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200 combat missions: Deployed Airman hits career milestone

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. Tia Schroeder
  • 386th Air Expeditionary Wing public affairs
SOUTHWEST ASIA --  An Airman here recently joined an elite group of aviators after flying his 200th combat mission and reaching 1,500 combat hours.

Master Sgt. Anthony Roy, a 43rd Electronic Combat Squadron instructor flight engineer deployed from Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Ariz., reached a career milestone that only three other Airmen in the 43rd EECS have accomplished.

"Reaching 200 combat missions and flying 1,500 combat hours was a milestone in my career that I never imagined I would reach," said Sergeant Roy. "When my squadron first started flying over here and deploying on a regular basis, I hit my first 100 combat missions. I thought that was going to be it, but it wasn't."

Six years ago, Sergeant Roy cross-trained out of the aircraft maintenance career field to be an instructor flight engineer.

"I really enjoy my job," said Sergeant Roy. "I like being in the operations end of it. I worked in maintenance for 13 years and watched planes take off, never knowing where they went or what they did. Now I'm on the airplane and actually getting to do the mission. I'm able to learn not just about my job on the airplane, but what other crewmembers do. Being able to be involved, I get the unique opportunity that most enlisted people don't get to do. I get to train officers."

As an instructor flight engineer, Sergeant Roy's primary job is to pass on his knowledge of the aircraft onto the rest of the crew members to ensure mission success.

"I've had many memorable moments in my career," said Sergeant Roy. "What stands out the most is how the Air Force's role in the fight against terror has changed the skies over Iraq. When we first started flying over here after the initial Operation Iraqi Freedom push, American servicemembers moved into Iraq and we were starting the whole re-build process. We would go up every night and you would see nothing but explosions, firefights and very few city lights. Now, when we go up and you see fewer explosions, fewer firefights and the city lights of Baghdad have tripled. So just seeing the difference and how far that country has grown is the most memorable and rewarding experience I've had in my 20-year Air Force career."

Throughout his career, Sergeant Roy has been deployed 14 times and will most likely retire in October.

"Reaching 200 missions to me means that I did my part to be truly successful in the original purpose of why we came over here in the first place," said Sergeant Roy.