Go Bold #69: Colonel Chris Horner reflects on Airborne Early Warning & Control over Afghanistan

It has been 10 years since Canada withdrew from Afghanistan, so to commemorate that milestone we invited senior leaders of the Canadian Armed Forces to reminisce on experiences and lessons learned from combat in Afghanistan.In Episode 64 we had the privilege to speak with Major-General Mike St-Louis, and in Episode 65 with Lieutenant-Colonel Marc Kieley, both of whom are senior leaders in the Canadian Army. They were great conversations with wonderful perspectives, so I highly encourage you to listen to those discussions.For this episode, I am very happy to welcome another great leader, and that is Colonel Chris Horner of the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF). Colonel Horner's experience in Afghanistan is from a different perspective from that of his Army colleagues because he was thousands of feet above the ground while on exchange with the United States Air Force (USAF), where he was serving as an Air Battle Manager on a E-3 Sentry Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) aircraft of the 965th Airborne Air Control Squadron.It's a perspective one doesn't hear too often in the context of counter-insurgency operations in Afghanistan, but it is significant because what he and his colleagues did in the air had very real significance to those on the ground.You'll find the Colonels reflections forthright, informative and at times emotional, and our conversation delved into dealing with adversity and leadership lessons that ensued.We also discuss the recent Defence Policy Update which was released by the Government of Canada, which outlines plans to acquire an airborne early warning capability. It's a wonderful perspective on that capability.I want to recognize that Colonel Horner is serving in the Royal Canadian Air Force, which this year is celebrating its 100th Anniversary, so if you haven't heard Episode 67, you'll definitely want to hear that as well because we had the privilege to speak with Lieutenant-General Eric Kenny, the Commander of the Royal Canadian Air Force. It was a great chat where we discussed all about the RCAF of today and the RCAF of the future! It's a great chat that you do not want to miss!I'm very thankful to Colonel Horner for the time he spent with me, and for his candid reflections about serving during combat operations in Afghanistan. Go Bold!