It was an exciting day for an AF MSgt on our team. He was being promoted to SMSgt (E-8) effective at midnight. In honor of his wishes, he requested a rather unique pinning ceremony. The ANA General and our Brigade Commander (Marine LTC) would have the honor of tacking on his future stripes. We started [...]
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tagged: Afghan National Army, Afghanistan, Blue Moon, Deployment, ETT, photography, promotions ceremony, SMSgt, U.S. Air Force, war | 3 Comments »
Since my departure a lot of changes have taken place. The first thing I noticed was my lounge chair was removed outside my b-hut. Prior to my R&R, Wilson the dog was occupying it along with a donated blanket and make-shift shelter. Not only was the chair removed, but apparently Wilson was gone too. I [...]
Filed under: School supplies project, Uncategorized | Tagged: AF SSgt Cameron Blackmer, Afghan National Army, Afghanistan, ANA, Deployment, ETT, humanitarian mission, photography, U.S. Air Force | Leave a Comment »
It was another sleepless and cold night in the tent. My earplugs were unable to drown out the flight line noise nor could they muffle the reverberations of the guy snoring next to me. Despite being groggy I was still motivated enough to shave and eat some breakfast at the DFAC. My only worry was [...]
Filed under: Deployment "snafus", Mid tour leave in Germany | Tagged: Afghanistan, BAF-fite, BAF-nesia, Bagram Air Field, Deployment, ETT, U.S. Air Force, war | 3 Comments »
It was a very smooth flight from Kuwait to Afghanistan. Boeing can be proud of their achievement and the Air Force made a great investment with purchasing the C-17. Due to the extra leg room, this was actually more comfortable than flying coach on a commercial airliner. Of course we didn’t have the movies, music, [...]
Filed under: Deployment "snafus", Mid tour leave in Germany | Tagged: Afghanistan, BAF-fites, BAF-nesia, Bagram Air Field, Deployment, ETT, U.S. Air Force, war | 1 Comment »
Had a chance to chat with WUSF Radios Bobbie O’Brien again while at Bagram. We talked about the how it is to return to camp after mid tour leave, the COIN strategy and some frustrated troops whom I met who are leaving Afghanistan after their deployment. Here’s the link. My Last Tour: Returning to base
Filed under: Radio interviews | Tagged: Afghanistan, COIN, Deployment, ETT, U.S. Air Force, war, WUSF | 2 Comments »
It was a rough night trying to sleep in the tent. Around 3 am, the tent filled up with new tent mates. They turned on the bright fluorescent lights and made a racket trying to unpack their gear. It was about 5 am until they finished taking their showers, got a bite to eat and [...]
Filed under: Deployment "snafus", Mid tour leave in Germany | Tagged: Afghanistan, Ali Asaleem, C-17 Globemaster, Deployment, IBA vest and helmet, Kuwait, U.S. Air Force, war | 4 Comments »
As you can tell by the title, the saga continues. Yesterday I boarded a shuttle from Camp LSA to the Kuwait International Airport. First we had to stop at the APOD (another location that nobody seems to know what the acronym stands for). Here we waited for another shuttle to take us directly to the [...]
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tagged: Afghanistan, Camp LSA, Deployment, Greg Mortenson, Harley Davidson, holy water from Mecca, Kuwait, lost luggage, photography, Stones into Schools, Three Cups of Tea, U.S. Air Force | 3 Comments »
Last night a flight came in from Frankfurt at 2330 hrs. I couldn’t sleep, so around 2 am. I checked the on line tracing data base and my luggage was still listed in tracing status. I’m starting to give up hope on Lufthansa finding my luggage. I returned to my tent for the night. Around [...]
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tagged: Afghanistan, Deployment, LNO, Lufthansa, mid tour leave, U.S. Air Force | 2 Comments »
It’s been 3 days now and my luggage still hasn’t arrived. I bought some extra clothes and necessities at the PX to hold me over. Last night was Christmas Eve and I entertained myself at the MWR center. They had a special BINGO game and gave prizes out to the winners. I still wasn’t having [...]
Filed under: Deployment "snafus" | Tagged: Afghanistan, Deployment, Kuwait, lost luggage, mid tour leave, U.S. Air Force | Leave a Comment »
I got on the plane and hugged my wife goodbye. My R&R leave had come to an end. Now it was time to return to the combat zone. It wasn’t easy saying goodbye to Liisa, but we both are looking on the bright side that I only have 4 ½ months to go. My plane [...]
Filed under: Deployment "snafus" | Tagged: Afghanistan, Camp LSA, Deployment, Kuwait, mid tour leave, photography, U.S. Air Force | 2 Comments »
