Traveling the Word
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Traveling World 1
Traveling the World
As a young man not quite twenty years old I made the decision to join the United
States Air Force. I was interested in the educational benefits, becoming a part of an
elite force and take advantage of the traveling opportunities being offered. During
my career I took advantage of the educational opportunities and was able to travel quite
extensively during my twenty years of service; however, traveling the world as a USAF
soldier was not always the ideal traveling experience.
Shortly after I arrived at my first duty station at Dover AFB, I received notification that I
would be deployed on a real world mission. I remember that day like it was yesterday. I
was working six stories in the air, on the C-5 aircraft, it was business as usual when I
was told the shop chief wanted to see me. The thought of why he wanted me was
almost as taunting as climbing down the forty foot ladder, three stories of stairs, and the
hike across the flight line with my red tool box.
In a stern voice, my boss told me to be seated and then he closed the door behind me.
During the brief silence I noticed the numerous plaques and certificates showing
achievements from his military career hanging perfectly on the wood paneling that
surrounded the room. After brief conversation, the chief got to the point. He informed
me that I had been selected to deploy with a team of maintainers to the Middle
East. I remember sitting there in a daze, overwhelmed with emotion not really listening
as the words deploying to the middle east were still lingering. Then he gave me brief
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instructions: go home, stay close to the phone, pack your bags for a long deployment,
and tie up any unfinished personal business. You will be notified by phone with
further instructions. I knew the reality of real time deployments existed but until it
happens you do not think about it. Although I did not know my final destination, I could
not help but to think the worst.
The next couple of days waiting for my instructions were very stressful. How could time go by so fast on one hand, but seem like a lifetime to pass on another. Two days had passed and I finally received the final orders that I was departing to Dhahran, Saudi Arabia. General Saddam Hussein, President of Iraq, was threatening to invade Kuwait for oil. The thought was if he was not stopped, Saudi Arabia would be the next country he would invade.
The departing terminal at Dover was packed with military families awaiting the
dreaded good-byes. Hallways were lined with soldiers in their crisply ironed uniforms,
shiny black boots, air force issued mobility bags on their backs and a M-16 rifle over
their shoulders. It was a very sad and tear filled moment, but the departure was
inevitable.
As the group of thirty or so troops jettisoned the bus there was no excitement
towards our future adventure together. It was almost like a prisoner taking his last steps
to the electric chair. As we boarded the plane, you could feel the somberness
throughout. We were hurried along by a gentleman in a flight suit chewing tobacco and
handing out ear plugs and directing us to one of the bench seats that filled the entire
compartment. The stench of hydraulic fluid filled the passenger compartment and the
noise from the engines added to the overwhelming feelings of uncertainty. One
positive thing, I had lost my appetite before they started passing around the tasty
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Chicken, Meal ready to eat (MRI) dinner.
As the plane was taking off, you could see people starting to settle in for the long
three day journey. Some were reading books and others were writing letters. I
put on my headphones and listened to music. Everyone was dealing with the unknown
in their own ways. After three days of traveling, the tension and feelings were somewhat
eased by time; however, on the third day when the plane made its descent at the airport
in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia the overwhelming emotions and the sick feelings came
creeping back quickly. Soldiers began to wake up and limited conversation filled the
cabin as we started to gather what seemed to be our last worldly possessions.
As I approached the exit doors, the temperature was becoming unbearable. The
heat was so blistering it took your breath away before your feet touched the ground
beneath you. The sun was