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Tour dispels rumors at U.S. base in Kyrgyzstan

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. Krystie Martinez
  • 376th Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs
TRANSIT CENTER AT MANAS, Kyrgyzstan --  Members of the American Chamber of Commerce in the Kyrgyz Republic recently toured Transit Center at Manas, Kyrgyzstan, in order to get a better understanding of the center's mission and functions.

The American Chamber of Commerce in the Kyrgyz Republic is a business association which fosters Kyrgyz and American business connections.

"We came to learn more about what TCM is all about because this year our Kyrgyz government and politicians are making some decisions about not extending the lease for the military base," said Almaz Dushembiev, AmCham Executive Director.

He wanted to see for his own eyes how it was inside TCM, and this tour gave him a better picture, he said.

In order to help TCM achieve the goal of transparent operations the 376th Air Expeditionary Wing Theater Security Cooperation division here hosts two to three tours a month.

"Tours minimize local misconceptions about the Air Force's activities in Kyrgyzstan, promoting local cooperation," said Capt. Mu Kim, 376 AEW/TSC, Social Cultural Branch chief and tour lead.

The visit included a mission capabilities briefing, fire department and C-17A Globemaster III tour.

Also included in the tour were activities at the explosive ordnance disposal unit, and Mine Resistant Ambush Protected vehicle rollover simulator.

"The first part of this tour was dedicated to the mission of the TCM and I think everyone on this tour today understood the importance of the Transit Center and of the four main functions," said Irina Shin, AmCham Public Relations manager. "This was a great and interesting tour, especially for our AmCham members."

Some AmCham members had preconceived notions of the functions of TCM, which were steadily disproved as the tour progressed.

"The TCM is friendly, first I thought the military was a closed organization but here they do a lot of humanitarian work and help the Kyrgyz government and military," Dushembiev said. "The operations are almost civic, I wouldn't even say are military."

Captain Kim, a native of Seoul, Korea, is familiar with some of the misconceptions the visitors had prior to the tour.

"At the beginning of the tour, visitors tend to think that the Transit Center is secretive about its mission. However, their perspective changes as they learn about Transit Center's mission," Kim said. "The youngest visitor on this tour was so impressed by the fire department, that he wrote a thank you letter to one of the firefighters."

The youngest visitor with AmCham wasn't the only member to send a message to TCM service members.

"Keep doing a good job," Dushembiev said. "Kyrgyzstan should appreciate all the help the U.S. government gives and its support of the local economy."