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        Policy UpdatesNewsroomReoptimizationBIOGRAPHIESAF Senior Leaders      Senior Master Sgt. Adam Schill, 447th Air Expeditionary Group Detachment 1 superintendent, watches people board an Iraqi Air Force helicopter July 19, 2018, at Qayyarah Airfield West, Iraq. The air traffic controllers assigned to the 447th AEG, assist Iraqi Air Force controllers with various types of aircraft movement at the airfield. (U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Caleb Pierce)Airmen support Q-West airfield side-by-side with Iraqis
                        
                        
                        Senior Master Sgt. Adam Schill, 447th Air Expeditionary Group Detachment 1 superintendent, watches people board an Iraqi Air Force helicopter July 19, 2018, at Qayyarah Airfield West, Iraq. The air traffic controllers assigned to the 447th AEG, assist Iraqi Air Force controllers with various types of aircraft movement at the airfield. (U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Caleb Pierce)
                
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        Senior Airman Timothy Feik, a 447th Air Expeditionary Group air traffic controller, advises an Iraqi Air Force controller July 19, 2018, at Qayyarah Airfield West, Iraq. The air traffic controllers at Q-West are a-part of the train, advise and assist mission with the Iraqi Air Force. (U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Caleb Pierce)Airmen support Q-West airfield side-by-side with Iraqis
                        
                        
                        Senior Airman Timothy Feik, a 447th Air Expeditionary Group air traffic controller, advises an Iraqi Air Force controller July 19, 2018, at Qayyarah Airfield West, Iraq. The air traffic controllers at Q-West are part of the train, advise and assist mission with the Iraqi Air Force. (U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Caleb Pierce)
                
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Airmen support Q-West airfield alongside IraqisPublished Aug. 6, 2018
                    
                    By Tech. Sgt. Caleb Pierce
                    
                    
                    386th Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs
            **QAYYARAH AIRFIELD WEST, Iraq (AFNS) --**The average day for air traffic controllers involves a lot of moving parts and Airmen working constantly to ensure safe and secure air flow. For Qayyarah Airfield West, Iraq, this rests solely on the shoulders of just a few people.
Not only do those Airmen control the airspace, at the airfield commonly called ‘Q-West’, they also work side-by side with the Iraqi Air Force controllers.
Senior Airman Brennan Gettinger, a 447th Air Expeditionary Group air traffic controller, supports the critical airfield for strategic airlift along with the IqAF.
“Friendship is key,” said Gettinger, who is deployed from the 319th Operations Support Squadron at Grand Forks Air Force Base, North Dakota. “Our mission is to train and advise the [Iraqis] because they don’t get the training most people do back in the States.”
The U.S. air traffic controllers interact and build relationships with their counterparts by assisting with Iraqi aircraft movement from the IqAF facility located at a separate area.
Senior Master Sgt. Adam Schill, 447th AEG Detachment 1 superintendent, said the mission is different here than that of home station locations as Q-West has a landing zone versus a runway. He added, working directly with Iraqi controllers adds a unique and beneficial element to their mission because the relationship with the IqAF controllers is key, not only to the growth of the Iraqis, but also the Airmen doing the training.
“It’s a very rewarding experience for the [Airmen] because they really get to reap the reward of building a good relationship with the Iraqi Air Force and see the fruits of their labor come to play when the Iraqis are controlling [their] aircraft,” said Schill. “They are very proud of what they do and we are very proud of them too.”
Schill went on to explain how the success of past rotations helped train the Iraqis to the point where they are directing different types of aircraft onto the airfield, and control it now with little to no assistance from U.S. forces.
Along with the air advisor role, Schill sais his team performed extremely well during this deployment.
“Knowing those of us here are supporting the whole airfield is simply amazing,” said Schill. “To watch everyone come together while simultaneously training the Iraqis – it’s amazing. I have never worked with a better group then this.”Qayyarah Airfield West 



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