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Father serves last combat tour with son in Iraq

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Olufemi A. Owolabi
  • 332nd Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs
BALAD AIR BASE, Iraq (AFPN) --  One thing about deployment is that it makes people miss their family and friends. Not many people get a chance to travel to a deployed location with a family member.

But an Airman here had good cause to smile when he deployed knowing his father would be with him throughout his deployment.

Tech. Sgt. William Lanicek, deployed from Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base at Fort Worth in Texas, looked forward to his deployment in Iraq, not just because his unit deployed together, but because he knew he would be sharing the same room with someone he knows very well -- his father, Master Sgt. William Lanicek Sr.

"It is neat (deploying with my father)," said Sergeant Lanicek. "Not a lot of people get to experience anything like this with their fathers. Obviously, we already know each other very well, and we don't have to worry about anything."

The senior Sergeant Lanicek found the arrangement especially rewarding on Father's Day.

"It's very convenient because we know each other," the father said. "We don't have to get used to living with a stranger. It's a comfortable arrangement, and it got me free pizza and a movie on Father's Day."

These two Airmen share and have a lot in common, including working. The Laniceks are both deployed to the 332nd Expeditionary Maintenance Squadron. Sergeant Lanicek is a non-destructive inspection unit assistant shop chief here, and his father is a munitions technician also deployed from Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base, Fort Worth, Texas.

The father arrived here May 16. Two days later his son joined him and continued the family tradition his father started 38 years ago after serving in Army, Navy and finally, in the Air Force Reserve.

In 1969, Sergeant Lanicek Sr. was drafted into the Army. He served a combat tour with the 4th Infantry Division near Pleiku and An Khe, Republic of Vietnam, as a communications operator and convoy driver. Following Vietnam he was assigned to Germany. After that, he spent two years with the Navy aboard the USS Oklahoma City based out of Yokosuka, Japan.

Twenty-four years ago, Sergeant Lanicek Sr. decided to switch his job and career, and he joined the Air Force as a munitions control technician -- a decision he said he has never regretted.

The career path Sergeant Lanicek Sr. chose inspired his children to join the Air Force. Besides his son here, Sergeant Lanicek Sr. has another son and a daughter-in-law in the Air Force. They are Staff Sgt. James S. Lanicek, a munitions controller, and Staff Sgt. Heather Lanicek, a munitions inspector, both stationed at Kadena AB, Japan.

"My dad had a hand in me joining, but he never pushed the military on me," Sergeant Lanicek said. "I joined the Air Force because of the experience I would gain in aviation. I like my job as the assistant shop chief because I get to work with different people, with different personalities, from all over. I meet a lot of good people from deployments like this."

"Obviously the military is a great career choice," the father said. "Being in the military provides a great learning opportunity, and the people we serve with are some of the finest in the world."

The Laniceks have a lot of military background, the father said. His father, Jerry Lanicek, was in the Army Air Force during World War II when he flew combat missions over Germany in the B-17 as a tail gunner.

"Billy's grandfather on his mother's side, Toshinobu Sugata, was also a physician and a Japanese marine officer," Sergeant Lanicek Sr. said. "His grandfathers served during World War II. So, the family military history began with them, and through us, the tradition continues."

Though assigned to the same squadron, the Laniceks work different shifts. But this does not hinder them from spending time together because they get the same day off. Sergeant Lanicek Sr. works day shifts while his son works at night.

"We usually go to dinner together and then part ways because we are on opposite shift and opposite sleep schedules," the son said.

This is not their first deployment together. Sergeant Lanicek, who has deployed to locations, such as Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and twice to Balad AB, during his air and space expeditionary forces cycles, said this is their third deployment together. But for his father who will retire in two years, it is going to be his last AEF deployment.

Co-workers described Sergeant Lanicek Sr. as an Airman with great experience, which they never allow to go to waste, especially knowing this is his last AEF deployment. They learn from him every day.

"Sergeant Lanicek (Sr.) brings a wealth of experience to the munitions flight," said Capt. James Reside, the munitions flight commander. "His leadership style is infectious, and he has formed a close-knit team in the munitions storage element. Additionally, whenever there is a lull in the action, you can count on Bill to regale the group with one of his many war stories. It's a real pleasure having him on our team."

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