combat aircraft

joint coalition partners with various

deployment rotations that last anywhere

between two and 12 months.’

France oversees everything from the

medical teams to the security forces and

says the manning and deployed assets

at Al Dhafra have traditionally ‘ebbed

and  owed’. It’s not at its highest level at

present, the F-15E deployment having

relocated last year.

‘One of the main challenges’, France

adds, ‘is that the infrastructure on base

was put in place with an expeditionary

mindset — it’s not bricks and mortar —so

we have a lot of tents and trailers.’ Most

people’s living accommodation, in what

is known as Camp Phantom, is a large air-

conditioned tent or trailer-style dormitory,

but there’s no shortage of excellent

facilities such as a gymnasium and good

food available around the clock. It may

be steaming-hot here in the summer

months but ‘AC’ makes it more bearable

away from the sweltering concrete  ight

Brig Gen Derek

France, the current

commander of the

380th AEW at Al

Dhafra. USAF/SrA

Preston Webb

A pair of Raptors

forms up with the

KC-10 during the long

trek from Al Dhafra

to the current area of

operations.

FEATURE ARTICLE // 380TH AIR EXPEDITIONARY WING

30 August 2018 //^ http://www.combataircraft.net

28-39 Al Dhafra C.indd 30 21/06/2018 17:22