Out of Kyrgyzstan

We had a 0330 flight out of Manas AB, Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. Manas is a staging base for troops and airmen into and out of Afghanistan. The base is spartan, but still has many luxuries and amenities for the transients heading down range. They have several little shops with local crafts, services, and a self-contained Pizza Hut trailer.

Manas has some two-story metal buildings for lodging, but most folks are housed in large tents. They have a recreation facility Peter's Place named after Peter Ganci, a New York firefighter killed in the 9/11 attacks. They serve Russian beers with a two beer a night limit. The most potent brew is Baltika 9 sporting 8% alcohol.

The dining facility had lackluster fare with little concern for taste and presentation. However, the food was plentiful and met the need.

I was made troop commander for the flight into Kabul because I was the senior ranking Airman. I originally had 23 members, but at flight time I counted 25. PERSCO added two people, but didn't tell me. We boarded a C-130 and with the 1 1/2 hour time change, landed in Kabul at 0500 Thursday, 12 Aug 10.

The saga begins.