Active-duty, reservists combine forces in Afghan sky

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. Jennifer Lindsey
  • 455th Expeditionary Operations Group Public Affairs
BAGRAM AIR BASE, Afghanistan (AFPN) --  In the Afghanistan sky, the 81st Expeditionary Fighter Squadron has a “rainbow” effect. Air Force Reserve and active-duty pilots have teamed together for an air and space expeditionary force deployment here to protect U.S. and coalition people from attackers whose aim is to disrupt the national presidential elections and to prevent infrastructure improvements.

Fulfilling such missions requires 24-hour operations and live munitions, but pilots and operations support Airmen said that is the only difference between serving here and at their home stations.

“We train like we fight, so we’re ready for contingencies like this,” said Capt. Travis, an 81st EFS pilot deployed from Spangdahlem Air Base, Germany. The last names of pilots are omitted for security reasons.

Throughout the year, Spangdahlem AB pilots practice aerial tactics and communications skills at NATO and joint-service exercises, which prepare the active-duty Airmen for sister-service and coalition force teams. Air Force reservists also practice in such exercises, and some serve as full-time reservists or pilots in their civilian jobs, ensuring there is plenty of experience sitting in the A-10 Thunderbolt II cockpits.

“The reservist and active-duty mix here has well exceeded my expectations,” said Lt. Col. John, 81st EFS commander deployed from Spangdahlem AB. “Once we all got here, we went straight to work. Here we support a lot of customers at the table, working mostly with the Army, escorting convoys and providing Afghan presidential escort, and defending the troops as needed.”

Working 24-operations means pulling 12-plus hour shifts, leaving little personal time and can result in “Groundhog Day” syndrome -- doing the same thing day in and day out. This can wear on morale, said Staff Sgt. Rebecca Nye, squadron operations desk technician from Spangdahlem AB. To stave off the feeling of déjà vu, pilots, ops desk technicians, maintainers and ground troops make the time to visit each other’s shops for some face-to-face time with the people they are supporting, Colonel John said.

“There’s a lot of satisfaction in knowing we’re helping the guys on the ground,” Captain Travis said. “When we get together, we’ll share our side of the story, which helps us gain a perspective of what the other guy sees and share lessons learned. This kind of face-to-face interaction only helps us to get better.”

Because the 81st EFS pilots have trained as they fight, communicating with and providing cover for ground troops is the pilots’ No. 1 focus.

“We don’t have to think about flying because it’s second nature to us,” the captain said. “Our entire focus is on communicating with the combat controller (who travels with the ground troops), who tells us where our friendly forces are, the order of battle on the ground and where to (fire) our munitions.”

When pilots pair up here to head out for a sortie, the only factor taken in consideration is experience, said Lt. Col. Ozzie, 81st EFS deputy operations officer from Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base New Orleans. Often it is a more experienced active-duty or Reserve pilot with another pilot who needs more time in the seat to increase his qualifications. Sometimes it is an experienced flight lead with a newer wingman or the other way around.

“With us, respect isn’t built on the (Uniform Code of Military Justice), it’s built on the personal relationships we’ve made with one another,” Colonel Ozzie said.

The teamwork involved in “keeping the A-10s in the air” helps keep energy high and mission accomplishment No. 1, said the 455th Expeditionary Operations Group commander here deployed from Pope Air Force Base, N.C.

“I am extremely impressed with the way the two squadrons have melded in both operations and maintenance,” he said. “It is impossible to tell which unit a person is from unless you ask them. They have come together here without working together prior to the deployment, and formed a single, lethal airpower team.”