Members of the 321st Special Tactics Squadron leap from the rear hatch of a C-130 during a training mission. Cadets from the Air Force Academy rode along on the plane to see first-hand how the special operations troops conduct business. (Bryan Mitchell / S&S)
Members of the 321st Special Tactics Squadron leap from the rear hatch of a C-130 during a training mission. Cadets from the Air Force Academy rode along on the plane to see first-hand how the special operations troops conduct business. (Bryan Mitchell / S&S)
Maj. Tim Thomas, right, commander of the 100th Maintenance Operations Squadron, gives some advice to Air Force Academy cadet 1st Lt. Aaron Russell at the Bob Hope Community Center. (Bryan Mitchell / S&S)
A member of the 321st Special Tactics Squadron practices his medical skills by inserting an IV into the arm of Air Force Academy Cadet 2nd Class Josh VanWyngaarden. (Bryan Mitchell / S&S)
RAF MILDENHALL — It’s shortly before 8 on a recent Thursday morning as a group of U.S. Air Force Academy cadets mosey into the hangar that houses the 321st Special Tactics Squadron.
The eight cadets move to the center of the hangar, where the squadron’s jumpmaster is busy double-checking the critical equations used for the morning’s scheduled training mission.
The officer lays down his protractor and introduces the cadets to the Air Force special operations community with a no-nonsense address.
“If you’re in the way, don’t worry, I’ll move you,” said Capt. Bill, who can only be identified by first name according to Air Force Special Operations Command policy.
A little more than an hour later the cadets are strapped into the jump seats of a MC-130 Talon II as Capt. Bill and four of his 321st comrades leap out of the rear of the plane for the HALO — high altitude, low opening — parachute jump.
Nineteen cadets spent the last several weeks at the home of the 100th Air Refueling Wing as part of Operation Air Force.
There were also 28 cadets at RAF Lakenheath as part of the same program, which provides Air Force Academy cadets and Air Force ROTC students the opportunity to shadow officers to learn about how the Air Force operates.
Capt. Venus Larson, 27, of Los Angeles, served as the program coordinator at Mildenhall, which played host to more cadets than any other Air Force base outside of the United States.
“It’s invaluable to see how a real officer works,” said Larson, a 2001 Air Force Academy graduate. “It broadens their horizons and exposes them to the wider Air Force.”
Larson, who serves with the 100th Civil Engineering Squadron, organized several weeks’ worth of programs to expose the Air Force’s future leaders to as much as possible — including British culture.
“Most of them got a chance to tour London and some went out on a rafting trip,” she said. “To earn a slot to go overseas they have to be top cadets so they can be trusted to stay safe overseas.”
Cadet 2nd Class Morry Jackson, 19, of Yorktown, Va., and Cadet 2nd Class Nicholas Haiar, 20, of Omaha, Neb., were two of the cadets who joined the 321st on its training mission.
Jackson aspires to become an F-16 pilot; Haiar said he would like to fly “heavies” such as the C-5, C-17 or a C-130.
Both men raved about their time in England, save for the surprising pinch of the exchange rate.
Jackson said his time in England only increased his anticipation to join the ranks.
“I think the Air Force Academy is full of idealists. It’s a real ‘Here I am, send me’ type of attitude,” he said. “We know we are fortunate to live like we do and we want to preserve it.”
Haiar agreed, saying he is ready to assume his post and lead the Air Force into the future.
“We’re ready to go out and be the leadership of the new Air Force,” Haiar said. “We want to get out in the fight.”
