were at night.

He said his most memorable time in Iraq was Memorial Day 2004.

“It was on that day my aircrew and I, aboard a C-130, transported some of our fallen Soldiers on their final trip home,” he said. “They were given the utmost care and displays of honor and respect by every member of the coalition forces present on that mission.”

As the anniversary of the start of OIF comes and goes March 19, the memory of Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines and others who gave their lives supporting the operation will be what settles in the minds of most or all OIF veterans, said 1st Lt. Ryan Williams, a C-130 co-pilot with the 774th EAS and also deployed from Mansfield.

“Although my experiences with my first deployments in OIF made the transition to OEF relatively painless, what I’ve learned is the world has changed, and we have to adapt to those changes,” said Lieutenant Williams, who did two 60-day rotations for OIF in 2004. “No longer do we have large battlefields to fight over. This war, the global war on terrorism, will be won or lost based on our ability to adapt to an ever changing situation.

“As an expeditionary Air Force, we provide ourselves with the ability to change to meet the requirements of the modern battlefield,” he said. “But also, as an Airman and a fellow military member, I know we all have a small or large part to play in defending our country and its allies. I’m proud of ... my countrymen whom I've served with and those who gave their lives spreading freedom’s message.

“That memory and experience, whether I'm (here) or one day back in Iraq,” Lieutenant Williams said, “will stay with me for as long as I live.”