A Life Changing Deployment

Ten years ago today I was sent with my Air Force squadron to a super secret squirrel base in the middle of the Israeli desert for the majority of the month of August and it was the single most life changing trip of my life. I saw and heard a lot of things that reminded me of very unsavory parts of my life prior to that while also seeing and hearing things that raised the hairs on the back of my neck.

Before leaving Germany we had to attend a mandatory briefing in which the Air Force's Office of Special Investigations ( OSI ) told us to take the batteries out of our cell phones and place them on the desk in front of us. The briefer then went on to talk to give us a briefing telling us of the hazards in the area. The strangest part of what he relayed to us was that we had to be extremely careful about where we discussed any information that was sensitive in nature because the Israelis are the forefront at collecting intelligence. We were told to never speak about sensitive information in our quarters or any other place other than a huge 10' X 8' vault that we flew in with us.

I left Germany towards the end of the first week of August 1999 flying on a military C-5 cargo plane and arrived on an airstrip in a desolate looking surroundings. My flight was the second of two flights so we were met on the tarmac by our comrades who had arrived the day prior in old Chevy pick-ups painted light brown. We loaded our bags up into the bed of the pick-ups and then jumped into the beds ourselves and headed off to our accommodation.

Our accommodations were large aluminium cans that held 6 of us in 3 bunk-beds if I remember correctly. I don't remember them having AC and it was very difficult to fall asleep at night because it was so hot. The flight training we did with the Israeli Air Force ( IAF )was pretty mundane. It was actually so easy compared to the amount of flight training we did in Germany that I don't remember too much about it.

The life-changing events on this trip took place away from work but not necessarily away from the base we were deployed to. Because the work was not time consuming we had a lot of time to mingle with the IAF members around a small mini-mall type of building that had a bakery, a small convenience store and a arcade/pool hall type place.

The Israelis were very keen to speak with us but for the most part the Americans didn't want to hang out and talk to the Israelis. Not sure if the OSI briefing before we left had put them off or if it is just a normal American tendency but I would say that there were only about 5 of us that really hung out and spoke with them in great depths.

I can't say I had any special feeling for or against the Israelis at that point in my life. I really didn't understand why they were fighting with the Palestinians nor did I really care. But that was soon to change.

I remember a few of the conversations I had with some of the IAF members and it is was very strange. I felt like I had been transported from the year 1999 back to the Alabama or Georgia of the 1950's. The outright racism and hatred for the Arabs as an ethnicity is/was no different to what some white Americans in the south of America felt about black Americans. I had experienced some racist speech from my paternal grandmother who was born in 1921 and lived in Florida. I remember when she had to have an operation done and they were telling her about a blood transfusion she made a point to tell them that she didn't want any coon blood.

I got the same types of speech from the Israelis I spoke with. In fact, I put the the blood transfusion question to them and one told me fiercely that he would 'rather die than take the blood of an Arab.'

We were allowed off of the base a few times while we were there. A couple times we were allowed to drive the 20 or so kilometers to a nearby town that had a McDonald's and another time to the small city nearby named Be'er Sheva that had a large mall.

We also has the opportunity to go to Jerusalem one Saturday which was a really special moment for me. It was such a wonderful experience being able to explore Jerusalem and Bethlehem (after making it through the Israeli checkpoints) as an 18 year old. To crouch down to enter the manger turned church where Jesus Christ was purportedly born. To see the Mount of Olives, the Wailing wall and the golden domed mosque in the skyline of the city was inspiring.

And on the following weekend while the majority of the squadron went to party in Tel-Aviv to part in the discos and on the beaches myself and a small group of maybe 9 others went on a trip to the Dead Sea. We drove down some winding type roads with markers on the side telling us how far below sea level we were with each drop.

We drove along the coast of the Dead Sea and pulled into a parking lot where we got out and trooped up the side of Mount Masada. We walked around for about an hour and half exploring the mountain top before descending sown in some sort of cable car for a small fee.

After we had all loaded up into the van our guide drove us a short distance to a Dead Sea spa. I remember going into the Dead Sea and as I had slid down a small drop off up on Masada I had a series of scratches down the side of my shin that stung like you wouldn't believe upon entering the water. They were actually scabbed by the time we left the spa.

Walking out into the Dead Sea is a very special experience. You get to a point where your feet our no longer touching the sea bottom but you are still standing up right. The water is that dense because of the salt content.

Most of the squadron had left by the last week in August but I was due to leave on the last flight out and for some reason to which my mind cannot recall now our airlift was diverted for some reason so I ended up being bored out of my mind stuck on this base in the middle of the desert with no one except an officer and a handful of Senior NCO's.

Upon returning to Germany I started to research about Israel and Palestine and the problems surrounding them. I found out that most of the Israelis were not from the 12 tribes of Judea but were Europeans who had migrated to that part of the world. That is why I saw some Israeli Air Force members who were extremely Arab looking and others who were as pale as a pearl and said that they were originally Russian or Lithuanian.

