SLIDESHOW: See more pictures from the homecoming
HILL AIR FORCE BASE -- A historic unit of F-16 pilots returned to familiar skies Tuesday afternoon.
Thirteen F-16 Fighting Falcons from Hill's 421st Fighter Squadron, a unit under the 388th Fighter Wing, touched down on the base flightline after a three-month deployment at Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan.
The group was the first operational unit of F-16s to serve a deployment in Afghanistan.
"This was a historic deployment for F-16s," said Col. Scott Zobrist, commander of the 388th Fighter Wing. "These guys went in and proved you can operate safely over Bagram."
Zobrist said that in previous years, the air field at Bagram was in such bad condition it was dangerous terrain for F-16s because the jets could suck up rocks and other harmful materials.
"In the early 2000s when we first went in there, the air field was in pretty sad shape, and F-16s have a tendency to ingest rocks," Zobrist said. "After a lot of work, the air field is now in beautiful shape and F-16s can operate safely there. There has been some other fighter aircraft over there, but now the F-16 is added to the mix."
In July, F-16 jets, pilots, maintainers and personnel assigned to the 421st Fighter Squadron and 421st Aircraft Maintenance Unit deployed for Operation Enduring Freedom.
The unit's primary mission was to maintain security and stability in the region by providing close air support for coalition ground troops.
More than 250 Airmen from the 388th and 419th Fighter Wings, and a contingent of support personnel from different units on base, returned home in the early hours of Tuesday morning from the same deployment.
The pilots left Shaw Air Force Base in South Carolina early Tuesday and returned to a large gathering of family and friends.
"I started getting emotional as we started driving up to the base," said Mairead Gosnell, wife of pilot Lt. Col. Tim Gosnell, of Layton.
"This was his third deployment in four years, so I'm pretty much ready for him to be home for good."
Gosnell said the highlight of his day was seeing his 2-year-old twins, Keira and Kylie.
"It feels awesome to be home," he said. "I can't believe how much my girls have changed in three months."
The deployment was Ogden resident Capt. Tommy Fugler's first.
"It was a great experience," he said. "It was great to see how our entire military integrates and works together."
The 421st was the unit of George B. Houghton, the Hill pilot killed in June when his F-16 crashed at the Utah Test and Training Range. Houghton would likely have been deployed with the unit to Afghanistan.
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