IP returns from Qatar

COLUMBUS AIR FORCE BASE, Miss. -- Capt. Jason Rubenstein, 41st Flying Training Squadron, was deployed to Camp As Sayliyah, Qatar, for two and a half months. He was the chief air liaison for the United States Central Command Joint Operations Center there.
"Being in a joint operations environment is a great opportunity for people to learn more about how our military works. Interacting with military members from the other branches, Army, Navy, Marines, and other country's military, is a great way to learn about interactions between ally nations and within our own military," said Captain Rubenstein.
Captain Rubenstein, along with two other individuals, manned the control 24 hours a day, working eight hour shifts. "The job was repetitious. I worked, ate, worked out, slept then worked again," said Captain Rubenstein.
When asked about the tasks that he handled during his deployment, he stated that he "tracked different airborne assets." At any given time he needed to know where these assets were, how many there were and how many were readily available upon a moments notice.
While attention to detail is extremely important in every Airman's daily duties, attention to detail was extremely important to Captain Rubenstein. "The numbers we would gather would go directly through my supervisor to the commander of CENTCOM. And this happened everyday," said Captain Rubenstein "It is critical that you do things with attention to detail and provide accurate information."
Captain Rubenstein had the opportunity to interact with Army General John Abizaid, commander of the United States Central Command. Surrounding one of General Abizaid's visits, Capt. Rubenstein and his fellow military members were interviewed by Barbara Starr, a reported for CNN. In the days to follow they were able to see themselves on television discussing their roles in the deployed environment.
While in Qatar, Captain Rubenstein was able to enjoy Doha, the capital city. He enjoyed interacting with the local society and shopping at the local stores. Seeing how the citizens of Doha live in comparison to citizens of the United States was interesting to Capt. Rubenstein.
Captain Rubenstein offered some advice to deploying Airmen, "Have all your personal affairs in order before you go so that you don't have to worry about it while you are gone. Take care of your family and make sure everyone is set while you are gone. If something was to happen while you are deployed, make sure that aspect is taken care of."
He also said that if there is a goal that seems to always be put on the back burner, there is no better time to achieve it then during a deployment.
"Being deployed gives people a greater perspective on how our military works," said Captain Rubenstein.