EC-130 Squadron Surpasses 10,000 Combat Hours

BAGRAM AIRFIELD, Afghanistan --- Members of the 41st Expeditionary Electronic Combat Squadron here surpassed 10,000 combat hours in the EC-130H Compass Call while supporting Operation Enduring Freedom in September.>> While assisting International Security Assistance Force troops move a 41-vehicle convoy, members of the 41st EECS flew overhead in an EC-130H to disrupt enemy command and control communications and limit adversary coordination.>> The 41st EECS's 10,000 hours were amassed over four years, beginning with their first Operation Enduring Freedom deployment in March 2004 from Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Ariz.>> "Our primary mission is to support the ground troops at the (forward operating bases) with communications jamming," said Maj. James Bands, an operations officer. "For this aircraft it is extremely difficult (to reach such a milestone). There are only 14 of these aircraft in the Air Force. So it's taken four years of constant flying at about 2-3,000 hours on one aircraft a year, in order to accomplish this.">> With only two operational EC-130H squadrons in the Air Force, many of the Airmen with the 41st EECS have deployed multiple times. Capt. Jared Howard, a navigator, is on his fourth OEF deployment and has more than 900 combat hours.>> "It's all pretty much the same mission," said the native of Pontiac, Ill. "The sorties seem to be getting longer and longer. When we first started off, we were just doing one thing, because everybody didn't know all our capabilities. So now we've told people about our abilities, and they are employing us much more.