I had to start with this photo. This my friends is foreign aid! These gently used jet engines were donated by a few of the un-named coalition countries participating here. They counted as several million dollars in foreign aid. Oh, it doesn't matter that they didn't come with any documentation at all (flight logs, maintenance records, etc.). My flying buddies here tell me they are essentially worthless. I guess the metal might be worth something eventually. Perhaps we could make planters out of them for the roses.
This is an AN-72/74. I've become a real fan of some of the Soviet aircraft. They are simple, rugged, and extremely powerful. This monster has two huge turbofans with 14k+ lbs of thrust for a 19k lb aircraft (empty). I've seen several here flying every day. It is as if they jump off the runway. Simple to maintain, tough, and they'll land on grass, sand, dirt, and snow (with skis attached). Only $17-20 million each. Kind of homely, but very cool.
Here's a couple UN MI-17's. Again, a bit homely, but hugely powerful, simple, and rugged. I'm trying to get a ride on one. Sorry for the picture quality, but we were moving across the ramp fairly rapidly so nobody was able to stop and question our presence. The ANA Air Corps has several of these and they are perfectly suited to the Afghan geography. They are one of the highest flying helicopters due the two powerful engines with a service ceiling of almost 20k feet, and they carry a fair bit too. It's a shame the US can't buy some of the Soviet designs and build them.
This is the welcome sign arriving planes see when they pull up to the KAIA terminal. I thought it was a good snap shot, so here it is.
I liked the contrast between these next two photos. They were taken only 1/2 a block apart. The whole reason we had to cross the flight line today was to make sure we exited a gate as close to the vehicle repair shop as possible. It is sort of a chicken and egg problem. We can't go off base without being in an armored vehicle, but both our armored vehicles were off base. Hmmm. We took our soft skin Toyota out to pick up the Land Cruisers. Thanks to no armor, the windows actually rolls down in it, so I got to take some good photos of the passing street scenes. The first picture is a typical shot of a Kabul neighborhood. Notice the pile of dirt in the foreground and the gravel just behind. The Afghans are doing what they can to improve things. This will surely help with the mud during the rainy season and snow melt. You can just make out the small boy in the background as well (click the picture for a larger version).
The next photo is again a typical street scene. There are a lot of these small markets all over, and there are watermelons for sale everywhere. We have fresh watermelon in the chow hall on-base almost every meal. It is tasty. I hope it is still fresh when the 4th of July rolls around. This is about as colorful as it gets around here. Unless you've seen the way they decorate their trucks. I plan to do a whole entry on them if I can get some good photos. Needless to say, this store is evidence that a market economy is coming back.
As promised, here are a bunch of NMAA cadets hanging around the ANA Air Corps. They get really serious when they get to see the aircraft up close. If you consider their backgrounds, it is pretty awesome that many of them will be flying these in the next few years. Yes, that's an MI-24/25/35 Hind in the background. The ANA flies a few of these too. This is the type of helicopter that a US UH-60 was mistaken for and shot down by two F-15's in 1994. On board was a '92 USAFA grad and a friend of mine, Lt Laura Piper. We were originally classmates, although she took a year of stop out. We were stationed together on Ramstein back then. Every time I see one I think of that.
Here's the whole group that hung out with the Air Corps yesterday. Those are Czech built L-39's in the background. They are sexy little single engine jets that the some in the Afghan Air Corps really want to buy, but they are a terrible aircraft for this country and the terrain. They are fast, but fragile. If you overlay their range with the number and location of paved runways in Afghanistan, the coverage they could provide without tankers is dismal. Adding tankers to the Air Corps is a bridge too far for the foreseeable future.
Last picture. This is the obligatory picture of me in front of "No-Lemon" auto. They are the ones contracted to service all our vehicles. I was talking with one of the British employees there and it is apparently owned by a Dane. They've got quite a good business going based on what we pay for service, tires, etc. I asked them if they could get me an up armored convertible Z06 Corvette and they looked at me like I had two heads. I guess they don't see the military utility like I do.
Remind me to blog about the tragic lack of trains in this part of the world some time. That's why this blog entry couldn't be Planes, Trains, and Automobiles.
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