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ROCK SOLID WARRIOR

  • Published
  • 386th Expeditionary Operations Support Squadron
SOUTHWEST ASIA --  Staff Sgt. Ladee Ann Virell

Job: Aircrew Flight Equipment Technician

Home unit: 317th Operations Support Squadron, Dyess Air Force Base, Texas

How do you support the mission here? I increase the aircrews' chances of survival by ensuring and providing them with all the proper tools and equipment to survive bailouts, evade enemies and to protect themselves against the possibility of capture.

How many times have you deployed and what makes this one unique? I have deployed once before as a survival equipment personnel before our merger with Life Support was in full effect. While deployed, I only had to do one side of the job. Here, my job is more of a life support knowledge-based. In this deployment I had to learn a whole new career field. I began to form a deeper level of appreciation and commitment for the combined career field by seeing all the people whose lives I may save by doing my job right and doing it well.

How does your job differ in a deployed environment vs. home base? Back home we are sectioned off to particular equipment we need to service; sometimes we can spend a couple of months to a year repetitiously doing one type of equipment. Over here we are compacted to the bare essentials. We still work on all the same equipment but no longer have that convenience to focus on just that one item. We work on about all the equipment our merged career field IP0X1 is responsible for maintaining. It is mind boggling when you see all the equipment at one time that you need to stay on top of, so the mission is carried out effectively.