MOUNTAIN HOME AIR FORCE BASE, Idaho — An airman stationed at Mountain Home Air Force Base has been honored with the Bronze Star for his actions while deployed to Iraq earlier this year.
Lt. Col. Thomas Nelson, the chief of safety for the 366th Fighter Wing, was assigned as the deputy commander of the 1st Expeditionary Rescue Group at Al Asad Air Base in January when Iran launched a series of missiles at two bases known to house US troops, including Al Asad.
The missile attacks were seen as retaliation for the killing of a top Iranian general the week before.
No U.S. service members died in the attack. And that's a credit to Nelson, according to officials at Mountain Home Air Force Base, who said he "postured nearly 400 personnel for a rapid reposition," allowing them to relocate before the missiles struck.
"This was one of those deployments, as aircrew, I didn't expect to take," Nelson said. "When you deploy, you gotta do the best job that you possibly can - you have to take care of your folks, and try to solve problems for them."
As the representative to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' base master planning team, Nelson developed an infrastructure plan to help prepare for imminent threats to the base.
"The big elements were trying to lead the rescue group to improve their mission, morale and welfare, and recognize the threats targeting all of the assets at Al Asad Air Base," he said. "We came up with force protection measures to deal with those threats and maintain our full operational capability."
Nelson also had a hand in replacing eleven tent structures which, according to officials, strengthened the base's readiness.
"The combat mission capability was maintained, and I'm proud of that," Nelson said.
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