Well, I'm in Kyrgyzstan now. The USAF has assumed control of an old-Soviet air base here. Talk about decrepit. Old planes still sitting off on the side of things...
We flew in on an ATA L-1011 military charter. Of all the places not on their Route schedule, this must be one of them. The flight crew was tremendous. They know good and well where we're heading, and there's no request you couldn't make. Whatever you wanted, they obliged. Super comfortable. Very nice. And wished us all well at the end, asking us to be safe and that it was an honor for them to carry us. Touching...
The base is a tent-city carved out of nowhere. But, very comfortable and secure. As far as outposts go, it's not bad. Had worse times elsewhere.
We're waiting on flights. From here on out, it's tactical airlift (C-130 or C-17). And depending on our route, we may finish the journey via helicopter across Afghanistan. Wheeee... my first helicopter ride.
Other than that, it's just tedium and waiting. But, on the plus side... we're now "in the zone", so the combat pay and tax-free starts now. Yay!
Final thought... I had this as I got off the plane. It continues to amaze me how I keep looking out of windows and seeing places I never thought I'd see. Tehran, East Berlin, Turkey, Kyrgyzstan, and soon... Afghanistan. Amazing.
Take care...
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