I guess I was very fortunate to go when I did because a year later the sister squadron at Spangdahlem went to the same location and never got to step foot off base because the second intifada had started up.

My First Military Deployment

When I first arrived in Germany in the Spring of 1999 I took an immediate liking to my new surroundings. I mean THE reason I joined the Air Force was just to have the ability to travel around the world and knowing that Germany would be my new home for at least the next 24 months I couldn't have been more happier.


Although I had no idea upon arriving the base was in a strange state. One fighter squadron (The 53rd FS) was being deactivated and two (The 23rd and 81st FS) of the other three were deployed to Italy bombing Serbia into the stone age. As I was a first term airman and this was my 1st duty station I had a lot of appointments and briefing to attend that kept me away from my duty location for a couple weeks. When it was time for me to show up I was assigned some menial tasks with a mixture of guys who were waiting to leave the base and others who had just shown up and it was clear we were just there to waste time and make it seem like we were doing something.

After a short period of time I was sent over to the remaining fighter squadron on the base (the 22nd) to start doing actual work with F-16's. Normally I would have had to gone to a location to get certified but as we were actively bombing all that was thrown out the window.

I remember we were working 12 hour shifts and that we would send of 6 to 10 aircraft of at once and wait for about 6 hours for them to come back. It was actually pretty cool for maintainers. Depending on when the previous shift had sent off the prior aircraft we may sit around for an hour or 5 waiting for them to return. In that time I learned how to play dominoes and perfect my hacky-sack technique. The best nights were when there was bad weather and the aircraft had to divert to another base somewhere as that meant we could go home early.

And I thought this was how the Air Force really was. Because I had come into a war like state I knew nothing else. But then sometime in the beginning of May I was told that I would be sent to Aviano AB in northeast Italy with the 22nd Fighter Squadron to replace members of the squadron I should be assigned to, the 23rd Fighter Squadron.

I remember having really mixed emotions about going. I really loved the idea of going to Italy but as we had no idea how long we would be there I had reservations because I was still in a phase where I was getting to know my surroundings in Germany.

But Italy ended up being more fun that Germany... By a country mile!



We were still working 12 hour shifts with I think one day off a week but Italy was a dream for an 18 year old boy like I was. We were living in tents with 9 other guys and sleeping on metal framed cots but it made no difference to me. I loved it. I was put on a crew with 2 other men whom I knew from Germany. The leaser of the crew was a Staff Sergeant with probably 14 or 15 years experience who originally came from Puerto Rice. The other guy was a Senior Airman in his mid to late 20's and came from Georgia.


I learned a lot from them about how things worked in the Air Force. I remember fondly sitting at the End of Runway (EOR) in the back of the pick-up truck waiting for jets to come back throughout the warm May and June Italian nights.

Aviano Airbase was quite the unique place. Particularly Tent City. I would estimate it to be 16 tents across by 32 tents deep and although I only had 10 people in my tent for sure there were cases of 20 men to a tent. Tent City consisted of an American Navy Unit there with EA-6B aircraft, an American Marine Unit with F-18's, The 53rd FS from Shaw AFB, the 493rd FS from RAF Lakenheath, as well as the Portuguese AF with F-18's and the Canadians were there with F-18's as well.


While the Air Force officers were put up in local hotels off of the base the poor US Marines officers (pilot even!) were stuck in Tent City with the rest of us. Thank God it was a no salute zone because them Marines officers would have loved nothing more than making us salute them.

Around Tent City there were makeshifts convenience stores and hooches AKA bar rooms where the people went to blow of steam. I remember as well that we got a pre-screen showing of the new Star Wars movie that came out that year in Tent City.


I remember going to the most beautiful discotheque that I have ever seen in my life in some town between the base and Venice. Inside it was like any other European disco but outback was a large Japanese garden with a dance floor over the middle of it and a series of walkways shooting off of it. It was really amazing and no description I give it would do it justice. Wish I remembered its name.

I met a girl while I was there as well and there will be some future tales regarding my visits to go see her back in Italy soon enough! But by the end of June Milosevic had given up and we were all returning back to Germany and I was to find out what the REAL Air Force was...

10 year anniversary pics

As promised...

Since my laptop was being repaired and I couldn't post any photos from when I first landed in Germany with that particular blog I will post them now...

The view from my dorm, building 177 room 301 on Spangdahlem Airbase Germany. All those semi-circular concrete structures are called Hardened Aircraft Structures (HAS for short) and house F-16 or O/A-10 aircraft.



The room was about 12' by 10' and I had it all to myself. I did though have to share a toilet and shower with one other guy.



Here is the other side of the room and the sink and mirror area right before the bathroom door. As you can see I didn't have much to bring with me at 18 years old.



The said bathroom area that I had to share.



An old German village that I took my first drive off base through.





