Airmen of the 376th Civil Engineer Squadron’s explosive ordnance disposal flight at the Transit Center at Manas, Kyrgyzstan, continue to build bonds with the Kyrgyz military. The unit has just completed its fourth training class at Manas for Kyrgyz EOS specialists. Fourteen Kyrgyz soldiers graduated from the five-day class on Aug. 6. “For us the key thing was to be able to show them how to do something and then let them try it for themselves,” said TSgt. Nicholas Schulte, chief of the EOD flight, in describing the instruction. “Thank you so much for this opportunity for our new generation of sergeants to observe and apply these skills,” said Col. Ziabek Beishebekovich Kamchibekov, chief of the Kyrgyz military’s engineering department. At the graduation ceremony, the USAF airmen donated four EOD suits to the Kyrgyzs. (Manas report by TSgt. Jennifer Buzanowski)
The six-week government shutdown did not affect the hours flown by Air Force pilots, a service spokesperson told Air & Space Forces Magazine—avoiding what could have been a major blow at a time when flying hours are already lower than they have been in decades.
