And so another mission begins. This time is different. It’s a departure from what we’ve done in the past. My team is embarking on what I call our “Super Bowl” – the redeployments of various large units to their respective home stations. Up until now, our missions have (for the most part) been simple training missions where we give the units an overview of the process of redeployment. Now we’re actually performing all the tasks we outline in our training. Our missions will be measured in weeks instead of days. The “kickoff” to start the first quarter took place with me taking half the team to Camp Liberty. This will be our home and base of operations for the next two or three weeks.
As usual, our selected mode of transportation was Blackhawks from Catfish Air. We loaded up around 1130 and were on our way within the hour. The pilots took us on a long, scenic route. Normally, the trip from Balad to Camp Liberty takes about twenty minutes. Today we were in the air for almost forty-five minutes. On previous trips we flew around the western edge of Baghdad. That wasn’t the case today. I think the flight crews were interested in sight-seeing. We flew directly over downtown Baghdad, straight across the Green Zone, and on to Camp Liberty. In a sense it was cool – we saw just about every major landmark from the air. On the other hand it wasn’t cool – the flight seemed to drag on forever. It was hot, we were wearing all our gear, and it became more and more unbearable as the flight continued. I think we all got some great photos though. Once we landed on Liberty Pad, we had to walk an additional 300 meters dragging all our gear. For whatever reason, the Blackhawks had touched down on the opposite side of the concrete landing pad from the terminal. By the time we met up with our ride we were all drenched in sweat.
The rest of the day was the usual flurry of checking into our billets, eating chow, and getting set up for the mission. We did all this in our normal efficiency. We’re staying in exactly the same billets we were last time we were in Camp Liberty. This place is becoming our home away from home. Tomorrow we get to work. Everyone on the team is definitely ready to get it on.
As a footnote to today’s entry – there was a Blackhawk that went down north of Baghdad this morning. It crashed due to mechanical problems. Fourteen soldiers perished in the crash. It was a very tragic event. Compounding this was that it was reported almost immediately in the news back home. Most of my family and friends knew I was flying today. When the news hit it caused considerable worry and consternation to those I love back home. I made certain that every member of my team called home to assure their families that they were fine. I did likewise. In light of today I’ve come to realize more fully the emotional sacrifices that family and loved ones back home endure daily. The news today hit very close to home.
As usual, our selected mode of transportation was Blackhawks from Catfish Air. We loaded up around 1130 and were on our way within the hour. The pilots took us on a long, scenic route. Normally, the trip from Balad to Camp Liberty takes about twenty minutes. Today we were in the air for almost forty-five minutes. On previous trips we flew around the western edge of Baghdad. That wasn’t the case today. I think the flight crews were interested in sight-seeing. We flew directly over downtown Baghdad, straight across the Green Zone, and on to Camp Liberty. In a sense it was cool – we saw just about every major landmark from the air. On the other hand it wasn’t cool – the flight seemed to drag on forever. It was hot, we were wearing all our gear, and it became more and more unbearable as the flight continued. I think we all got some great photos though. Once we landed on Liberty Pad, we had to walk an additional 300 meters dragging all our gear. For whatever reason, the Blackhawks had touched down on the opposite side of the concrete landing pad from the terminal. By the time we met up with our ride we were all drenched in sweat.
The rest of the day was the usual flurry of checking into our billets, eating chow, and getting set up for the mission. We did all this in our normal efficiency. We’re staying in exactly the same billets we were last time we were in Camp Liberty. This place is becoming our home away from home. Tomorrow we get to work. Everyone on the team is definitely ready to get it on.
As a footnote to today’s entry – there was a Blackhawk that went down north of Baghdad this morning. It crashed due to mechanical problems. Fourteen soldiers perished in the crash. It was a very tragic event. Compounding this was that it was reported almost immediately in the news back home. Most of my family and friends knew I was flying today. When the news hit it caused considerable worry and consternation to those I love back home. I made certain that every member of my team called home to assure their families that they were fine. I did likewise. In light of today I’ve come to realize more fully the emotional sacrifices that family and loved ones back home endure daily. The news today hit very close to home.
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