By Hicham Raache
The Times Record
Pilots with the Arkansas Air National Guard's 188th Fighter Wing were met by jubilant family members upon returning home Saturday from a nearly three-month deployment in Afghanistan.
Flying in a four-ship formation, 10 airmen with the 188th Fighter Wing flew their A-10 Thunderbolt II Warthogs back to their air base in Fort Smith, returning home from deployment to Kandahar Airfield in Afghanistan. For Lt. Wade Hendrickson, being back home means being back with his wife, Malea, and his 51⁄2-month old daughter, Rylin.
"I've been gone basically most of her life," Hendrickson said. "She's doubled in size since I've been gone."
Standing alongside her and her husband's extended family, Malea Hendrickson held Rylin, dressed in a red, white and blue polka dot dress, and cheered as her husband and the nine other airmen flew in. "I'm very excited for him to see (Rylin)," Malea Hendrickson said. "She was so little when he left. That was the hardest thing for him, leaving while she was so young."
Hendrickson was one of 275 Guard members deployed to Afghanistan as part of the 188th's Aerospace Expeditionary Forces rotation, sent to provide air support to ground forces fighting in Afghanistan, according to Capt. Heath Allen, public affairs officer for the Arkansas National Guard.
"This was the first (Aerospace Expeditionary Forces) deployment for the 188th as a unit since receiving A-10 Thunderbolt II 'Warthogs' on April 14, 2007," Allen stated in a news release.
Although some of his fellow airmen returning with him have multiple past deployments to Afghanistan and Iraq, this most recent deployment was Hendrickson's first.
"Anybody who says they're not a little apprehensive or scared (before deployment) are just tricking themselves," Hendrickson said.
Lt. Col. Tim Eddins has been with the 188th for 17 years and returned from his third deployment on Saturday.
Eddins said he flew missions supporting ground forces throughout Afghanistan.
"We gave more support (during this mission) than we probably ever have before," Eddins said.
Lt. Col. Ray Hunter, who has been deployed five times so far and was met at the base by his wife, Tina, said he and his fellow airmen worked with the Army in this recent mission and therefore saw a lot of action.
"It was an around-the-clock operation," Hunter said. "(The 188th) did their country proud, their state proud and their Guard proud."
Hunter said the excitement of returning home was evident among his comrades as they flew back to their home base.
"It was big smiles on their faces," Hunter said. "You could hear it on our radios."
Hendrickson said he now looks forward to rest and relaxation, which he said means spending time in the Ouachita Mountains with Malea and Rylin.
More than 200 other members of the Arkansas Air National Guard returned last Monday and around 50 more are scheduled to return this week.
The seven other 188th airmen who returned Saturday include: Capt. Doug Davis, Capt. Drew Nash, Lt. B.J. Ginger, Maj. Patric Coggin, Lt. Mark Cox, Lt. Col. Ross Sauter and Capt. Ryan Carter.
Associated pictures:
The first formation A-10C Thunderbolt II's fly over Ebbing Air National Guard Base on Saturday as ten pilots with the 188th Fighter Wing of the Arkansas Air National Guard arrive home after a two-month deployment in Afganistan. (Photo by Times Record)
A line of A-10C Thunderbolt II's taxi to their parking spots at Ebbing Air National Guard Base on Saturday. Ten pilots with the 188th Fighter Wing of the Arkansas Air National Guard flew their planes home from a Guard base in Baltimore after a two-month deployment in Afganistan. (Photo by Times Record)
Lt. Col. Ray Hunter waves to family and friends as he taxis his A-10C Thunderbolt II to a stop at Ebbing Air National Guard Base on Saturday. Hunter was one of 10 pilots with the 188th Fighter Wing of the Arkansas Air National Guard who flew their planes home from a Guard base in Baltimore after a two-month deployment in Afganistan. (Photo by Times Record)
Note: The aircraft is A-10C 78-0659 from the 184th Fighter Squadron.
Lt. Col. Tim Eddings talks to a reporter while being interviewed at Ebbing Air National Guard Base on Saturday. Eddings was one of 10 pilots with the 188th Fighter Wing of the Arkansas Air National Guard who flew their planes home from a Guard base in Baltimore after a two-month deployment in Afganistan. (Photo by Times Record)
Lt. Wade Hendrickson greets his wife Malea and his 5-month-old daughter Rylin after stepping down from his A-10C Thunderbolt II at Ebbing Air National Guard Base on Saturday. Hendrickson was one of 10 pilots with the 188th Fighter Wing of the Arkansas Air National Guard who flew their planes home from a Guard base in Baltimore after a two-month deployment in Afganistan. (Photo by Times Record)
Tech. Sgt. Orion Stell performs post-flight maintenance on a A-10C Thunderbolt II at Ebbing Air National Guard Base on Saturday. The plane was one of ten flown home by pilots with the 188th Fighter Wing of the Arkansas Air National Guard after a two-month deployment in Afganistan. (Photo by Times Record)
Tina Hunter holds a welcome sign while waiting for her husband, Lt. Col. Ray "Rainman" Hunter to arrive at Ebbing Air National Guard Base on Saturday. Hunter was one of 10 pilots with the 188th Fighter Wing of the Arkansas Air National Guard who flew their planes home from a Guard base in Baltimore after a two-month deployment in Afganistan. (Photo by Times Record)
Vivienne Carter, 4, wears hearing protection while waiting for her father, Capt. Ryan Carter, at Ebbing Air National Guard Base on Saturday. Carter was one of 10 pilots with the 188th Fighter Wing of the Arkansas Air National Guard who flew their planes home from a Guard base in Baltimore after a two-month deployment in Afganistan. Vivienne was waiting with her sister Annabelle, 2, and her mother Natalie Carter. (Photo by Times Record)
Family and friends of retuning pilots point to the sky and take photos as the first of 10 A-10C Warthogs come into view at Ebbing Air National Guard Base on Saturday. Ten pilots with the 188th Fighter Wing of the Arkansas Air National Guard flew their planes home from a Guard base in Baltimore after a two-month deployment in Afganistan. (Photo by Times Record)
Source
See also the following AP news, distributed by 5NEWS / KFSM-TV:
Fort Smith, Ark., Air Guard unit returns 10 Warthog pilots from Afghanistan action
By Associated Press
3:47 PM CDT, May 23, 2010
FORT SMITH, Ark. (AP) — The green grass of the Arkansas River valley was a welcome sight for Lt. Col. Ray Hunter, accustomed for two months to the browns and grays of the Afghanistan countryside.
Hunter and nine other A-10 Warthog pilots of the Arkansas Air National Guard's 188th Fighter Wing returned Saturday from their deployment overseas. They were greeted by about 35 friends and family members.
The pilots spent two months at Kandahar Airfield in southern Afghanistan, flying 12 to 16 sorties a day in the A-10 Warthogs. The Afghanistan assignment, which began March 8, was the unit's first combat deployment in the A-10s.
Source
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment