Airmen support Iraqi elections, see history in making

Published Jan. 30, 2009
By Staff Sgt. John Gordinier
332nd Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs

JOINT BASE BALAD, Iraq (AFNS) -- -- Joint Base Balad Airmen are engaged in the Iraqi sky as Iraqis get ready to participate in their country's electoral process Jan. 31, the first time since 2005.

"U.S. and coalition airpower is uniquely qualified to provide non-intrusive security support to the government of Iraq as it conducts this historic election," said Lt. Gen. Gary L. North, the commander of 9th Air Force and U.S. Air Forces Central.

Overall, more than 14,000 Iraqi candidates, including almost 4,000 women, are running for approximately 440 provincial council seats in 14 of Iraq's 18 provinces. According to Iraq's Independent High Electoral Commission, which is in charge of conducting the election, 15 million Iraqis are registered to vote.

"Flying far above balloting stations and population centers, we can silently watch over the election process while multitudes of Iraqi citizens freely exercise their right to vote," General North said.

Members of the 727th Expeditionary Air Control Squadron here will observe the sky and polling stations to give confidence to the Iraqi people and support them while they vote, said Lt. Col. Michael Tokarz, the 727th EACS commander. In addition, the unit is providing airspace deconfliction and situational awareness for Iraqi air force pilots during the election process.

In addition, some Joint Base Balad Airmen witnessed firsthand the progress Iraq and its people have made.

Members of the 41st Expeditionary Rescue Squadron from Moody Air Force Base, Ga., have deployed to Iraq a number of times in the last 5.5 years, said Lt. Col. Steve Gregg, the combat search and rescue director of operations.

"The comments I get from a lot of the crews, as well as my own personal perspective from the initial start of Operation Iraqi Freedom (in March 2003), is the change in the amount of freedoms the Iraqi people have now," said Colonel Gregg, a native of Huntsville, Ala. "As we fly across the countryside, we're seeing more people on the roads. The roads are better. The homes look better. There's more infrastructure and the people seem to have a better support structure for day-to-day life."

"I was here in 2005, and just to see the progress Iraq has made in the last 4 years is substantial," said Capt. Katie Hall, the 727th EACS Control Response Center senior director deployed from the 123rd Air Control Squadron in Cincinnati. "This election is very important and it's a milestone for the country -- for (Iraqis) to be on their own and elect their own leaders and to form a democracy they have been wanting."

It is an incredibly proud time for the Iraqi military to be here supporting their country transition into a full-fledged democracy, Colonel Gregg said.

"My wife served a tour here at the Iraqi Air Force Officer Training School," he said.
"They would bring in these young lieutenants who would leave their families for days at a time to go train in the Iraqi military to become officers. In their service, if word got out, their families could be put at risk until after they graduated. Imagine that amount of dedication. How could we not support people like that?"

Airpower certainly has played an integral part in getting to this place in time, said Senior Master Sgt. James Bailey, the 332nd Expeditionary Aircraft Maintenance Squadron tiger aircraft maintenance unit first sergeant.

"Whether it's precision strikes in support of ground troops, or just the sound of F-16 (Fighting Falcons) taking off around the clock, we've helped to show the Iraqi people our commitment to securing a safe environment for these historic elections to take place," said the native of Cypress, Texas.

Most are honored and proud to be a part of history in the making.

"I'm honored to be a part of this," Colonel Tokarz said. "I don't think we'll realize until after we've left, to understand the true impact we've had to the mission. It's easy to get caught up in the day-to-day actions compared to being part of the moment. What I think is remarkable are the steps we are taking now will hopefully give the country of Iraq everlasting peace by building it up toward a democracy."

"It's awesome to think that we will be here for what history will record as the birth of a new free nation," Sergeant Bailey said. "There's no place I'd rather be right now than supporting flying operations here. When this is all written in the history books, I'll be proud to say that I played my small part."