Joint STARS duo reaches troops on the ground

  • Published
  • By Tech. Sgt. Mike Dorsey
  • 379th Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs
SOUTHWEST ASIA (AFPN) --  One is active duty straight out of technical training; the other served on active duty and is now in the Air National Guard. One is male, the other is female.

Yet despite their differences on the surface, Tech. Sgt. Thomas Bloomberg and Airman 1st Class Emily Leece, could not be any closer.

“We definitely watch each other’s back,” Airman Leece said.

As airborne operations technicians aboard the E-8C Joint STARS aircraft, Sergeant Bloomberg and Airman Leece play a large role on the aircraft’s long-range, air-to-ground mission.

A customized jet liner with modified electronics systems, the E-8C is a battle management platform with a primary mission of providing theater ground and air commanders with ground surveillance to support attack operations and targeting of enemy forces, officials said.

The aircraft's 24-foot antenna has a field view of more than 19,000 square miles and can detect targets as far out as 820,000 feet. With its radar and computer technology, Sergeant Bloomberg and Airman Leece help provide theater commanders with data from more than five miles above ground.

“Surveillance is a major part of our mission, and it begins with the air operations technicians,” said Sergeant Bloomberg, who is part of a team that locates troop and vehicle movements on the ground during convoy missions in Iraq. “During our mission, we directly support ground forces through communications.”

To become airborne operations technicians, Sergeant Bloomberg and Airman Leece each went through a year of technical and survival training. Both have flown numerous missions that require mental and physical stamina needed to endure the long hours in each sortie. They even sit next to each other on the aircraft, each sharing reasons why they chose such a demanding job.

“When the Air National Guard came on board with the (Joint STARS) program, I had an opportunity to retrain,” said Sergeant Bloomberg, who spent eight years on active duty as a weapons loader for F-15 Eagles and B-1B Lancers. “I liked the idea of being directly involved with the fight on the ground.”

Airman Leece’s reasons for joining the Joint STARS team were just as personal.

“Since I can’t be involved with ground combat directly, I thought being airborne would be interesting mentally. (It would be) challenging and directly assist the guys on the ground who risk their lives daily,” she said.

The two are a fraction of the 22 people needed on each mission. The crew includes not only active-duty and Guard Airmen, but also Soldiers.

“We’re somewhat of a support system to each other by backing up one another …helping to pick out targets in each other’s area when the other one is busy performing another task,” Sergeant Bloomberg said. “It’s definitely a team effort up here. We all work together.”