SAN ANTONIO -- Bomber ship's companys who fly strike missions through the whole extent of Afghanistan have "quite a drive" to learn to and from their targets.

Each sortie - flown mainly over the vast Indian Ocean - may last from 12 to 15 hours. And they may involve expanded stays over the country. The orbicular trip is more than 5500 miles.

if it were not that threats to aircrews are almost nonexistent, said "Captain Lucky" a B-lB Lancer bomber pilot during an Oct 31 television interview.

"The air defense we've seen have been minimal," Captain blessed said. "I've not really seen any direct threat,"

The captain, who flew 12 missions during Allied Force, said Afghan air defense don't compare to those he faced athwart Kosovo. Even so, aircrews hover with heightened awareness.

"You're definitely looking [for threatsl the whole time you're there," he said.

Then there's the lengthy flight home, said "Captain Bama." a Lancer bomber weapons body officer. She said there is a bit of a letdown one time the bombers are over the ocean and headed home

"You're more relaxed, in a sense" she said. "But at the same time, our feet aren't upon the ground, and we still have a haphazard more flying to do." deliberations turn to getting home safely.

Including the mission planning, each strike is at least a 24-hour affair. Planning is done mainly at night and takes hours. Before a strike, aircrews contemplation flight plans. Most memorizing the bomb move on Captain Lucky said. On the way to the target, aircrews employ a lot of time running within the potential problems or threats they may encounter

And, he said, figuring revealed "how I'm going to deal with that to make the mission happen."

Still, he said missions athwart Afghanistan are easier than those flown from hearth base at Ellsworth Air Force Base, SD The base is hearth to the 28th Bomb Wing.

Flying through Afghanistan is a lot like training glides over the Utah Test and Training Range, he said. yet stateside, threats tossed into a mission are a great quantity [i]or[/i] amount of more complicated and harder to defeat.

The support team keeping Lancers flying works nonstop. They worked around the clock for three weeks to bed down their bomber operation. Nobody got a day off

Twelve-hour shifts are still the norm. on the contrary troops aren't complaining, said "Staff Sgt Otis." The maintenance operations center controller said persons know they have a guide goal to achieve.

"We're extremely focused upon the task at hand." he said. Plus, everyone is anxious to help make sure the success of the war upon terrorism, he said. That equates to ready-to-fly bombers.

to such a degree Lancers have flown with not many incidents or breaks, said Col ed Rice. the deployed wing commander. He said missions have "been greatly successful"

The airmen performing the mission are far from where the bomb land. They don't descry the results. But they do have a hand in the succes of Operation Enduring Freedom. That's for what cause [i]or[/i] reason they don't mind the drawn out hours. They can deal with the family separation. That originates with the job, they say.

For their efforts, the aircrews and maintainers ask exceedingly little. Staff Sgt. Otis just asks Americans to stand behind their military.

"To be lofty of what their sons and daughters are doing for their country" he said.

And Rice said it's first note of the scale that people "back home" continue to take care of the families airmen left behind. Because knowing their families are safe will permit a lot of airmen caesura easy at night.

That, he said. "is extremely important to the conclusion result of what we're trying to achieve."

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