The 506th Expeditionary Air Refueling Squadron gave a ride aboard one of its KC-135 tankers to airmen assigned to Andersen AFB, Guam, who don’t normally get the chance to fly as part of their jobs. Such opportunities are part of Andersen’s incentive flight initiative that rewards airmen for their outstanding performance. “You hear about being on these flights, and you might see aerial refueling on television, but when you actually get up here and see it in person, it’s still pretty surreal,” said TSgt. Jermaine Smith, 36th Comptroller Squadron budget analyst, of his Aug. 10 flight. “We all have different jobs with different roles in the Air Force,” said Lt. Col. Robert Taylor, 506th EARS detachment commander. “We need all of them to accomplish our mission, from vehicle operations who take care of aircrew vans to comptrollers and force support airmen who deal with personnel issues.” (Andersen report by Marianique Santos)
The U.S. military is maintaining a beefed-up presence in the Middle East, including fighters and air defense assets, following the U.S. strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities June 22 and subsequent retaliation by the Iranians against Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar.
