An official website of the United States government
Here's how you know
A .mil website belongs to an official U.S. Department of Defense organization in the United States.
A lock (lock ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .mil website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

380AEW Article

U.S. Airmen, Joint and Coalition partners celebrate Air Force’s 68th birthday with half marathon

  • Published
  • By Tech. Sgt. Jeff Andrejcik
  • 380th Air Expeditionary Wing
Southwest Asia --  Since the Air Force’s inception on Sept. 18, 1947, its tactics, technology and people have continually evolved to meet national security objectives.

The physical fitness component of the Air Force is a key piece of that evolution. Not only has physical training changed over the years, but it’s been incorporated into many events to help celebrate special occasions.

This year was no exception.

Here, the annual tradition of the Air Force marathon, which began in 1997, was carried on by hundreds of participants to help celebrate the organization’s 68th birthday.

“Fitness events, like this, are great to have because not only do they increase awareness of special events, but they promote camaraderie and indorse an active life style,” said Master Sgt. Jeffrey, 380th Air Expeditionary Wing inspector general liaison. “Also, having a 10K run and half Marathon associated with the birthday celebration demonstrate our commitment to having a fit force.”

In the dawn of early morning with temperatures already jumping up to around 100 degrees, over 200 runners were geared up to run in the half-marathon or the alternate 10K route.

As the start time approached, many of the runners huddled into their respective groups to go through their pre-run preparations and discuss the course ahead.

In a place where five and 10K runs are a regular and welcomed occurrence, the mixed group of U.S. Air Force, Army and Coalition participants appeared ready for the challenge.

The course took the runners from the front of the wing building, out the base’s main gate and through a winding route, which ended right back where they started.

After an hour and 30 minutes Capt. Hollis, 380th Expeditionary Operations Support Squadron airfield operations flight commander, was the first half-marathon runner to cross the finish line.

“This is awesome that we’re all able to do this out here,” said Hollis. “One of my goals last year was to run in the Air Force Marathon, stateside, but after getting tasked to deploy I thought it would be put on hold; so getting this opportunity is amazing.”

Physical training is a part of Air Force culture, which has not only existed to increase preparedness but also increase comradery amongst its members.

In light of the Air Force’s birthday, running a half-marathon seemed to fit perfectly into a lot of the base’s exercise routine as well as give some of the participants an opportunity to test their physical limits.

More importantly, this year’s birthday and marathon, here, exhibited a multinational partnership, which has become a vital part of meeting military objectives in the Middle East.

“Having other countries participate in the run gave Air Force personnel an opportunity to share their culture, experiences and interests with our coalition partners,” said Jeffrey. “This event also gave us a chance to get together outside the mission environment and make connections in a more informal and relaxed setting.”

(Editor’s note: Due to safety and security reasons, last names were removed.)