Veteran for Life:
Roland Bombase

U.S. Air Force
1992-2013
F-15 Avionics Specialist Technician

After 21 years working the F-15 Eagle from various assignments and deployments, I know what the maintainers, especially our Gunfighters of the 366th Fighter Wing, and their families go through. I try to provide them with their wants and needs the best way I can while working in the Mountain Home AFB Main Exchange.

Serving in the Air Force from Aug. 4, 1992 until Sept. 1, 2013, as an F-15 avionics specialist technician at Bitburg AB, Germany; two tours at the United Kingdom’s RAF Lakenheath; then Eglin AFB, Fla., Langley AFB, Va., and Mountain Home AFB, Idaho, until my retirement, was the greatest chapter in my life.

During my first tour to Lakenheath, I was part of the cadre team to receive our aircraft and reactivate the 493FS as an F-15 fighter squadron. On my second tour, our squadrons repeated history by flying combat missions from England into mainland Europe, just as our forefathers have done in WWII.  On the afternoon of Sept. 11, 2001, by 3 p.m. local time in London, I saw the airlines crashing into the Twin Towers. Instinctively, I packed my bags, just in case we were needed to leave.

During my Afghanistan deployment, we were briefed that U.S. forces successfully raided Bin Laden’s compound and killed him with no U.S.causalities.

Even during special family weekends, we still performed our duty. On Fathers’ Day weekend, from June 15-17 2012, we flew OPERATION Noble Eagle while President Obama was in the Central United States.