On To Kabul

It wasn’t until after 12 before we were called to our flight. One thing I quickly learned about the great Hercules C-130 is that you should try to be one of the last people on board. The seats up front are 4 across and are longitudinally aligned – that is you either face in or out. The seats at the rear of the plane beyond the landing gear area, on the other hand, are only 2 across facing out. Much legroom there.

I don’t remember how long the flight was to Kabul but it couldn’t have been more than 90 minutes or so. We landed and were picked up out away from the terminal by a modern bus designed to do such things. We drove a short way to the terminal which was modern looking on the outside and equally modern looking on the inside. Small but clean and deserted. All I had to do was get my ID card scanned again and move on out the door. Outside were a group of “Combat Drive Teams”. Each Camp has them. They are like a taxi service. They take people throughout the Greater Kabul Metro Area to the various posts and camps. The vehicles they drive are typically up armored Chevy Suburbans or Toyota Land Cruisers. They are festooned with massive steel bumpers, various antennae, and electronic devices that help defeat IEDs. The drivers are fully armed and equipped to handle any situation.  The people from my office were expecting me and I found them in short order. My new boss, a CW4, and our driver, a Navy petty officer greeted me and we moved over to our vehicle. Suburban? No. Fancy Toyota Land Cruiser? Of course not. Since they weren’t an official “Combat Drive Team” they came and picked me up in an armored F350 Ford 1 ton pickup. Super Duty, yeah. Big steel bumpers, bullet proof (I hope) glass with shooting ports and the fancy antennae and IED defeat electronics. I almost felt right at home.