I am proud to have served in the USAF
I am proud to have served for four years in the United States Air Force, 1983 – 1987. It was a defining time in my life. I was just out of high school, and I had already decided to join the USAF in the telecommunications field. My main reason for joining was to learn a trade in telecommunications.
However, I’ve never really thought of myself as a “Vet.” To me that title was reserved for those who risked their lives in combat. The closest I came to combat was having breakfast with the USAF crew that took part in the 1986 US bombing of Libya. It was code-named Operation El Dorado Canyon and was comprised of United States Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps air-strikes. The attack was carried out in response to the 1986 Berlin discotheque bombing.
I worked as a cable splicing installation and maintenance specialist assigned to the 1839th EIG stationed at Keesler AFB in Biloxi MS. It was an interesting job and I worked with a great group of people from all parts of the world. We were an engineering and installation group that traveled the world doing our job. I was able to see parts of this earth an ole’ Mississippi boy would not normally see otherwise.
After my four-year enlistment, I returned to civilian life and lost contact with the guys in my group. Later on in life I found this website http://www.wiredawg.net and have been able to reconnect with one of the guys I worked with, Dave LeBlanc. I hope to find more but I have not tried very hard since last talking to Dave.
I’m proud of my small part in defending our country, and immensely proud of the men and women with whom I served. Most of us served only four years, but we did our jobs well, and, we would do it again in a heartbeat, if called on.
Sgt Alex Jones – 1839th EIG
