Risk Management Magazine

It’s always sad when a Soldier survives combat only to be killed in a preventable accident once they return home. My friend, John, was barely 20 years old when it happened to him. He was just trying to have a little fun. Life is sometimes cruel.

I think every pilot has a story to share about something foolish they did as a young aviator. Most of us are now older and wiser and might not want to mention some of the things we did in the past. I, however, see value in sharing these mistakes.

In 2008, I was part of the 14th Combat Engineer Battalion, 555th Combat Engineer Brigade. The unit was reassigned from Kirkuk, in the northern region of Iraq, to Tallil Air Base in the south.