Civic leaders land in Lone Star State Published May 23, 2018 By Airman 1st Class Noah J. Tancer 910th Airlift Wing Public Affairs JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-LACKLAND, Texas -- At approximately 9 a.m. on May 17, 2018, 31 civic leaders and six military escorts participating in the 910th Airlift Wing’s 2018 Civic Leader Tour, boarded a 912th Air Refueling Wing KC-135 Stratotanker bound for the 433rd Airlift Wing’s flightline, Joint Base San Antonio, Texas. During the flight, participants interacted with the pilots and crew and watched the earth pass by underneath through the KC-135’s windows, including the flight deck and the fueling boom operation windows. It was through the fueling boom operation window that the participants watched an in-air refueling of a B-52 Stratofortress. Once on the ground at the 433rd AW flightline, participants debarked the KC-135 and boarded the bus they would be traveling in from location to location the rest of the tour. The first stop on the agenda was lunch at the Acadiana Café, a family-style restaurant owned by an honorary commander of the 433rd AW, that serves Cajun classics and seafood. With full stomachs and a bit of time to walk off the plane ride, the participants made their way back to the 433rd AW’s flightline to see a static display of the largest aircraft in the U.S. Air Force, a C-5M Super Galaxy. After taking in the full size of the C-5 that is big enough to hold 281,001 pounds of cargo, the participants saw the size of San Antonio through the windows of the bus while on their way to the Greater San Antonio Chamber of Commerce, where they were welcomed to Military City USA, the trademarked nickname of San Antonio. After the Chamber of Commerce welcomed participants and treated them to a social mixer, there was only a short walk to The Historic Menger Hotel; the place participants would be resting their heads for the night. But before the night ended, participants toured the Alamo, where 180 Texan soldiers made their last stand to impede General Antonio López de Santa Anna’s army during the Texas Revolution. Most participants then made their way to San Antonio River Walk to enjoy good food and continue the comradery into the late hours of the night. The next morning after breakfast, the participants boarded the bus from the day before and traveled to the JBSA-Lackland Basic Military Training Parade Ground to watch a BMT graduation parade of more than seven hundred new U.S. Air Force Airmen. Participants then left the world of Air Force and made their way onto Camp Bullis, an Army training location. At Camp Bullis, twenty of the participants volunteered to hop into the seats of four training Humvees and take part in a Convoy Operation Training Simulator. Everyone then watched a Humvee Roll Over Simulator and was briefed on how soldiers are trained to get out of an overturned Humvee. A walkthrough of a training medical treatment tent meant to mimic a deployed environment was the last stop on the civic leader tour before participants left Camp Bullis on their last bus ride to the aircraft that would take them home. At approximately 4:30 p.m. on the 433rd AW flightline, 31 civic leaders and six military escorts boarded a 912th ARW KC-135 bound for Youngstown Air Reserve Station and landed at approximately 9 p.m. ending the 910th AW’s 2018 Civic Leader Tour. The 910th AW holds civic leader tours to attain advocates for Youngstown Air Reserve Station and provide the public with an understanding of the Air Force’s mission and capabilities.