GEILENKIRCHEN, Germany - Under the dark night sky, a TNT aircraft landed at NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen, Germany, at approximately 2330 hours on Nov. 18, 2014.
The jet was carrying the last members of the E-3A Component and the six remaining pallets of cargo deployed to Mazar-e Sharif (MeS), Afghanistan, as part of Operation Afghan Assist.
The Force Commander, Maj. Gen. Jochen Both, and the Component Commander, Andrew M. Mueller, welcomed the personnel home as they exited the aircraft.
“All men and women deployed have safely returned home and all equipment has been recovered,” said Col. Werner Nemetschek, the final force element commander in MeS. “The NATO E-3A Component flag has been taken down. The mission has been accomplished.”
Although the final AWACS returned on Sept. 25, 2014, the E-3A Component has spent the past two months redeploying all equipment Afghanistan back to Germany. In total, OAA lasted three years and 301 days with NATO AWACS controlling over 25,650 aircraft during more than 1,250 missions and 14,000 flying hours.