Hugs and kisses were exchanged when nearly 30 Airmen from the 388th and 419th Fighter Wings returned home Dec. 10 from a three month deployment to Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan.
In September, F-16 jets, pilots, maintainers and personnel assigned to the 4th Fighter Squadron, 4th Aircraft Maintenance Unit, and other 388th and 419th FW units deployed in support of Operation Enduring Freedom.
Their primary mission was to maintain security and stability in the region by providing close air support for coalition ground troops.
"The work these Airmen perform is vital to our mission in Afghanistan," said Col. Scott Zobrist, 388th Fighter Wing Commander. "Keeping our aircraft maintained is absolutely critical to supporting our ground troops and ultimately to saving lives."
"I'm proud of the work these Airmen did and I'm glad to see them return home in time for the holidays," he added.
The 388th and 419th FWs were tasked to deploy additional aircraft and personnel to support the theater commander's plan for security and stabilization for this deployment.
Although some are returning, the wings still have about 300 Airmen as well as F-16s deployed in support of ongoing coalition objectives in Afghanistan.
Richard Essary, 75th Air Base Wing Public Affairs, contributed to this article.
