November, 2nd Ed., 2007

Happy Thanksgiving, Sather Air Base, Baghdad, Iraq!447th Air Expeditionary GroupNovember 2007, 2nd Edition

AEF 9/10

PB&J the hard way

Air Force sergeants boost the base’s End-of-Tour Bash by having their pie and wearingit too.

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For love of country and family

Tech. Sgt. Richard Linett, second from left, flies his father’s 10-by-19 footU.S. flag at Sather AB’s Glass House Nov. 18. The flag was given to hisfather as a retirement gift from his civilian employer. Sergeant Linett is amember of the 370th Air Expeditionary Advisory Squadron at New Al MuthanaAir Base. Helping him fly the flag are Tech. Sgt. Byers, left, Master Sgt. KarlCampbell, and Tech. Sgts. Derek Rogers, Robby Hilpert and Scott Kapanke.

Staff Sgt. Jennifer Lindsey

Sather AB Airmen get U.S. military’s newestarmored vehicles on the rolling to saveservicemembers’ lives.

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Good to goIn the lead

Lt. Col. Mark Brunworth accepts commandof the squadron charged with training andadvising the Iraqi Air Force here.

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November, 2nd Ed., 2007

This funded newspaper is an authorizedpublication for members of the U.S. military servicesoverseas. Contents of

The Pathfinder

are notnecessarily the views of, or endorsed by, the U.S.Government, the Department of Defense, or theDepartment of the Air Force.The editorial content is edited, prepared andprovided by the public affairs office of the 447th AirExpeditionary Group, Sather Air Base, Iraq. Thispublication is a bi-weekly product, produced twiceeach month. All photographs are U.S. Air Force

Editorial Staff

2nd Edition, Nov. 20, 2007

photographs unless otherwise indicated.Sather AB’s

The

Pathfinder

accepts stories,photographs and commentaries, which maybesubmitted to the public affairs staff -- located in thegroup headquarters building at the Glass House --or can be sent directly to the newspaper at447aeg.pa@bdab.centaf.af.mil.Deadline for publication is one week prior topublication. For more information, call 446-2405,or e-mail public affairs at 447aeg.pa@bdab.centaf.af.mil.

Commander’s Page

Col. Kevin Kriner

Commander, 447th AEG

Lt. Col. Warren Benjamin

Deputy Commander, 447th AEG

Staff Sgt. Jennifer Lindsey

Chief, Public Affairs

Take time to reflect on accomplishments,maintain focus for safe, honorable finish

By Col. Kevin Kriner

447th Air Expeditionary Group commander

As my time at Sather Air Base rapidlywinds down, I want to thank all of again foryour continued great work and service tothe nation!If you haven’t noticed, the work youhave done across the base since your arrivalis nothing short of impressive. With all of the tasks and projects we still have on thebooks, it’s often difficult to recognize andappreciate all of the work that has beencompleted. If you haven’t already, take a fewminutes and review everything that you andothers have been a part of since your arrival.Your job isn’t doneyet, but theprogress is amazing– and you made ithappen.As mentioned inthe last letter, as youfinish the AEF 9/10cycle, it will becomeincreasinglyimportant for youand others to remainfocused and tocontinue to dothings right.Statistics from pastAEFs graphically demonstrate that the lastmonth and one-half of each rotation - theperiod we are now entering — has been theworst as far as accidents due to compla-cency and poor decisions that result indisciplinary action. Don’t let yourself oranyone else become one of those statistics.Finish strong, finish with honor andfinish with a story you will be proud to tell.My story will be about all of you, what youhave accomplished and the privilege I havehad to serve with great Americans during acritical period in our nation’s history.It has been an honor to be on your team,and I wish everyone continued success inthe future.

