U.S., Iraqi AF work together to improve safety practices Published Sept. 11, 2009 By Staff Sgt. Daniel Martinez 506th Air Expeditionary Group Public Affairs KIRKUK REGIONAL AIR BASE, Iraq -- U.S. and Iraqi safety personnel have made significant strides to improve operational safety practices and procedures here. Capt. Kevin Jamieson, 506th Air Expeditionary Group, chief of safety, worked closely with Maj. Mohammed Fida-Aldeen, Iraqi air force squadron 3 safety representative, to enhance safety guidelines for Iraqi pilots and servicemembers. The captain, deployed here from the 433rd Weapons Squadron, USAF Weapons School, Nellis Air Force Base, Nev., provided guidance and strategies on unit inspections, documentation, and meetings. "Back in the U.S., we'll have flight safety meetings where we bring all the pilots together and talk about recent mishaps and things pilots can do to prep themselves better to fly," Captain Jamieson said. "One of the things that we did was host a safety meeting with Iraqi squadron 3 and I gave them our lessons learned about fatigue, and how to best prepare your body to get the required sleep so that you're at your optimal performance when you go out and fly." Captain Jamieson noted one particular improvement which helped reduce certain hazards to U.S. and Iraqi servicemembers. "When aircraft are flying with ordinance, sometimes they can have malfunctions where the bomb or missile they are carrying will not come off the airplane and there's a certain location on the airfield they go to once they land that reduces the hazard in case that bomb or missile accidentally ignites, takes off, or detonates," he said. "When we first got here, the location for the hung ordinance wasn't the best location as far as maximizing safety ... so we relocated that and I took Major Fida-Aldeen out there to show him the thought process we went through to relocate it, why it was the safest place on the airfield and how it minimized risks to other individuals." Working as a team, Captain Jamieson and Major Fida-Aldeen also found a way to incorporate cultural awareness. "Something I learned from him that I never even thought about was their considerations for Ramadan and how fasting can affect them," Captain Jamieson said. Ramadan is an Islamic religious observance where Muslim's fast from dawn to sunset for 30 days. "In this air force now, after the war we didn't have something about flying and fasting," Major Fida-Aldeen said. "Nobody studied this thing, how much the pilot needs food, how much sleep he needs ... so what I did, I made a study and after that we had some ideas, made some changes like limiting the hours of flying during Ramadan and concentrate on night flying and training on the simulator." Major Fida-Aldeen drew inspiration from U.S. Air Force safety videos, creating his own videos with key safety messages for his military comrades. "I'd get two pilots from my squadron to act in this video and I would change it from English to Arabic to help the other pilots," said the Iraqi officer. The major emphasized the importance of safety and continuous commitment to provide awareness training for his fellow servicemembers. "So what we are doing, we are doing new ideas not only for my squadron, but also for Iraqi air force safety," he said. Sharing the major's view on safety, Captain Jamieson stressed the importance of what it means for the Iraqi military. "It's important for us to share our safety culture with the Iraqi's," Captain Jamieson said. "Helping the Iraqi's develop a sound safety culture early on will help them minimize the risk to personnel and equipment as they continue to rebuild their Air Force."
