Posted on 01/10/2006 3:44:27 PM PST by SandRat
AL ASAD, Iraq (Jan. 9, 2006) -- Continuing with the tradition of Marines taking care of business no matter the climate, the Moonlighters of Marine All-Weather Fighter Attack Squadron 332 are working through Iraq's cold nights.
The Moonlighters said although everything might be difficult in the dark, nothing will stop them from having their F/A-18D Hornets ready to fly out of their base at Al Asad, Iraq, to ensure Marines on the ground receive their support.
“No matter what the conditions, the Marines don’t complain,” said Maj. Lance Muniz, the maintenance officer with VMFA(AW)-332 and a Centreville, Md., native. “They’re professionals who get the job done. Everything is a little harder to do when it’s cold and dark, but that doesn’t slow us down. We fly just as much in the night as we do during the day.”
Marines throughout the squadron face different challenges during the night, and as the nights have gotten colder, the Moonlighters said they have simply adjusted to the change.
“If you’re working hard, you pay attention to your job, not the temperature,” said Sgt. Omar Khan, the quality assurance representative with VMFA(AW)-332, and a Jackson, Mich., native. “You keep yourself warm by wearing the appropriate clothing and you make sure your Marines under you are taken care of. Our jets stay outside, and so do we.”
Khan said Marines deal with the cold everywhere, to him it’s something you adapt to. He said accountability on tools and parts is more of a challenge during the night, but the Moonlighters know what they are doing.
“Everything we do, someone’s life depends on us doing it successfully,” said Khan. “You just learn to work at night. It becomes second nature.”
Khan said because working in the dark naturally slows you down, the Marines must be constantly focused on getting the job done.
“Without sunlight, simple jobs are harder to do,” said Sgt. Daniel Filbert, an airframe mechanic with VMFA(AW)-332, a Kansas City, Mo., native. “A lot of us are bundling up, wearing everything we can. Sometimes, you just bear the cold for as long as you can and then go back inside. Even dropping something is a bigger deal, getting down on all fours looking for it can be a little frustrating.”
Filbert said while work is harder at night, the Moonlighters have it set up so a fresh set of hands are able to work on frustrating problems every 12 hours and that allows for a great deal more maintenance to get done.
“All of our hard work is worth it when our birds take off at night and you see the flash of light from the afterburners,” said Cpl. Narges Safdari, an avionics electrician with VMFA(AW)-332 and a Fairfax, Va., native. “When I see them fly off, I know I played my part in making that possible. At night, you have to deal with a wind that cuts through you and numb fingers. But, we know we have to get our jobs done, in order to get the birds in the air, and that keeps you focused.”
Safdari said while many days and nights are similar, there have been days when the Moonlighters have been constantly busy.
“I was amazed to see how smoothly we all worked together,” said Safdari. “One day, we had flight after flight. They would take off and come back and we would load missile after missile. I liked seeing everyone work together, throughout the day and night.”
Muniz said there are a great deal more unknowns during the night for the Moonlighter pilots.
“During the day, you have the whole picture of your surroundings,” said Muniz. “At night, you need many instruments to give you different parts of that picture. You have to use everything you have to build that picture in your mind, to get that warm and fuzzy feeling knowing everything is in the right place.”
The Moonlighters have flown 24 hours a day, seven days a week since they arrived in late July, when it was still hot outside. Muniz said they have flown every day, besides a maintenance day, where the Marines actually did more work than usual. He said Marines outside Al Asad’s wire don’t get days off, and the Marines here don’t expect any either.
“We fly on the needs of Marines on the ground,” said Muniz. “But, no matter what they need, day or night, we are ready.”
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