ELDP TX National Guard

For our National Guard/Border Patrol trip we went to Laredo, Camp Swift and Camp Mabry and Navy Ft Worth

 The TX Jt Counterdrug TF was impressive

 At a run-down drug house that was identified for destruction, you can see one of the articles that fell and grew at the entrance.

 the guard partners with Border Patrol and the city to remove these houses

 they made quick work of it

 all gone

 this is the road on the border

 the Laredo rail bridge across the Rio Grande

 Our southern border

 we commuted around Texas in vans

 Beautiful Camp Swift

 our barracks

 we got to shoot a 50 Cal and an M240 machine gun, ammo behind us

 then we got an HH60 ride

 waiting for our ride

 the birds

loading

 the cockpit

 sitting by the open door

 following lead

 my boot by the edge

 Austin

 counter-drug drone

 static displays at Camp Mabry

 impressive tail flash

 we set up a traveling Vietnam memorial wall

 it was an excellent experience, though we had to race the inbound thunderstorms

 dinner at an Indian restaurant

 goat curry

 we had a C-130 ride with the TX ANG

as everyone was strapping in, the Nav came back and recognized me; he was friend from flight school and the Academy, so he had me come up and ride in the cockpit with him

 we got to see the mobile emergency operations center, which I'm sure is getting plenty of work with the current flooding

 from this trip I brought the kids candy apples

 they were a hit

 oh yeah

 then it was farewell to TX until the following month when I returned to San Antonio