Don't Worry, That Never Will Happen

摘要

This story, like many aviation stories, could start, "It was just another normal day...," but many days that start normally don't end up that way. We were scheduled for a zero-dark-30 (middle-of-the-night) preflight and launch on a 10-hour grinder of a mission. Our mid-December flight over Afghanistan was in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. I was the officer in charge of the EP-3E detachment and the mission commander on this flight. I also would be certifying a newly arrived crew on the special instructions and procedures related to our mission. The arriving crew was very seasoned and had plenty of theater experience.