Training seminar vital step for Afghan air force Published Nov. 29, 2011 By Tech. Sgt. Jeremy Larlee 438th Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs KABUL, Afghanistan -- The Afghanistan air force took another big step in its growth as a military service during a status of training seminar held at Kabul International Airport, Nov. 27 and 28. The event is the first one held here and was attended by numerous U.S., NATO and Afghanistan military leaders. The seminar was a catalyst to help fix some long standing problems said Air Force Lt. Col. Joel Witzel, 438th Air Expeditionary Wing adviser. "The briefing was a great chance for the Afghan commanders to talk about the challenges at their bases and their plans to address those issues," he said. The colonel, who has been here for 8 months, advises the Afghans on military doctrine, force management and training. He said it has been a challenge to rebuild the force. "There are a large number of people who need training right now," he said. "They are in this huge holding pattern and we need to move them along so they can contribute to their service." Commanders from several Afghanistan bases briefed about their training missions. Special attention was paid to the many challenges they face in building a strong program. After each briefing, time was set aside for a question and answer session. Issues like personnel and equipment distribution were discussed and possible solutions were hammered out. "I think the questions and answer sessions was the best part about the conference," said Witzel. "The kind of discussions and the communication channels it opened up was definitely movement in the right direction." Afghan air force Lt. Col. Mohammad Aman, deputy commander for Jalalabad Airport, attended the training seminar and said he was very pleased with how it was going. He said he was proud of the progress made and thought the conference was very effective. "I have learned a lot today about how to make our uneducated people educated," he said. "There was a lot of information that will make our people familiar with their duties and professions." Witzel said it is important that the training mission is done correctly. He said every strong military force is built on a strong foundation of a good training program. The colonel said the training seminar was a big step in properly laying down that foundation. "I think the conference was very successful and I'm very happy with how it turned out," he said.