Times are always changing...nothing stays the same. Just when I thought the quiet pace was the norm, we get hit with a LONG day of missions. We actually 'ERF'ed out'...which is when you fly as long as the rules allow in one duty cycle, which was 7 hours of mixed day and night flying. Flying 7.5 hours isn't of itself hard..if it were all one long mission. But they nickle-and-dime us, launching us on 7 missions that were roughly and hour each. Problem is, each hour flown actually represents about 3 hrs of work, Sprinting back to work, running up, flying the mission, post-flight maintenance and cleaning, logbook and paperwork etc. I actually felt the impact of fatigue. It was our 6th mission and the 2nd NVG mission that night, somewhere around 2 or 3 in the morning, and I had only had 1 hr sleep. I was awake, but my reflexes were slower and my reaction time wasn't quite up to par. The LZ snuck up on me faster than I judged and I wasn't set up correctly for the landing. Had to execute a 'go-around' and come at it again. Minor ding to the ego, but overall, we handled all the missions safely and got it done.
I felt bad sleeping through the whole next day. The weather is BEAUTIFUL right now. Reminds me of Colorado. The crisp, freezing air, clear blue skies and just a hint of warmth from the sun make it enjoyable. Most are complaining about the sudden onslaught of freezing temperatures, and shuffling around in winter gear. I just smile and enjoy it. Better to get acclimatized now. Korea will be a frozen, ice sheet when I get back, and Colorado will most likely be under a foot of snow.
Less than 60 days....
I think I'm a little backward. You'd expect that a new arrival into a combat zone would be scared of the rocket attacks initially and then get ovewr it with time. Well, they never used to bother me, but too many for too long can wear on you. Now I'm very concious around sunset until several hours after dark- I stay off the main roads and large, open intersections. I actually walk inbetween the concrete barriers and the buildings just to make me a smaller target. This close to going home is no time to get hit by shrapnel from a rocket that lands a block away. It'll have to land right on my head- which if that were the case, there was nothing I could have done about it anyway and it was just my time. I actually debate going to dinner at night...
I don't mind being a chicken...