OPERATION ENDURING FREEDOM (AFPN) --
America's war on terrorism has been an unusual
conflict. The enemy is not an army of
soldiers, but a confederation of zealots from
several countries. Even the high-tech
bombs differ from those dropped during
previous conflicts.
But at
least one thing remains the same: men
and women on the ground are needed to keep
planes flying. That is especially true
of the deployed B-52 Stratofortress aircraft
maintainers from Air Force Reserve Command's
93rd Bomb Squadron at Barksdale Air Force
Base, La., who continue to support the war.
"When I was
first deployed (to a forward operating
location) last September, I had only 30
minutes to pack," said Master Sgt. Dennis, the
93rd BS production supervisor. (Last
names of deployed reservists are withheld for
security reason.) "This time I had four
months to prepare myself and my family for my
absence."
In
September, the 93rd BS, the only B-52 unit in
AFRC, received a war-tasking order and within
days deployed reservists and aircraft to a
forward-operating area in support of the war
on terrorism. During this deployment,
they integrated with active-duty people to
form an aerospace expeditionary force.
After a
brief visit home, members of the 93rd BS
redeployed in May to continue their patrol of
the skies over Afghanistan, awaiting the call
on where and when to drop their bombs.
"I wish I'd
been here during the first rotation when they
were dropping more bombs, but people keep
telling me to be careful what you wish for,"
said Master Sgt. Eddie, a 93rd BS weapons
loader.
So far the
B-52 crews have dropped more than 14 million
pounds of munitions, most of it during the
first three months of the war on
terrorism. From September to January,
93rd BS crews flew 88 combat missions,
dropping 1,000 Joint Direct Attack Munitions;
1,600 general-purpose bombs; and 800 cluster
bombs.
"We were
definitely a lot busier the last time I was
here, but we still have a job to do," said
Tech. Sgt Bob, a 93rd BS crew chief.
"Right now, boredom seems to be our biggest
enemy, but we keep our minds focused on the
mission." (Courtesy of AFRC News
Service)
