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Aidan Higgins - Tecoma airman wraps up Middle East mission
FOR Leading Aircraftman Aidan Higgins who grew up in Tecoma in Victoria, his six month deployment to the Middle East Area of Operations (MEAO) with the Force Support Unit rotation one (FSU 1) is over.
The 27 year-old Air Force warehouse supplier spent his time at FSU 1 packaging and forwarding vital equipment and stores to Australian troops deployed to Operation Slipper in Afghanistan.
"One of the best things about working at FSU 1 is that it is a tri-service unit, meaning I got to work with Army and Navy personnel too. Most of my mates during the deployment were Army," Aidan said.
"It was also good to do the job you've trained for on deployment overseas."
Before he joined the Air Force Aidan said he worked in a supermarket.
"I wanted to go places and I had a few mates in the Australian Defence Force and they said it was a place where you could move up provided you did the work," Aidan said.
"Since joining I've gained a number of qualifications, including a forklift licence and dangerous goods handling qualifications," he said.
He said when he gets home he'll first go back to his home unit at Air Force base Amberley in south east Queensland to catch up with his mates.
"I'm then going to visit my house at Ipswich, which I bought just before going overseas," Aidan said.
He said he was curious to see what it looked like.
"While I was away my parents, Gail and Peter, went up there for two weeks and furnished it for me," he said.
"Then I'm going to visit my parents, who live in Blackburn in Melbourne.
"Shortly after, some of us from FSU 1 will meet in Sydney for a three-day reunion," Aidan said
He said it felt good to deploy to the Middle East with FSU 1.
"To have supported the personnel in Afghanistan by providing them key supplies has been great,” Aidan said.
"As long as no one complained we were doing the right thing," he said.