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.

Students from local village tour sister squadron, base

  • Published
  • By Lt. Col. Adriane Craig
  • 376th Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs
MANAS AB, Kyrgyzstan --  Kyrgyz students from a local village toured the base May 15 to see the mission of their village partnership squadron, the 376th Expeditionary Force Support Squadron, and Manas Air Base.

The students from Jany Pahkta Village, ranging from 16 to 17 years of age, visited recreation and welfare facilities run by the 376th EFSS, including the base fitness center and Shooters recreation building. These visits and eating lunch at the dining facility enabled the students to see how the EFSS members take care of the some 1,500 military and contract personnel assigned to the base as well as the hundreds of transient personnel passing in and out of the mobility hub.

"They had the opportunity see a lot of different things," said 2nd Lt. Katie Grant, 376th EFSS, who recently joined the squadron and the village partnership program. The lieutenant just deployed to Manas AB from the 509th Services Squadron at Whiteman AFB, Mo.

The lieutenant, who is from Macungie, Penn., said they also got to spend time with the base civil engineer squadron, including stops at the Explosive Ordnance Disposal flight and the fire department. Students had the opportunity to see the robots that help the EOD specialists perform their mission and ride on the fire truck.

She said the group seemed to enjoy every stop along the way, but that the highlight of the day for many was the chance to tour one of the base's KC-135 Stratotankers.

"Seeing the inside of the plane was my favorite part of the tour," said Aibek Rustanbek Uulu, age 17.

Lieutenant Grant said the students asked the aircraft maintenance personnel lots of questions about the plane, including how much fuel it could carry and how much it weighed.

That interaction with the service members made a lasting impression on the Kyrgyz students.

"People were very social, very friendly," said Mr. Rustanbek Uulu. "If we asked any questions they would answer everything."