SrA. Nicholas Eischen apparently died in his sleep on Dec. 24, 2007, at Bagram AB, Afghanistan, but the actual cause of his death remains a mystery. The Los Angeles Times reported on Jan 13, citing the airman’s grandfather, that Eischen had had his gall bladder removed three weeks before his death. But the procedure was thought to have gone smoothly and the 24-year-old airman was regarded as being otherwise healthy, the newspaper said. Eischen leaves behind a wife and a two-year-old son.
Air Force depots are not typically meant for quick repair jobs, but during Operation Epic Fury, the service moved some of its stateside heavy maintenance capability forward to fix battle-damaged aircraft closer to the fight.
