214th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment

Story by Spc. Cal Turner

ANDREWS AIR FORCE B ASE, Md. - Dozens of aircraft from yesterday, today and tomorrow, repair and rescue vehicles, and static military and civilian displays greeted the thousands of visitors to the flight line at Andrews Air Force Base this weekend with the 2009 Joint Service Open House, an event showing off the outstanding work done by members of the Air Force, Army, Coast Guard, Marines and Navy.

Hosted by the 316th Wing and narrated by Rob Reider, a veteran of the air show circuit and Midwestern TV personality, the JSOH featured exciting demonstrations of aerial U.S. weapons systems, civilian aircraft stunt flying and an amazing performance by the Air Force Thunderbirds, an F-16 aerial acrobatic team. Honorees at the event included the Golden Knights parachute team, and outstanding non-commissioned officers from different service branches selected to receive awards.

The JSOH brought back many fans from previous years seeking to see their particular favorites.

"This is like my fourth time coming to this," said David Thomas, a retired Airman. "These events are great for everyone. This year I came out to see Major Deon Douglas, Thunderbird number five. He is the first African-American lead plane of the Thunderbirds ever in their entire 56 years."

Attendees also got to meet several members from each service on hand to tell the public their mission and to explain their particular vehicle or equipment display they worked on.

"I'm a machinist," said Pvt. 1st Class Willie Stewart, from the 299th Engineering Company. "When people come up to me I tell them I maintain all these vehicles we brought today and fix unorderable pieces of equipment. You can't always order certain parts, like when a hinge point breaks, I would machine another one.

Stewart operates Mobile Maintenance Facility or SEOM ("Shop, Equip, Organize and Maintain"), a large repair vehicle designed to replicate a repair shop away from any local garage.

"We have lades, drills and welders on this piece of equipment," he said. "If it's in a regular maintenance shop, it is on this vehicle."

Businesses associated with the military also attended the JSOH. In between four Semi trucks sat a massive tent with lines of people waiting to enter. This was the site of the Virtual Army Experience, a combat simulation designed in cooperation with America's Army, a popular video game featuring Army characters in a realistic setting. Visitors were briefed by former military members about the different weapons systems they would be using in the game before they moved into the next room and actually had a chance to conduct a simulated Army combat mission in various vehicles. The VAE display at Andrews AFB featured a 9,700 square foot setup, approximately half of the 20,000 foot full setup of the simulation.

"I really liked it," said Senior Airman, Tiffany Etheridge, a medical technician with 779th Aeromedical Squadron. "I haven't been deployed yet, but this was very informative and strategically involved, it was a good simulation.

Army Reserves Staff Sgt. Minervis Figueroa, with the 2nd-108th Military Police Battalion and Iraq veteran works with the VAE explaining the basic mission role each visitor will play and their unique performances after they complete the combat support mission.

"I've been doing this for three years," she said. "I like getting the word out in an honest way, from the good things to the extreme things. The reality that I might have to kill or be killed was something I didn't expect when I joined. This helps make people aware of that reality and to me its one of the best recruiting tools we have today."

The F-22 Raptor also made an appearance at the JSOH, giving crowds a chance to see the Air Force's premier fighter get put through its paces and perform various maneuvers previously thought impossible for a fighter aircraft.

The three-day annual event went very well despite the weather conditions forcing some events to be postponed or cancelled. Thousands of people attended the events sponsored by several local and national sponsors and donors.

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