AEF rotations begin at Tallil

  • Published
  • By 2nd Lt. Gerardo Gonzalez
  • 407th Air Expeditionary Group Public Affairs
TALLIL AIR BASE, Iraq (AFPN) --  Five airmen stepped off a C-130 Hercules aircraft June 30 to become the first Air and Space Expeditionary Force Blue arrivals here.

The AEF Blue rotation is the first of two 120-day tours designed to replace most people who are still deployed supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom and help normalize the AEF cycle, according to officials.

"I'm really glad to be here," said Tech. Sgt. Paul Carpenter, an air traffic controller from the 28th Operations Support Squadron at Ellsworth Air Force Base, S.D. "Iraq is pretty much what I expected, a little like Afghanistan … hot, humid and dusty."

Two base agencies will be the focal point as base officials prepare for the arrival and departure of nearly 3,000 people within the next month. They are the personnel support for contingency operations section, better known as PERSCO, and the 407th Expeditionary Logistics Readiness Squadron.

"Our main role is to maintain accountability of personnel," said Senior Master Sgt. Susan Baker, PERSCO team chief. "We have to see everybody before they leave, and we have to see everybody as they land … If you don't check out with us, we still think you're sitting here."

Before troops, either coming or going, can go anywhere, they will need a ride, and that job falls on the shoulders of the 407th.

"We started working redeployment about a month ago," said Capt. Gary Jackson, 407th ELRS commander. "The plan is to have a just-in-time rotation."

Thirteen flights have been contracted to move airmen in and out of Iraq in July, he said. The flights, however, will not fly into Iraq but arrive and depart from another base in Southwest Asia.

C-130s will shuttle people to and from the rotator base, Jackson said. The C-130s will depart Tallil and deliver troops about four to five hours before the contracted flight leaves. On the same trip, it will pick up people who are inbound and bring them back to Tallil.

"This is a unique process," Jackson said. "Normally we have rotators coming into the actual base … The toughest challenge is to be able to accommodate everybody (who) needs to go on the specific date that they request."

As airmen begin to leave within the next few weeks, Jackson said there is one important piece of advice he has to offer.

“Flexibility is the key," he said.