KABUL, Afghanistan--The Afghan air force commander, and 438th Air Expeditionary Wing and Train, Advise, Assist Command – Air (TAAC-Air) commander, visited multiple leaders at Mazar-e-Sharif July 21, 2016.
In a productive visit for both bosses, AAF Lt. Gen. Abdul Wahab and Brig. Gen. David Hicks received briefings and attended office calls in a full day of flying and meetings.
Hicks piloted an A-29 Super Tucano to the TAAC-North Headquarters where he first met with German Brig. Gen. Hartmut Renk, TAAC-North commander. Hicks was joined at the office call by Wahab who also flew to Mazar-e-Sharif in an A-29.
Following the meeting with Renk, Hicks and Wahab received briefings on the Scan Eagle, unmanned aircraft system, to include a display presented by Bob Kalinowski, a Scan Eagle contractor with Insitu.
The Scan Eagle, which is not organic to TAAC-North, is a tactical system capable of general and direct imagery support to its customers. The Scan Eagle is launched from a catapult system and provides a video feed to terminals for up to 15 hours per flight. The video can be used in real time for operations or it can be analyzed for intelligence use later.
The group moved from the Scan Eagle briefings to visit the AAF side of the base where Afghan Brig. Gen. Ashraf Karak, Mazar-e-Sharif AAF commander, was waiting to greet them. Karak talked of his sincere appreciation for the U.S. and Coalition support.
“Let me thank the international community, especially the U.S. Air Force, who are trying to pick us up,” Karak said through an interpreter. “We are where we are because of the U.S. Air Force.
“I know your schedules are busy, but I want to thank you for being here,” continued Karak. “Having the Coalition here is a new chapter in our relationship.”
Karak specifically cited the A-29 mission as positively helping the AAF counter the insurgency. He also talked about his unit’s capabilities to perform maintenance.
“We can now do 25- to 50-hour inspections here,” said Karak. “We hope to do 100-hour inspections very soon.”
The base has strong boundaries and will continue to improve, according to Karak. The relationship with the Afghan National Police is very strong, as is Wahab’s leadership.
Following the meeting, Karak hosted a traditional Afghan lunch for all of the visitors from TAAC-Air and the AAF.