Photos by Master Sgt. John Lackey

Veteran’sVeteran’sVeteran’sVeteran’sVeteran’sDaDaDaDaDayyyyyFlagFlagFlagFlagFlagraisingraisingraisingraisingraising

Center: Lt. Col. Warren Benjamin and Chief MasterSgt. Curtis Walker, 447th Air Expeditionary Groupdeputy commander and superintendent, respectively,salute the U.S. flag. Right: Group members, veteransof Operation Iraqi Freedom, attended the ceremonythat took place at 11 a.m. in recognition of the endof World War I. The “Great War” officially endedwith the signing of the Treaty of Versailles in 1919on the eleventh month of the year, at the eleventhhour of the eleventh day.The Sather AB Honor Guardprepare the U.S. flag for aVeteran’s Day Flag Flyingceremony here Nov. 11.Col. Kevin Kriner,447th Air Exped-itionary Groupcommander,redeploys in earlyDecember.

November, 2nd Ed., 2007

News/Feature

Col. Brunworth takes command of 370th AEAS

Former OSS director of operations leadsU.S. Airmen advising, training Iraqi Air Force

Story and photo by Staff Sgt. Jennifer Lindsey

447th Air Expeditionary Group Public Affairs

NEW AL MUTHANA AIR BASE, Iraq — The 370th Air Expedi-tionary Advisory Squadron welcomed its new commander with aceremony here on Veteran’s Day.Lt. Col. Mark A. Brunworth took squadron lead from Col. Mark J.Schmitz in a formal ceremony with U.S. and Iraqi Air Force Airmenstanding side-by-side in formation in the squadron’s enormousaircraft hangar with an Iraqi C-130 Hercules in the background.Colonel Brunworth is deployed from Yokota Air Base, Japan, andColonel Schmitz, who completes his 12 month tour in Iraq, returns toScott Air Force, Ill.During the ceremony, Iraqi Air Force Brig. Gen. “Kareem,” New AlMuthana Air Base commander, wished Colonel Brunworth “goodluck” in his next year of command and thanked Colonel Schmitz forall the advances he assisted for the base and the IAF.As the 370th AEAS commander, Colonel Brunworth leads about50 Air Force Airmen fulfilling the Coalition Air Force Transition Teammission by serving in advisory roles. He is responsible for oversee-ing all aspects of advising and training the Iraqi Air Force on how tooperate, employ and maintain C-130 aircraft, and to maintain andoperate as a self-sufficient air base with a wing staff and traditionalbase-level functions. The unit, which is made up of Airmen from avariety of career specialties, officially activated April 22.A former 374th Operations Support Squadron director of opera-tions with more than 3,800 flying hours under his belt, ColonelBrunworth said he looks forward to working with the Iraqi Air Forceand assisting the continuing buildup and expansion of IAF capabili-ties.

Lt. Col. Mark A. Brunworth, accepted command of the 370thAir Expeditionary Advisory Squadron in a change ofcommand ceremony on New Al Muthana Air Base Nov. 11.

“This is truly a unique and historic opportunity to take Iraqi (C-130) flying operations to new levels,” the colonel said. “I’m lookingforward to the next year.”Under Colonel Schmitz command, the 370th AEAS advisedmembers of the Iraqi Air Force from on training, flying, providingmedical care and learning English, and IAF pilots logged more than800 flying hours.“A truly incredible achievement,” said Col. David Penny, 370th AirExpeditionary Advisory Group commander.The group commander continued to say that the extensiveexperiences Colonel Brunworth brings to his new command willserve him well as he learns the advisory role, and will “make adifference in establishing a sovereign nation and a free people.”

Show pride in serving at Sather AB by leaving it better than you found it

NEW AL MUTHANA AIR BASE, Iraq --Senior Master Sgt. Rhonda Wimer,second from left, 370th AirExpeditionary Advisory Squadron,observes as Iraqi Air Force membersprepare to transfer a woundedservicemember from a U.S. ArmyBlackhawk to an Iraqi C-130 fortransport to a regional specialty caremedical facility Oct. 25. Members ofthe 447th Expeditionary Medical Groupassist the transfer. Sergeant Wimer, aCoalition Air Force Transition Teammedical advisor, provides guidanceon all aspects of the Iraqi Air Forcemedical care program.

Iraqi medical transfer

Staff Sgt. Jennifer Lindsey