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Deployed Vance Airmen control Iraqi skies

  • Published
  • By Tech. Sgt. Mary Davis
  • 71st Flying Training Wing Public Affairs
VANCE AIR FORCE BASE, Okla. (AETCNS) --  Working at the second busiest airfield in the Air Force honed the skills of two Vance AFB air traffic controllers who deployed to Ali Air Base, Iraq, in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.

"Within a four-month span, we moved more than 10,000 military and civilian aircraft safely through the assigned airspace," said Staff Sgt. Jon Neidigh, air control center watch supervisor with the 407th Expeditionary Operations Support Squadron. "Air traffic controllers are directly involved with the employment of air power. We help put bombs on target by ensuring the pilots and aircraft get to their destinations safely."

Although his deployed job is essentially the same as at his home station, it does have subtle differences, said Senior Airman Joshua Beagley, 407th EOSS air traffic controller.
"The airspace we control here is much bigger - approximately the size of Oklahoma," the Springfield, Mo., native said. "We also use code words for everything - frequencies, air space and aircraft."

Another difference is the tracking equipment is less sophisticated at the deployed site, requiring controllers to do some things manually that were automated at their home base, Sergeant Neidigh explained.

"It also took some time getting used to being a shift worker," the watch supervisor said. "When your schedule changes, you have to adjust your whole routine."

Sergeant Neidigh's schedule will soon change again - for the better - when he returns to Vance this week. Sergeant Neidigh will be greeted by his wife of eight months, Emily.

One thing he learned from his deployment was "flexibility is truly the key to airpower," Sergeant Neidigh said. "Situations can change at a moment's notice, so you have to be ready to adjust your plans accordingly."

Airman Beagley only recently arrived to Ali AB, but has learned that "while stationed at Vance, it's easy to forget what a huge operation the American military is," the Airman explained. "On the way here, I stopped at four bases I've never been to that were much busier. I've come to appreciate our quiet community. Vance is definitely the place to be."
Both controllers agreed that being a part of OIF was a great opportunity.

"There is nothing more rewarding than being able to say we had something to do with rebuilding a country," Airman Beagley said. "A lot of people don't have the chance to provide assistance. I'm just glad I was able to help out."

Sergeant Neidigh echoed his fellow Airman's sentiments.
"At your home station, you train so that one day you can deploy and contribute to the success of something greater than yourself," he said. "I feel being here in Iraq validated all that training, and I'm proud to have been a part of the changes occurring here."