SHAW AIR FORCE BASE, S.C. -- Chief Master Sgt. Henry Gillen, 20th Operations Support Squadron Radar Approach Control chief controller, recently returned home to Shaw, after a four month deployment at Balad Air Base, Iraq. 

During the deployment, Chief Gillen was the control reporting center and route radar approach control chief. He said he learned many things about living in a combat location. 

The most important lesson , he said, is to be prepared and make sure your followers are prepared physically, functionally and personally before deploying. This lesson was reinforced when two members of the chief's team returned early because they were not prepared to deal with the stresses of being away from home, he said. 

Another lesson learned was the importance of following your leaders, leading your followers and taking care of those around you. Senior Master Sgt. Martha Wilkinson, a member of Chief Gillen's team and now the 60th Operations Support Squadron tower chief controller at Travis Air Force Base, Calif., said the deployment was a challenge and was overwhelming at first, but she said she settled in quickly and time passed "in the blink of an eye." 

In her 21 years in the military, Sgt. Wilkinson said nothing could have prepared her for the experience of this deployment because it was her first. She said she was blessed to share her time there with outstanding individuals who looked out for her, did not stifle her and allowed her every opportunity to rise to the challenges she did not think she could conquer. 

One challenge the team faced in Balad was transitioning into a completely different type of airspace. 

When he arrived at Balad, Chief Gillen said there were very noticeable differences in airspace. He said he went from Shaw's sterile environment, with a well-established system and a small airspace responsibility, to Balad's combat airspace, with an ever-changing fluid environment and a large airspace responsibility. The control reporting center is responsible for one-third of Iraq's airspace. 

The mission encompassed much more than what he had expected, said Master Sgt. Scott Thomsen, a member of Chief Gillen's team at Balad and now the 49th Operations Support Squadron assistant chief controller at Holloman Air Force Base, N.M. 

What the team did and worked towards touched far more than the Air Force specialty code that they do at their stateside base. It impacted all the surrounding gulf countries and had a direct impact to the personnel on the ground, Sgt. Thomsen said. 

In the United States, military members integrate combat training while performing every day duties. While deployed, combat comes first, Chief Gillen said. 

For anyone planning on deploying to Balad in the future, Sgt. Wilkinson recommended arriving there with an open mind and no pre-conceived ideas of what it will be like. She said to look forward to a new experience where you will meet new people, increase your abilities professionally and grow stronger as an individual. 

It will be what you make of it. Remember, there is someone who will follow in your footsteps. Your opinion may shape the opinion of someone who deploys after you, Sgt. Wilkinson said.