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380AEW Article

Command Chief reflects on her year with the 380th AEW

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. Jeremy Larlee
  • 380th Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs
Southwest Asia --  Airmen at the 380th Air Expeditionary Wing will soon see a change at the top of the enlisted ranks as Command Chief Master Sgt. Suzan Sangster is set to be replaced by Command Chief Master Sergeant Timothy Horn.

As the sand in the hourglass of Chief Sangster's time at this non-disclosed base runs out, she has taken some time to process what this year has meant to her and how it fits into her career.

"I've had some opportunities in the last few days to reflect," Chief Sangster said. "I have been in 28 years and it is always exciting to go down range. Being able to come here for a year has really put things in perspective in regards to the fact that we are definitely not out of this war."

The chief, who grew up in Cedar Sprigs, Mich., said that in some ways this year has been both the longest and shortest of her life. It has been a year marked with some sadness, most notably the passing of explosive ordnance disposal technician Tech. Sgt. Anthony Campbell who was killed in action in Afghanistan Dec. 15, 2009, after being forward deployed from the 380th Expeditionary Civil Engineer Squadron.

But she said she will mostly remember the family atmosphere and the laughter shared during her time here. One of her favorite nights was the New Year's Eve party.

She said what will most stick with her is the high-quality Airmen she has had the chance to work with here.

"The key component of our success here is the amazing contributions our Airmen do on a daily basis to support this war," Chief Sangster said. "We just do so much and the sacrifices young Airmen are making today are significantly bigger than anything I did as a young Airman, because right now, we are a nation at war."

The chief said that in their interactions with the host nation the Airmen here are making a difference at a cultural level.

"You wouldn't think coming in here as a two striper and holding a gun on a guard mount that you would have that much influence," she said. But, they are influencing the local attitude and culture that is not used to seeing an enlisted professional force."

Chief Sangster added that a lot of the host nation officers are intrigued that she is not an officer, due to the large amount of responsibility she has.

The chief has seen a lot of changes to the quality of life here during her year.
The addition of wireless internet and numerous efforts to improve the aesthetics of the base are some of the projects that have been ongoing during her time here.

"This is a very clean base," she said. "We have put rocks down to limit the dust and to make sure during the flood season that we don't have a lot of mud and debris. We have matured in the quality of life we offer our Airmen."

The one thing the chief said she is most proud of is the establishment of the honor guard.

"I'm very proud of our honor guard and those amazing professionals serving in it," Chief Sangster said. "We started out with just a few Airmen who came out occasionally and grew into a great unit."

Chief Sangster said she couldn't thank the Airmen here enough and express to them just how much they have inspired her.

"I'm just so incredibly proud of the Airmen here," she said. "They continuously deploy and they continuously sacrifice. They come out here and give that 110 percent effort and they are making a difference every single day."

Chief Sangster's next challenge will be as the command chief master sergeant of the 55th Wing at Offutt Air Force Base, Neb.