Barksdale AFB Pastor Appreciation

Once again this year, I was invited to attend the Clergy Appreciation event at Barksdale AFB in Shreveport. Active Duty Air Force airmen or Reserve airmen are encouraged to invite their minister for a special day on base. The 917th Air Wing is the Reserve unit at Barksdale, along with the 8th Air Force and other units. It is one of only two bases that the B-52 call home. The flight line is filled with B-52's and A-10 attack fighters. My invitation came from Tech Sargent Ken Wooley, one of my Beech St. members. Ken serves the AF Reserves full-time. He maintains the many complex components of the B-52's electronic warfare systems. Much of what he works on he could not discuss. Sean Mills, my Education/Student Pastor made the trip with me for a great day with Ken and the staff at Barksdale.

We were treated to a great lunch at the officer's club. We were then briefed on the day's activities by a General who commands the 917th! We boarded a bus and got a tour of the massive base. That place is huge! We ended up going to the secure area of the flight line to see up close a B-52 and an A-10. We were given a walk-around tour of the B-52 by a weapons officer who had almost 5,000 hours of flight in the BUFF (Big Ugly Fat Fella). He told us many of the weapons the bomber deploys and some of his recent combat missions in Afghanistan. We checked out the bomb bay and the cockpit of the massive plane! An A-10 pilot joined us to visit with us about the plane they call the Warthog. He shared with us some of the missions he had carried in Iraq helping troops on the ground with close air support. The coolest part of the A-10 is the massive gun under the nose that I would not want to have aimed at me! We got a special treat at the end as Ken got permission to show us his work station and a B-52 his guys had been working on.

This day makes me so appreciate Ken and the many other folks in our military doing the mission and keeping our nation safe. They are so nice and encouraging to us, but it's the airmen that deserve the thanks! Thanks for the invite Ken...I can't wait until next year!!