The office where we were when we weren't working and weren't supposed to be as opposed to where we hid when we were supposed to be working.



An organized tour that we had to take when we first arrived to the closest city named Trier. Yes, that is a monkey on some sort of musical instrument.



This building in Trier is actually a McDonalds...

My 10 Year Anniversary

Yup, 10 years ago today I landed at Rhein-Main Airbase on a military chartered civilian aircraft that departed from Atlanta. Rhein-Main was located on the south side of Frankfurt International Airport and has since closed and been swallowed and redeveloped by the International Airport. The only building I still recognize on a regular basis is the large old hangar that Lufthansa Technik now operate out of. I tend to always taxi right by it when I fly from Birmingham International to Frankfurt International.


I remember stepping off the large passenger plane and walking across the tarmac into the arrival terminal and having to show my military ID and orders to some guy before being able to go and get my luggage. In the luggage hall there were all kinds of signs talking about how your bags could be searched and that this item and that item were not permitted.

Typically when you arrive like this you are met by your prearranged sponsor who would either sign out a vehicle from motor pool to come and get you or drive their own personal vehicle.

As I was arriving at a time when the squadron I was assigned to was deployed to Aviano Airbase in Italy to bomb Serbia I had no one there to pick me up and I had to take this navy colored school bus from the terminal to Spangdahlem Airbase on my own accord.

I do not remember the exact details of how I figured out which shuttle to catch but I do remember it weaving in and out of Army installations throughout the Frankfurt area before hitting an open stretch of autobahn.

I remember being amazed by the scenery and landscape as we drove down the autobahn. The hills and villages are really unique sights compared to what you generally see when driving down American highways.

We eventually left the autobahn around a large town named Wittlich and took some really windy and narrow roads towards Spangdahlem Airbase.

About 2 and half hours after we left the arrival terminal we pulled up to the main gate of my new base and had our military IDs checked before proceeding to billeting AKA the base hotel.


I went inside the hotel and used a phone to call my shop to announce my arrival. They sent over 2 young airman like myself, both of whom I recognized from tech school and they drove me to the dorm manager to get me a set of keys for my new place.

Unfortunately the photos I have of this are all on my laptop at the Mac shop...

First trip to Luxembourg

I arrived in Germany to live in the spring of 1999 and quickly caught the traveling bug. Within a couple weeks of settling into my dorm room I was invited by my 'piss mate' (I had my own dorm room but shared the bathroom with the guy next door.) and a friend of his to go to Luxembourg City, Luxembourg.

Luxembourg City is only about 45 minutes to an hour drive from Spangdahlem Airbase but is very different from Germany culturally. Although the ethnic Luxembourg people speak a dialect of German the actual language of the government is French. So for example all the road signs and restaurant menus are in French.

It would not have made any difference to me why 'piss mate' was going to Luxembourg as I would have gone even if he had told me he was going there to sell me to Gypsies. As it turned out I need not be worried of Gypsies. We were going to The Utopolis movie complex on the edge of the city.



We parked the car outside the complex in a dirt parking lot that is now home to two world famous banks and walked inside to purchase tickets for the next showing of The Matrix. We had about an hour or so before the movie started so we went upstairs and got some seats in a very chic looking bar with a very high ceiling and large glass windows overlooking the main street.



After sitting there and soaking in the European chic bar scene we went to get some popcorn and drinks before heading into the theatre. Two things that were initially very strange to me was that if you didn't ask for ice in your soda they wouldn't give you any and you had an option of two different kinds of popcorn. Salty or sweet.

Having tried Salty popcorn for my whole life of course I HAD to go for the sweet popcorn... And I loved it. It is crunchier than salted popcorn. Perhaps it has some toffee or honey mixed in with the sugar and butter. Very rarely would I ever get salted popcorn when visiting the Cinema after this.

With my hands loaded with sugary treats to stuff my face with for the next 90 minutes we went to find some seats in the theatre. The theatre screen looked bigger than what I was accustomed to in America and the seating was much steeper. The seats were more comfortable as well from what was available in most theatres in America in the late 90's.

So when the lights went dark and I was expecting the movie previews to begin I got a slight surprise... I was sitting through commercials for milk, beer and car insurance in French. Thankfully these ended and the previews began and the movie shortly there after.

The movie was the original in English but had German and French subtitles on the bottom. I actually became quite used to this and it helped me to learn some German and French words as well.

Once the movie was finished the lights came back on and the doors that are typically used for the emergency exits opened and we followed the crowd out. Upon walking down the stairs we found ourselves back in the main lobby where you purchased tickets. They seem to have the system setup so that you couldn't leave this film and go to see another one without paying... Good Idea I guess.

We got out of the cinema well past midnight and drove back to Spangdahlem but many more trips to Luxembourg would be in my future. The place had a different vibe to it. I couldn't put my finger on it at the time as to why it had a different atmosphere that Germany but it didn't take me too long to figure it out.