Return To Iraq
The Talon I is an awfully versatile platform. We don't need a runway—we showed that numerous times during OEF and OIF. We flew Rumsfeld to Baghdad. It was the first time in twenty-five years he had been there. The last time he went, he met with Tariq Aziz and Saddam Hussein about the Iran-Iraq war.
     — MSgt. Lamar Cutchins

Employer Support, Part I
I work for an engineering firm in Panama City. My employer has been very supportive. My company does force protection, so they encourage me to contribute to the Reserve. The experience has been beneficial on both ends.
     — SSgt. Thomas Webster

Employer Support, Part II
My employer held my job well beyond the point he could have gotten somebody else.
     — TSgt. Joel Byrd

Positive Impacts
We flew a lot of good missions that made a positive impact. The rest and recreation runs for the Army were especially pleasing for me. The troops were always very happy when they got on the plane for their three-day leave to Qatar.
     — TSgt. Stacy Meiser

Bare-Base Security
We provided aircraft security and security for 1,700 US personnel at a bare base. We sent two five-man teams from our unit, two five-man teams from an active unit, and two five-man teams from a Guard unit. So, we had thirty people total. We stayed there more than 100 days. The base had no barriers, no walls. The only structure was a well. We couldn't take a shower.
     — TSgt. Joel Byrd

Familiar Faces
The teamwork and professionalism stick in my mind. We are all brothers and we know we are all out to do a job. We get used to the people we fly with. That familiarity is critical.
     — SSgt. Mike Daugherty