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380AEW Article

Louisiana guardsmen fulfill 380th AEW air superiority mission

  • Published
  • By Tech. Sgt. Amanda Savannah
  • 380th Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs
SOUTHWEST ASIA --  Every flight, squadron and group that makes up the 380th Air Expeditionary Wing plays a unique role in the wing's mission: Execute all tasking orders every day, Manage the Air Expeditionary Force transition every time, and Good order and discipline all the time.

The 122nd Expeditionary Fighter Squadron's role is air superiority.

"We're an F-15C squadron, so we're air to air," said Lt. Col. Jim Worley, 122nd EFS director of operations and native of Berryville, Ark. "Our job here is to protect the Arabian Gulf in coordination with the GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) countries."

The entire squadron - aircraft, pilots, administration, aircrew flight equipment, intelligence and an aircraft maintenance unit - is deployed from the Louisiana Air National Guard in New Orleans.

"It takes a lot to have an air-worthy jet, to have a pilot with appropriate gear and with the appropriate information to go fly," said Capt. Corbett Sanbol, 122nd EFS pilot and Novato, Calif., native. "There are a lot of people to get that pilot into that cockpit. It's definitely a squadron concept."

Maj. Sheldon Gardner, 122nd EFS pilot and Denver, Colo., native, said he enjoys working with the different people he encounters in the deployed environment.

"The interaction among all the MDSes (mission design series, or other airframes) we have out here and coordinating with the host nation is very different that just going out and flying the same sorties against the same guys every day," said the Denver, Colo., native.

To keep the pilots safe in the jet, the AFE element ensures their gear is ready for each flight, said Master Sgt. Keshia Dubuclet, AFE NCO in charge. This includes maintaining and regularly inspecting their helmets, harnesses, G-suits, parachutes, survival vests and more.

"I like interacting with the aircrew, learning and knowing about the F-15 and the importance of what we do in comparison to their flights," said Dubuclet, a native of New Orleans.

The squadron's maintainers joined the 380th Expeditionary Aircraft Maintenance Squadron upon arrival here, but are dedicated crew chiefs for the F-15Cs.

"Being a crew chief entails servicing the jet, maintaining it, making sure there's no deficiencies of any kind, and making sure that it's always ready for the pilots," said Staff Sgt. Pedro Acevedo, 380th EAMXS F-15C Eagle crew chief and Pearl River, La., native. "We have to be able to launch a jet, recover it, and inspect it."

A fellow F-15C crew chief, Airman 1st Class Travis Pollet, said he enjoys performing his role in the mission.

"My favorite part of supporting the mission is knowing that we're saving countless lives," said the Mandeville, La., native.

"We're happy to be here and happy to fulfill our role in the team," Worley said. "We're looking forward to everything going well over the time that we're here and then handing off a good functioning squadron to the guys who show up after us."