So, you think we’re going to start withdrawing U.S. forces from Afghanistan this summer? Here’s something that might give you pause: you’ve just spent $130 million building a better gas station for aircraft at the huge U.S. military base at Bagram Airfield, just north of Kabul. Bagram is the central pit stop for the U.S. war effort, and our presence there just keeps on growing.
"Can you do the windshield?" New fueling system rolls out at Bagram / Air Force photo
A senior master sergeant praises the new refueling system, which features a pair of 1.1-million gallon tanks and two miles of pipes. Here’s the first customer: “It is easier and safer,” reports Anatoli Gromov. “It’s also quicker because we don’t have to wait for new trucks.”
If his name seems foreign, that’s because he is: Gromov is the top maintenance man on a commercial plane flying into Bagram. He’s been doing it since 1982, when he first came to Afghanistan, under less friendly circumstances, as a member of the invading Soviet army. The good news: this time he was flying aboard a U.S.-made 747. Kind of makes you wonder who’s going to be flying into Bagram 30 years from now.