Creech drone pilot, instructor feted in White House dinner honoring Iraq veterans

By Karoun Demirjian

Friday, March 2, 2012 | 12:24 p.m.

The guest list at this week’s military-focused state dinner – the first formal fete for Iraq veterans since hostilities there ended late last year – included top military commanders, war heroes, and a major from Nevada’s Creech Air Force Base

Major Erik J. Jacobson was, until last month, a pilot and a flight instructor in Creech’s 432nd wing, the unit that operates Predator drones, including many that were flown over Iraq during the war.

Unmanned aerial vehicles like Predator drones are projected to a key growth area in military planning, even as the U.S.’s military commitments wind down. But Jacobson, was the only representative of the remotely-piloted aircraft community at Wednesday’s night’s dinner at the White House.

“It’s an honor to be there…to represent the thousands of airmen that have been in Iraqi freedom,” Jacobson told the Las Vegas Sun the morning after the dinner. “It was amazing to have that kind of up close and personal time. It’s not every day you go to a White House state dinner.”

Jacobson was seated during the dinner with members from the various branches of the service, as well as Dr. Jill Biden, whom he said was “a great advocate for the military and military families.” He met President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama during a cocktail hour prior to the dinner.

The purpose of the affair was to congratulate, appreciate, and yes, toast the work of all the military that served in Iraq through a small group of their representatives.

“To the country we love, to the men and women who defend her, and to that faith – that fundamental American faith – that says no mission is too hard, no challenge is too great,” Obama began, raising a glass to formally toast the troops at the end of his remarks during the dinner. “Through tests and through trials we don’t simply endure, we are stronger than before, knowing that America’s greatest days are still to come. And they are great because of you.”

Jacobson, 35, spent four years at Creech, after having worked as a traditional Air Force fighter pilot. “This was definitely a new type of assignment for me,” he said of his Creech experience. “The interesting thing about what our operations are at Creech is that we supported the war in Iraq from Creech…to know that you had a direct impact on battles and ops on the ground just form being stateside.”

Of course, being stateside has its differences.

“From a family perspective, there’s an advantage of obviously being at home and coming home every night…you’re executing a combat mission and then you drive home and you’re at a your kid’s soccer game,” said Jacobson, a husband and father of two. “Being deployed, that’s a difficulty that you have to work though.”

Jacobson said he also deployed to Iraq during his time with the 432nd on various occasions to work on takeoffs and landings of Predators from bases there – bases that have since closed with the end of hostilities and departure of U.S. troops from the country.

“There’s some great folks that we sat with at the table; we exchanged stories, and talked about our experiences in Iraq,” Jacobson said of the peers in uniform he met at the dinner.

Though Wednesday was his first state dinner, as a senior career officer, Jacobson has had opportunity to observe the military grow and change.

“As a military we’ve grown more joined and have more in common with other services than we were in the past, at least from my perspective,” he said. “And maybe there’s more common ground.”

For Jacobson though, things are still changing: Just a few weeks ago, he departed Nevada for a temporary assignment at the Pentagon, where he is waiting for his next assignment.

He expects his next assignment will build on his experience manning Predators and teaching the next generation of RPA operators to do the same. “But I guess being in the Air Force, your home is where the Air Force sends you,” Jacobson said, joking that he wouldn’t even be all that surprised if he ended up back in Nevada – though that might make it a little harder to commute to state dinners.

“It’s really interesting to be part of a burgeoning technology and kind of a new way – kind of a revolutionary way to fight a war,” he said. “And being a representative of all those guys who participated and deployed…it’s definitely an honor.”