field trip

Two of our CCATT docs, the Chief Nurse, and I took a short field trip this morning and visited one of the F-16 squadrons on base, compliments of their flight surgeon, who knows several of our AEOT personnel from a previous rotation. We observed a pre-flight intel briefing and then watched the debriefing process after [...]

attention

i appear to have one of the top 100 fastest-growing wordpress blogs:
http://botd.wordpress.com/2007/10/20/growing-blogs-542/
also, NPR has been covering our operation:
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=15605343  
unfortnately, the base public affairs office has also been paying attention, so i may have to go back to mass emailing.  more to follow when i find out…

keep yo babies out da desert

We have a mission tonight in which we’re aerovacing an 8-month pregnant girl. Our a/e crew was trying to get an incubator for the plane when I left at the end of the shift. They’re nervous about the mission, since none performs ob/gyn services normally (in either military or civilian jobs), and there’s a full [...]

fungus and iraqi graffiti

Enjoyed another day off yesterday. Saw a couple girls from my flight at church and learned the chaplain is a Tide fan, since he referenced being excited about the win over UT, and he used football analogies during the entire sermon. Ate, went by the office, attended FPU, and then met with the Spanish group [...]

CNN report on Balad

F16 at sunset

predator on YouTube

gratitude

when i came back from my video teleconference this afternoon, the chief master sergeant from the engineering squadron (the other tenants in our building) asked me if i’m the flight commander for the aeromedical folks and if i would talk to him for a bit.  i was afraid one of my folks had done something [...]

almost robbed

Here’s the email we receive when a mortar is shot at the base but doesn’t explode, so a team of professionals detonates it instead:
—–Original Message—–
From: 332 AEW/CP
Sent: Friday, October 19, 2007 11:17 AM
To: Balad All Personnel
Subject: FOUO ***CONTROLLED DETONATION at 2005L***
All,
***FOUO 1 Controlled Detonation will occur on base at 1145L***.
V/R
332 AEW Command Post
———————-
Then we hear [...]

another red

had our second alarm red yesterday.  heard the mortars hit, but they weren’t close enough to damage anything or anyone around our work area.  after an alarm red, we have to have 100% accountability for the flight, meaning we have to hear from all 39 members.  it’s supposed to take <15min but took us an [...]

early halloween

 We had a bit of a fright today, as this morning fairly early in our shift, the building shook and one of our windows rattled as if sand were being thrown against it. Then the phone started ringing as some of our flyers in the morale trailer behind us called to ask why the trailer [...]

ps regarding smoking

the rule about having to smoke in designated areas and not while walking was in place last time for the army, but since the only air force personnel here were the 4 of us, and i was the OIC, we certainly had no such rule.  one day, our 59-year-old radio operator was walking across the [...]