First Mongolian air advisory team departs Afghanistan, new group arrives

Published April 21, 2011
By Mass Communications Specialist 2nd Class Vladimir Potapenko
438th Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs

KABUL -- The first Mongolian air advisory team to participate in NATO Air Training Command-Afghanistan's efforts in building the Afghan Air Force recently handed over responsibility to a new group of troops at the AAF Base in Kabul.

Spending six months training Afghan Airmen on how to service Mi-17 transport helicopters, the inaugural six-man team built a training program from the ground up, developing the Mi-17 helicopter engine and body maintenance course. A fundamental building block for the AAF, the course helps strengthen serviceability and skill within the AAF maintenance corps working with the highly invested-in Mi-17.

"The helicopters of the past are also the helicopters of the present and future," said AAF Lt. Col. Abdul Shafi, the maintenance group commander. "So, that which the Mongolians have taught will continue to hold value for the Afghan Air Force."

Twenty-two Airmen passed through the course during the Mongolian team's tenure, a point of pride for the men based on the circumstances they met upon arriving in Afghanistan.

"It has been a big challenge these past six months," said Mongolian Air Force Lt.Col. Chogdon Boldbaatar, the air advisory team-lead. "Things seemed to be empty when we got here and there was no training standard, but we took our great commitment, past experience and knowledge to help propel the success of the AAF training initiative."

Among the most significant challenges was the natural language barrier between instructors and students, neither of whom had a working fluency in each other's native languages. To circumvent the dilemma, students and instructors found a middle ground built upon a foreign influence: Russian. A number of the course's students learned Russian during the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan and were able to act as translators for the Soviet influenced Mongols.

"We feel as if we have succeeded, so we are all excited to go home, and will do so with pride," said Boldbaatar.

"We are leaving confident in the belief that all of the students who went through our training are capable of independently completing the maintenance required to assist flightline operations, keeping the Afghan Air Force at a consistent standard," said Mongolian Air Force 1st Lt. Jambalsuren Tsogtdorj, a maintenance advisor with the team.

Though finished with their mission in Afghanistan, the team is still focused on the improvement of the AAF and those working to help it.

"When I get back to Mongolia, the first thing I am going to do is analyze my experience here," said Maj. Dashdorj Tuvshinsaikhan, the team's second-in-command. "I am going to take some time off and determine a way to build on what we have done. I am going to try and contribute information to those who follow us in Afghanistan.

One thing that Tuvshinsaikhan and his team have already contributed is a benchmark for other advisory teams to be judged by and a blueprint for success in developing the capabilities of the AAF.

"We are very proud of their accomplishments and excited that they have made it easier for us coming in," said Lt. Col. Jigjid Batsukh, the commander of the new Mongolian air advisory team. "But, they have also made it difficult for us because they have created a standard that we must keep pace with."